The Failure Of Action: An Analysis Of Affirmative Action
Affirmative action ultimately fails in its attempt to address the social imbalance caused by past discrimination because it only treats the symptoms rather than the cause. Do you agree?
A growing number of equality programs, also known as affirmative action, which include quotas, minority scholarships and job opportunities based on diversity, have been proposed by governments throughout the world, as measures to diminish the inherited discrimination towards different groups of our society. But what is the purpose of creating an anti-discrimination policy when in fact it can create the exact opposite?
The first problem with this policy is the fact that is trying to end discrimination with discrimination. Seeking to reconcile the unjust events …show more content…
Rather than promoting the most talented one it puts race as the dominant factor in admissions and hiring processes. An example which exhibits this issue of affirmative action with regard to admissions is the case of Allan Bakke, a highly qualified student with an impressive GPA was rejected from two major U.S universities on the ground of his white skin colour. Affirmative action undermines one of the central statements of motivation that parents usually tell their children at a younger age which is that by working hard, they will be rewarded in the future. So these children build their hard working attitude in expectation of a high-pay off in the years to come, and destroying their hopes would change the way new generations think about probable perspectives in their …show more content…
For example in cases of university admissions, candidates that come from poorer families or minority ethnicities should be helped because they have faced a higher level of difficulty in their everyday life that may have created severe obstacles in their absorption path of knowledge. In cases where students that were raised in richer families had all the commodities needed for a proper study environment, the ones that came from average or economically disadvantaged families, maybe had the need to make their own way of living causing an excessive stress level in their daily life. So, one must argue that this category of less fortunate people should be given aid to stand at the same level with other groups that might have had a touch of luck regarding their financial situation. However, this is not the way that equality is created. For instance, based on data published by the Hoover Institution , the preferential admissions benefit minority applicants from upper and middle-class backgrounds. In addition, because admissions are a zero-sum game, preferences hurt poor white applicants and even many Asians, who meet admissions standards in disproportionate numbers. Also these policies may increase racial or ethnic tensions. Group members may develop a huge anger against other minorities if they feel that they are being kicked out of the selection process due to
A growing number of equality programs, also known as affirmative action, which include quotas, minority scholarships and job opportunities based on diversity, have been proposed by governments throughout the world, as measures to diminish the inherited discrimination towards different groups of our society. But what is the purpose of creating an anti-discrimination policy when in fact it can create the exact opposite?
The first problem with this policy is the fact that is trying to end discrimination with discrimination. Seeking to reconcile the unjust events …show more content…
Rather than promoting the most talented one it puts race as the dominant factor in admissions and hiring processes. An example which exhibits this issue of affirmative action with regard to admissions is the case of Allan Bakke, a highly qualified student with an impressive GPA was rejected from two major U.S universities on the ground of his white skin colour. Affirmative action undermines one of the central statements of motivation that parents usually tell their children at a younger age which is that by working hard, they will be rewarded in the future. So these children build their hard working attitude in expectation of a high-pay off in the years to come, and destroying their hopes would change the way new generations think about probable perspectives in their …show more content…
For example in cases of university admissions, candidates that come from poorer families or minority ethnicities should be helped because they have faced a higher level of difficulty in their everyday life that may have created severe obstacles in their absorption path of knowledge. In cases where students that were raised in richer families had all the commodities needed for a proper study environment, the ones that came from average or economically disadvantaged families, maybe had the need to make their own way of living causing an excessive stress level in their daily life. So, one must argue that this category of less fortunate people should be given aid to stand at the same level with other groups that might have had a touch of luck regarding their financial situation. However, this is not the way that equality is created. For instance, based on data published by the Hoover Institution , the preferential admissions benefit minority applicants from upper and middle-class backgrounds. In addition, because admissions are a zero-sum game, preferences hurt poor white applicants and even many Asians, who meet admissions standards in disproportionate numbers. Also these policies may increase racial or ethnic tensions. Group members may develop a huge anger against other minorities if they feel that they are being kicked out of the selection process due to