The Pros And Cons Of Affirmative Action

Ian Fleming once said, “Once is happenstance. Twice is coincidence. [But] three times is enemy action” (Ian Fleming). Not once nor twice, but many times throughout the history of the United States, and the world, discrimination, whether overt or subtle, has occurred and continues to take place. In the United States, discrimination has typically adversely affected the lives of non-white persons. People from minority groups are more likely to come from a lower socioeconomic background than their white counterparts. While prejudice and marginalization cannot be completely stomped out, these “enemy” actions can and should be weakened through current and future civil rights policies, including affirmative action.
Affirmative Action was put into
Many people agree with the statement that money makes the world go around. Money may not be the absolute key to happiness, but it does make things easier. So, that quality education is attainable but not guaranteed. Some are in a better predisposed position to receive admittance into an institute of higher learning than others. For example, colleges utilize SAT scores as a criterion for admission. High scores greatly increase one’s likelihood to be admitted. But how are they achieved? Well, let’s compare a black student with a white student, the latter usually having more resources at his disposal. Both are equal in their academic subjects. However, the white student achieved a much higher score on the SAT than his black counterpart. How did this happen? The white student probably could have afforded a tutor or multiple preparation books, while the black student could not but still tried his very best. This inequality due to socioeconomic status is what affirmative action seeks to rectify. In addition to these scores, GPAs, and extracurricular activities, affirmative action makes the college admission process more holistic. Through affirmative action, colleges can view some of the challenges minority students have faced in their lives and take that into account instead of blindly assuming that those students are less capable of high academic performance. They are capable, and only require the
In the past, women and disabled people were given lower wage jobs or no jobs at all compared to their male or enabled counterparts. Even though this still true to some extent today, without affirmative action this gap would not be closing. Sometimes disability insurance is still not enough to cover living expenses, and other times a family’s change in financial situation may force a wife or mother to work outside of the home. U.S government jobs are covered by affirmative action, as well as jobs offered by employers who have been required by court judgment to have a written affirmative action plan (“Affirmative Action” HR). With these bright job prospects, which can be further irradiated by having a college degree, minorities, women, and people with disabilities do not have to worry about remaining in the same niche for the rest of their lives. Although upward mobility is not always easy, affirmative action has removed some of the obstacles in the way, leading to a better quality of