<p>The Definition:</p>
<p>Affirmative action” means positive steps taken to increase the representation of women and minorities in areas of employment, education, and business from which they have been historically excluded. When those steps involve preferential selection—selection on the basis of race, gender, or ethnicity—affirmative action generates intense controversy.</p>
<p>A great resource on this topic:</p>
<p>People on both sides of the issue should check it out</p>
<p>Fizik...what are your statistics in response to?</p>
<p>kk, yes you did. You took my words out of context of what i was trying to say. you only took the negative parts of my post which consisted of both negative and positive aspects.</p>
<p>These 3 particular people did not meet my expectations as students of their institutions. I work with and have met many other people from MIT, Stanford, and Yale who are in general of much higher academic and scientific caliber (I am in a research internship at a national research center which also has a minority outreach program).</p>
<p>The 3 particular students at this internship conducted research projects which I thought were poorly done. In addition, I thought that their presentations were unprofessional. However, I do acknowledge that these 3 girls were very nice and very intelligent. I am friends will all 3 and we just had lunch together.</p>
<p>Other students in this internship who go to universities such as Stanford, UPenn, and USC had much better research projects, ones that are capable of being published.</p>
<p>In no way did i make any generalization about any race. I just stated my experiences in an effort to give some real examples to this discussion which seems to be purely theoretical right now.</p>
<p>I am personally against AA but I do acknowledge that it is important and a permanent part of our society.</p>
<p>Also, everyone on this board should look up both Michigan cases... the undergrad ...and the law school</p>
<p>One was turned down...one wasn't?</p>
<p>Do you know why?</p>
<p>These cases will give you very good insight into affirmative action at universities</p>
<p>Page 11, post 161</p>
<p>More info:</p>
<p>Send or Print this page
National NOW Times >> August 1995 >> Article
The Origins of Affirmative Action</p>
<p>by Marquita Sykes</p>
<p>Affirmative action, the set of public policies and initiatives designed to help eliminate past and present discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin, is under attack. </p>
<p>Originally, civil rights programs were enacted to help African Americans become full citizens of the United States. The Thirteenth Amendment to the Constitution made slavery illegal; the Fourteenth Amendment guarantees equal protection under the law; the Fifteenth Amendment forbids racial discrimination in access to voting. The 1866 Civil Rights Act guarantees every citizen "the same right to make and enforce contracts ... as is enjoyed by white citizens ... "
In 1896, the Supreme Court's decision in Plessy v. Ferguson upheld a "separate, but equal" doctrine that proved to be anything but equal for African Americans. The decision marked the end of the post-Civil War reconstruction era as Jim Crow laws spread across the South.
In 1941, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed Executive Order 8802 which outlawed segregationist hiring policies by defense-related industries which held federal contracts. Roosevelt's signing of this order was a direct result of efforts by Black trade union leader, A. Philip Randolph.
During 1953 President Harry S. Truman's Committee on Government Contract Compliance urged the Bureau of Employment Security "to act positively and affirmatively to implement the policy of nondiscrimination . . . ."
The 1954 Supreme Court decision in Brown v. Board of Education overturned Plessy v. Ferguson.
The actual phrase "affirmative action" was first used in President Lyndon Johnson's 1965 Executive Order 11246 which requires federal contractors to "take affirmative action to ensure that applicants are employed, and that employees are treated during employment, without regard to their race, creed, color, or national origin."
In 1967, Johnson expanded the Executive Order to include affirmative action requirements to benefit women.
Other equal protection laws passed to make discrimination illegal were the 1964 Civil Rights Act, Title II and VII of which forbid racial discrimination in "public accommodations" and race and sex discrimination in employment, respectively; and the 1965 Voting Rights Act adopted after Congress found "that racial discrimination in voting was an insidious and pervasive evil which had been perpetuated in certain parts of the country through unremitting and ingenious defiance of the Constitution."
Much of the opposition to affirmative action is framed on the grounds of so-called "reverse discrimination and unwarranted preferences." In fact, less than 2 percent of the 91,000 employment discrimination cases pending before the Equal Employment Opportunities Commission are reverse discrimination cases. Under the law as written in Executive Orders and interpreted by the courts, anyone benefitting from affirmative action must have relevant and valid job or educational qualifications. </p>
<hr>
<p>The U. of Michigan Cases: A Split Decision on Affirmative Action</p>
<p>Three days before announcing the Lawrence v. Texas decision, the Supreme Court issued a ruling on the affirmative action policies in two cases challenging the admissions programs at the University of Michigan undergraduate program and the University of Michigan law school. </p>
<p>In 1978, the Court had ruled in Regents of the University of California v. Bakke that a school couldn't use quotas, but could take race and ethnicity into account with admissions programs "narrowly tailored" to achieve educational diversity. </p>
<p>The Supreme Court considered whether the two University of Michigan programs were flexible enough to provide each applicant with the "individualized consideration" necessary to withstand constitutional challenge: </p>
<p>Gratz v. Bollinger focused on the university's undergraduate admissions program, which awarded points to applicants based on grades, test scores, curriculum strength, geography, leadership and other factors, and awarded every applicant from an under-represented racial or ethnic minority group 20 points of the 100 needed to guarantee admission. </p>
<p>Grutter v. Bollinger addressed the University of Michigan Law School, which evaluated applicants based on grades, academics, athletics, children of alumni, and men enrolled in nursing programs, and considered membership in a racial or ethnic minority group as a "plus factor" in admissions.
In decisions announced June 23, the court ruled 6-3 against the "point system" in the University of Michigan's undergraduate admissions policy, but upheld the law school's admissions policy in a 5-4 decision. Justice Sandra Day O'Connor said that affirmative action policies are still needed in America, though she hoped their days were numbered. "We expect that 25 years from now, the use of racial preferences will no longer be necessary to further the interest approved today." Feminist leaders noted that the 5 to 4 split in Grutter is another example of the Court's delicate balance, but expressed relief that the Court specifically recognized the benefits of diversity in its ruling. </p>
<p>"Widespread racial and gender inequality still exist in virtually every aspect of our society, and higher education is no exception," Gandy said. "The University of Michigan policies have created opportunities, helped to overcome past discrimination, and opened avenues for learning and cultural exchange that benefit students of all races."</p>
<p>ok.. so more info (sorry..this is my area of study)</p>
<p>Timeline of Affirmative Action: legislation, court cases...unbiased</p>
<p>And more info...and again, unbiased:</p>
<p>Docta, I'm very curious to know of what your general expectations of a Stanford student are. </p>
<p>I, being the son of two Stanford alum, two Stanford employees (one at then, UCSF Stanford Hospital, the other a former Associate Provost), involuntary dorm resident, and being born and raised on campus, hope I have some perception of what to expect of a Stanford student. Really, b/c the diagram and spectrum is so wide that I will hand you profiles of hundreds of students that will throw your perception out the window.</p>
<p>Most perticularly</p>
<p>I was referring 100% to the research output in my internship. Nothing else. Sorry if I didn't make that clear. But in general here the Stanford/MIT kids have amazing research output, which I didnt see in those particular 3 kids.</p>
<p>However, I consider all three girls very intelligent and very nice. Like I've said many times. I'm sure they fit right into their respective schools.</p>
<p>I really hope EVERYONE takes the time to understand both sides of the issues....NOT to simply attack and debate. Read for understanding, not to figure out a counter-arguement. Try to understand the complexities of affirmative action; the valid points and problems on both sides of the issue. It is when you do that, you really do educate yourself.</p>
<p>Speech defining concept of affirmative action</p>
<p>In an eloquent speech to the graduating class at Howard University, President Johnson frames the concept underlying affirmative action, asserting that civil rights laws alone are not enough to remedy discrimination:
"You do not wipe away the scars of centuries by saying: 'now, you are free to go where you want, do as you desire, and choose the leaders you please.' You do not take a man who for years has been hobbled by chains, liberate him, bring him to the starting line of a race, saying, 'you are free to compete with all the others,' and still justly believe you have been completely fair . . . This is the next and more profound stage of the battle for civil rights. We seek not just freedom but opportunity—not just legal equity but human ability—not just equality as a right and a theory, but equality as a fact and as a result."</p>
<p>But understand, on what basis would Stanford admissions be able to judge an applicant's interpersonal skills, presentation skills, or their professionalism?</p>
<p>You should expect consistancy in intellectual and writing expectations. But in terms of research output they could very from A to Z, from last year's Rhode Scholar to the current student on Big Brother wearing the ripped Stanford tube-bra. Also, are the majority on your Stanford interns Asian or Non-Asia b/c with honesty, they are almost two seperate student bodies (and I mean that socially, not judging intellectually)</p>
<p>Affirmative Action for white men?</p>
<p>A must read:</p>
<p>Affirmative action in South Africa-recovering from apartheid:</p>
<p>latoya, I truly respect your opinion and appreciate your posting many interesting aspects of your research, which I will read thoroughly when I have time. </p>
<p>But I just read your last post (Howard University speech) and just feel so disappointed. </p>
<p>I am not a minority so you would be right saying I don't know "what it feels like." But, coming from a very liberal city, I have to say that to hear African Americans say society is not doing enough to accomodate them makes me sick. </p>
<p>If anything, the majority of white people GO OUT OF THEIR WAY to not offend minorities IN ANY WAY. The fear of being called a racist is possibly the worst insult a decent white person can have hurled at them. Because any injustice a minority might experience can be chalked up to the white person in the situation being a racist, white people really want to avoid confrontation of any sort. </p>
<p>I feel like minorities concentrate so much on the injustices suffered that they don't even see that most white people aren't even thinking about it. To most of us, minorities are JUST PEOPLE! </p>
<p>So please stop playing victim.</p>
<p>I think there are around 7 kids total here from stanford. two are asian and four are white. The other is african-american.</p>
<p>I understand that research capability doesn't apply to all kids who go to Stanford. However consider the fact that all 7 of these students are science-related (i know that 4 are humbio and 1 is chem) and are spending their summers in this internship out of their dedication for science and their future in the medical field.</p>
<p>One could argue that those science-related students that don't have strength in research might find affinity in clinical practice. I used to believe that before I entered this internship. The more I stay at the hospital, the more i realize the importance of scienctific thinking, the ability to conduct serious research, and the ability to present one's findings in a professional way.</p>
<p>It's also weird how you mention the fact that asians are in a different social group because the two asian Stanfordians(is that right?) hate each other and are much closer with the other Stanford students. I walked into the cafeteria today and I saw one sitting with two other white stanfordians and the other sitting with the others.</p>
<p>I remember someone quoting Martin Luther King....here are some of his words:</p>
<p>Something positive must be done... In 1863 the Negro was told that he was free as a result of the Emancipation Proclamation. But he was not given any land to make that freedom meaningful. And the irony of it all is that at the same time the nation failed to do anything for the black man -- through an act of Congress it was giving away millions of acres of land in the West and Midwest -- which meant that it was willing to undergird its white peasants from Europe with an economic floor...Not only that, it provided agents to further their expertise in farming. Not only that, as the years unfolded it provided low interest rates so that they could mechanize their farms. And to this day thousands of these very persons are receiving millions of dollars in federal subsidies every year not to farm.</p>
<p>"And these are so often the very people who tell Negroes that they must lift themselves by their own bootstraps...</p>
<p>"We must come to see that the roots of racism are very deep in our country, and there must be something positive and massive in order to get rid of all the effects of racism and the tragedies of racial injustice." -- "Remaining Awake," 1968 (271).</p>
<p>For more quotes...</p>
<p><a href="http://www.inmotionmagazine.com/mlk3.html%5B/url%5D">http://www.inmotionmagazine.com/mlk3.html</a></p>
<p>Ok.. CityGal.. please develop your analytical skills.</p>
<p>That quote was by Lyndon B. Johnson... I was simply stating the origins of the Affirmative Action.</p>
<p>I am not playing victim.... I have college degree and continuing on for my masters and possibly my Ph.D</p>
<p>" am not a minority so you would be right saying I don't know "what it feels like." But, coming from a very liberal city, I have to say that to hear African Americans say society is not doing enough to accomodate them makes me sick."</p>
<p>WOW ...is all I can say. Do you realize how you sound?</p>