Affirmative action has been a widely debated topic for some time. It has been used as a tool to help stop discrimination in many areas such as the workplace, education, and in government; however, some believe that the use of affirmative action is in itself, discriminatory. “Schuette v. The Coalition to Defend Affirmative Action…” is a current United States Supreme Court case that is dealing with the matter. The case has been in the making for over eight years, originating from the state of Michigan in 2006 from the introduction of Proposition 2. To best understand the entirety of the case, one must take a look into the legal history of the case, starting back to just before the introduction of Proposition 2.
In order to gain an understanding of the creation and implementation of Proposition 2, one must take into account two important cases prior to the proposal. The first case, Grutter v. Bollinger, deals with a white applicant who was rejected admission to the University of Michigan’s Law School. As clarified by Rose, Grutter was a student who had been waitlisted and inevitably denied admission to the university. She sued on the grounds that the Law School admission process violated the Fourteenth Amendment by using race as a factor; however, the Court held that in fact, the Law School did not violate any Amendment (Rose3). The next case, Gratz v. Bollinger, followed the same lines only dealing with University admissions as opposed to the Law School admission process. Rose states, “…The Court rejected the University's admissions practices because the University automatically awarded points to minority applicants based solely on their race” (Rose4). In other words, the University cannot simply award points based on race when it i...
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Rose, Monica L. "Proposal 2 And The Ban On Affirmative Action: An Uncertain Future For The University Of Michigan In Its Quest For Diversity." The Boston University Public Interest Law Journal 17.(2008): 309. LexisNexis Academic: Law Reviews. Web. 16 Apr. 2014.
The Plessy vs. Ferguson (1896) ‘equal but separate’ decision robbed it of its meaning and confirmed this wasn’t the case as the court indicated this ruling did not violate black citizenship and did not imply superior and inferior treatment ,but it indeed did as it openly permitted racial discrimination in a landmark decision of a 8-1 majority ruling, it being said was controversial, as white schools and facilities received near to more than double funding than black facilities negatively contradicted the movement previous efforts on equality and maintaining that oppression on
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As a result, this paper reasons that the Fair-Start Defense based on race and gender is a faulty justification for affirmative action because it cannot be fairly applied in the United States of America today. However, affirmative action itself should be permitted to be used in case the state once again unfairly discriminates social groups.
We all have heard regarding the controversial arguments and debates regarding whether affirmative action is valid under U.S. Constitution. Before discussing whether to support or refute affirmative action, there is a need for all of us to know what affirmative action really is. By definition, affirmative action policies are those institutions and organizations vigorously engages in an effort work of improving the lives of minorities in the United States (NCSL). This means that institutions attempt to find ways to provide groups that have been historically excluded from American society equal accesses to public necessities such as education, salary pay, and so forth. To me, the application of the affirmative action in the society we live in clearly violates the Fourteenth Amendment, which forbids authorities to “deny...any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws” (The Library of Congress). Throughout this research paper we will go into details and explain four reasons why affirmative action violates the Fourteenth Amendments and should be unconstitutional. These reasons are as follows: the development of reverse discrimination, the creation of stigma against women and minorities, the buildup of racial tension, and the fact of attempting to solve a racial problem that no longer exist.
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Discrimination is still a chronic global issue, and drastic inequalities still exist at the present time. Thus, the Affirmative Action Law is an important tool to many minorities most especially to women, and people of color, for the reason that this program provides an equality on educational, and professional opportunities for every qualified individual living in the United States. Without this program, a higher education would have been impossible for a “minority students” to attain. Additionally, without the Affirmative Action, a fair opportunity to have a higher-level career...
United States of America. U.S. Supreme Court. Legal Information Institute. Cornell University Law School, 1 Apr. 2003. 13 Nov. 2013
Today there is considerable disagreement in the country over Affirmative Action with the American people. MSNBC reported a record low in support for Affirmative Action with 45% in support and 45% opposing (Muller, 2013). The affirmative action programs have afforded all genders and races, exempting white males, a sense of optimism and an avenue to get the opportunities they normally would not be eligible for. This advantage includes admission in colleges or hiring preferences with public and private jobs; although Affirmative Action has never required quotas the government has initiated a benefits program for the schools and companies that elect to be diversified. The advantages that are received by the minorities’ only take into account skin color, gender, disability, etc., are what is recognized as discriminatory factors. What is viewed as racism to the majority is that there ar...
The focus of this paper is on the history of affirmative action and its relevance to our society. Affirmative action focuses on the importance of equality and equal opportunity among all people in terms of education and employment. In coordination with the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Equal Employment Opportunities Act of 1972, the affirmative action policy was submitted by federal agencies. Is it not true that ethnic minorities do not have the same opportunities in life as whites, and that women should be entitled to the same opportunities as men? This act is only a means to help the less advantaged members of our society. In this case the less advantage would be those of color and women (www.infoplease.com).