At the time affirmative action was established, there was an apparent need for a change and a way to ensure the rights of those who were being denied equality. It was necessary for the government to set up a regulation requiring people to disband their ignorance. In 1965 and for many of the years following, affirmative action allowed many people the chance at op

Some university systems have adopted what has been termed the “x%” policy. Basically, these policies guarantee admission to students in the top x percent of their high school graduating class. Opponents to these policies argue that they are not solutions to racial discrimination in the school systems because the policies rely on the segregation of the schools during secondary education to provide diversity to the universities. The University of Texas has developed one such “x%” policy. Texas legislation passed what is called the Ten Percent Solution which allows that all students in the top ten percent of their class are automatically granted acceptance to Texas public universities (Hockstader 1). Washington Post writer, Lee Hockstader stated in his article for the Post, “As long as neighborhoods and the state’s 1800 or so high schools [remain] largely segregated by race, significant numbers of African American and Hispanic students [will] be guaranteed places at public universities.” A similar program exists in Florida called the “Talented 20" plan in which students in the top twenty percent of their high school class are granted admission to at least one of the public state universities, and in California called the “Four Percent” plan in which the top four percent of the high school graduating class is automatically granted admission to public universities (Financial Aid Office 1). There is a lot of controversy over these programs, but in light of recent involvement by legislators to produce advantages to affirmative action, it is just good to see them trying.

Affirmative action doesn’t protect everyone. It protects minorities and women, but the rest of the population is left to the mercy of reverse discrimination. In theory, if affirmative action never undergoes any changes, it will cause an over diversification and soon minorities will be majorities and the majority will have long become the minority and then the cycle begins all over. We never gain a true solution to the problem, always leaving one group to be discriminated against. Also, if we are to believe that no race or sex is superior to any other and all people are equal, there should be no need for equal opportunity. The institution of affirmative action and equal opportunity laws imply that there is still superiority among the races and sexes. The mentality that governs affirmative action policies hinder the equality that we, as a society strive for, leaving a chip on the shoulders of those in its path, which one woman illustrates very well stating, “Blacks . . . walk around with a chip on their shoulder, like we owe them something” showing the chip on her own shoulder (Morin and Warden 1). One man bared his chipped shoulder saying “they talk about a glass ceiling for women and minorities, [but] there’s a glass ceiling for middle-aged white male managers too (Morin and Warden 1).” With attitudes like these towards one another, there is always going to be animosity between the races. By getting rid of affirmative action and giving completely equal chances and opportunities to every person, the nation would likely diversify itself. The main reason for the segregation that still exists today is due to the resentment that all people have tow

Some topics in this essay:
Aid Office, Morin Warden, Department Labor, Richmond California, Lyndon Johnson, University Michigan’s, Board Regents, American Hispanic, Washington Post, affirmative action, Jennifer Gratz, morin warden, ethnicity sex, minorities women, warden 1, belonging minorities, students belonging minorities, morin warden 1, students belonging, affirmative action education, washington post, equal rights, percent school, sex national origin, school graduating class,