Affirmative Action Equal Opportunity Or Special Tr

Affirmative Action Equal Opportunity Or Special Tr Essay, Research Paper AFFIRMATIVE ACTION, EQUAL OPPORTUNITY OR SPECIAL TREATMENT The 1960’s brought about a great revolution in Civil Rights in the United States. Rights for women and minorities were questioned and evaluated. The fact was women and minorities did not have the same rights as white men. Among their many issues that were being assessed was the opportunities, or lack thereof, for their education or employment. This set the stage for what we know as affirmative action. In 1965, President Lyndon B. Johnson issued an executive order #11246. This order required federal contractors to undertake “affirmative action” to increase the number of minorities that they employed. Hence the name affirmative action. This

policy was put in a condensed form in a speech he gave at Howard University. He stated, “We want all Americans to engage in the race (advancement and prosperity) but some are not able to do so because they arrive at the starting line with shackles on their leg”. (Mosley) Understandably, legislation and laws were needed to enforce equal opportunity for women and minorities because of the prejudice mentality that seem to cloud the majority of the people back then. However, affirmative action today seems to mean if you are female or a minority, you will receive special treatment. This is very noticeable by looking at college entrance evaluations and Grimm 2 major corporations (including the state and federal government) hiring practices. Upon asking the questions why this is

allowed to continue at present, the two of the most popular answers are: retribution for past mistakes and to eliminate discrimination in the work force. I do believe there was a time when affirmative action laws were necessary, but in today’s society affirmative action does not equal opportunity but rather special treatment. On every college application there is a question. It is a simple one word question that seems very harmless in its self. That question is “RACE”. I remember the first time I answered that question, I did not think twice about it. Later, I wondered what would be the significant impact of my answer. I learned that schools evaluate the number of applicants from each race before they accept anyone. This is a policy most colleges and universities have and

call it their affirmative action policy. It is said that the objectives of this policy is for the school to promote diversity by having a certain predetermined number of minorities attending. I am in favor of diversity and providing opportunities to minorities. What I am not in favor of the separate standards that make this possible. In order for schools to abide by its affirmative action policies, two different grade point averages (GPA) and ACT scores (college entrance examinations) are acceptable, one for whites and one for minorities. Reviewing the University of California at Berkley admission facts, the average white student that was rejected had a high school GPA of 3.66 and an ACT score of 1142. On the other hand, the average African American student accepted had a high

school GPA of 3.66 and an ACT score of 1030 (Affirmative Action). The justification for this is that minorities do not have the same opportunity to receive the same quality of education of whites. I understand that some school systems are better than others but they all must follow a certain set of guidelines. There are federal laws that require and regulate the Grimm 3 curriculum and academic standards of every private, public, and home school. This is to ensure that every graduating senior, be it from an inner city school in Chicago or a rural school in Iowa, has the same basic preparation for either employment or continued education. Therefore I do not agree with having two separate standards. If there is such a huge difference in the levels of high school education, I believe