Affirmative Action

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Affirmative action is not something new. ; Breaking breaking down the barriers that prevented individuals from having equal opportunities was and still remains the purpose of affirmative action. The programs were designed to open up opportunities in education and employment – to balance the playing field. President Lyndon Johnson expressed his beliefs in 1965, "You do not take a person who, for years, has been hobbled by chains and liberate him [or her], bring him [or her] up to the starting line of a race and then say you are free to compete with all the others, and still just believe that you have been completely fair" (The Leadership Conference, 2014). One might argue that discrimination no longer exists so the need for affirmative action is no longer necessary. On the other hand , one might argue the need to continue with affirmative action; , however, with changes. Affirmative action is important to our society in the past and the future; and it needs to continue as it is currently without changes. Affirmative action was created to beas a temporary policy to aide African Americans and other minorities, such asincluding women, with opportunities equal to those received by the majority of whites males. Affirmative action policies (AAP) create diversity and provide special preferences to minorities. The courts created laws that were “race-conscious” to promote minority opportunities in education, employment, and government contracts. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 provided the framework for affirmative action policy (The Leadership Conference, 2014). Affirmative action plans administered by the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs required “good faith” efforts to include women, minorities, race, and gender . While affi... ... middle of paper ... ... It’s faulty research that sets them apart. Retrieved from http://www2.psychology.uiowa.edu/faculty/harvey/Men_are_from_Earth.pdf Commemorative Air Force. (2013). A brief history of the Tuskegee Airmen. Retrieved from http://www.redtail.org/the-airmen-a-brief-history/ Gage, F. D. (1863). Ain’t I A Woman? Retrieved, from http://www.sojournertruth.org/Library/Speeches/AintIAWoman.htm King, Jr, M. L. (1963). Letter from Birmingham Jail. Retrieved from http://www.africa.upenn.edu/Articles_Gen/Letter_Birmingham.html The Leadership Conference. (2014). Civil rights 101. Retrieved from http://www.civilrights.org/resources/civilrights101/affirmaction.html Woolf, V. (1929). A room of one’s own. Retrieved from http://www.haverford.edu/psych/ddavis/psych214/woolf.room.html Woolf, V. (n.d.). Professions for women. Retrieved from http://s.spachman.tripod.com/Woolf/professions.htm

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