Affirmative Action Research Paper
Autor: Spencer Jeffries • September 8, 2016 • Research Paper • 598 Words (3 Pages) • 1,294 Views
Page 1 of 3
- Thesis: Affirmative Action Plans of employers and universities do more harm than good by lowering the standards for minorities and promoting reverse discrimination toward members of the majority group. (Working Thesis, needs work)
- What are Affirmative Action plans?
- Management tool to ensure equal opportunity for minorities and women
- Ensures equal employment, recruitment, and selection opportunities for all races and genders.
- The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP), is a US government agency tasked with ensuring the compliance of these policies.
- Historical Context of AAP
- Kennedy’s executive order
- Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
- First use of term “Affirmative Action”
- 1935 National Labor Relations Act, to take affirmative action against discrimination
- Roosevelt executive order which outlawed hiring practices based in discrimination
- AAP have three main goals (Barbara Bergmann in We Want Jobs: A History of Affirmative Action)
- Overcome discrimination
- Increase diversity within the workforce
- To reduce poverty among groups historically victimized by discrimination
- American Society Should be a Meritocracy (Gary Becker, Univ. Chicago)
- Why should more accomplished applicants or people in general be pushed aside in order to make room for a less accomplished minority
- It shouldn’t matter what race/gender you are, whoever performs the best work should get the offer/promotion/ acceptance etc.
- Meritocracy encourages competition which leads to only the best emerging which is good for overall economy and nation.
- AAP actually create disadvantages for people who use them to get into college
- If selective universities (Harvard/Princeton) lower their standards of admission in order to accommodate for AAP, then these newly admitted students will be towards the end pf the class and fall behind leading to poor morale and leaving them less likely to finish college
- Leads to Racism later on in life
- People might assume that accomplished minorities/ females only got to where they were because of AAP not based on merit
- That can’t be good for self-esteem of minorities/ females
- Affirmative Action Plans tend to lower the standards
- Minorities are often seen as exceptions to the norm during the college application and job application process, what would be good for a white male is now somehow outstanding for a member of a minority group or female.
- Reiterate the fact that meritocracy is the best way of promoting completion and keeping the playing field fair.
- True Market Supply and Demand
- AAP can lead to Reverse Discrimination
- Gratz v. Bollinger
- Supreme court case regarding Affirmative Action policies of University of Michigan undergraduate admissions
- Grutter v. Bollinger
- Supreme Court case where they upheld the affirmative action policies of UMichigan Law School
- AAP promote the acceptance/ promotion of minorities/females
- This could and has led to the majority group being discriminated against through no fault of his/her own.
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