Affirmative action was developed in the 1960s to address racial inequality and racial exclusion in American society. Affirmative action seems to be a divisive issue among… everyone. The U.S. Supreme Court has decided in favor of affirmative action multiple times — it is settled law. The ones who benefited are more likely to graduate college and to earn professional degrees, and they have higher incomes. When I arrived on campus, I found there was no affirmative action in course selection or grading. People consider race influenced decision making to be “reverse racism”, because it benefits minorities over whites. Facebook - share an article. There are critics of affirmative action who claim it is no longer needed, or unfairly discriminates "in reverse" or "stigmatizes" admitted minority students. William Bowen and Derek Bok’s classic book The Shape of the River systematically looks at the impact of affirmative action by exploring decades of data from a group of selective colleges. The guidance is simply guidance — it’s not legally binding. My father, who grew up in Birmingham, Ala., and my mother, a native of Little Rock, Ark., never finished high school. All this takes place under a cloak of beneficence. The Case for Affirmative Action The Trump administration is targeting college admissions; here's why they're wrong. The Case for Affirmative Action on Campus. MORE HISTORY OF AFFIRMATIVE ACTION POLICIES FROM THE 1960s. Think about it, as Desis in America, we have higher income earning families and we are able to get access to tutoring, expensive SAT prep, and a vastly variety of resources that people of poorer backgrounds might not have. In cases such as Grutter v. Bollinger and Fisher v. This in turn leads to a more diverse leadership, which you can see steadily growing in the United States. CONTACT US: Louis P. Pojman uses the article, “The Case Against Affirmative Action,” to address why he is against Affirmative Action. The Bakke Case and Affirmative Action Jitao Zhang. In other words, if asked in court, colleges need to be able to show that they tried all other race-neutral alternatives to creating a diverse student body, and those alternatives failed. The roots of affirmative action in the United States. Ethical Case for Affirmative Action 371 itself (Thornton, 2001, p. 95). This justification, which ignored equity, leads to some unexpected, troubling expectations on the part of white students. My dreams became reality as a result of my Stanford education. We spoke with Natasha Warikoo, an expert on the connection between college admissions and racial diversity, about what affirmative action has accomplished in the past 50 years, and whether this shift in guidance will severely affect admissions policies in the years to come. Bakke (1978), the first affirmative action in university admissions case to reach the Supreme Court, explaining that race does play a role in deciding whom to admit from a third group of applicants. However — the decision in Fisher v. Texas made clear that colleges would no longer be afforded good faith understanding that they have tried all other race-neutral alternatives before turning to affirmative action. However — the decision in Fisher v. Texas made clear that colleges would no longer be afforded good faith understanding that they have tried all other race-neutral alternatives before turning to affirmative action. Interests? Despite this laudable progress, they are still judged in everyday life, by race. In that sense, this guidance is not surprising — many would have guessed that Trump and his team believe universities should avoid taking race into consideration in admissions. It will not take 300 years, or even 100 years, to address the sad legacy of our nation's past. We exclude those who, given the opportunity, will display their ability. I hope that colleges and universities will stand behind affirmative action, given its many benefits. Guest Opinion. The U.S. Supreme Court has decided in favor of affirmative action multiple times — it is settled law. Barbara Grutter, a white woman who was denied admission to the University of …