Argument Against Affirmative Action

Introduction Affirmative action is a hotly debated topic in both the employment field and as a factor in the college admissions process. Affirmative action is widely used by most colleges to create diversity among the student population. This is starting to change as public schools and universities in California, Washington, Michigan, Nebraska, Arizona, Connecticut, New Hampshire, Oklahoma, Florida, and Texas have banned affirmative action as a base for admissions (NCSL, 2014).
The Case against Affirmative Action Why do we have affirmative action? Affirmative Action’s inception was from the outcome of the Civil Rights Movement during the 1960’s. Affirmative action was intended to provide equal opportunities for members of minority
The University of Texas (U.T) accepts the top 10 percent of high school graduates. In 1996, this unique strategy came about from many legal and legislative battles over affirmative action. It is called the Top 10 percent law. It does not matter if they are from the Third Ward in Houston, a small school in West Texas, or a private school in the suburbs of Dallas. This is another way to achieve diversity in the student body and accept the students who have the ability to succeed in the college program. “An internal U.T. report published in 2012 showed that only 39 percent of first-generation students (meaning students whose parents weren’t college graduates) graduated in four years, compared with 60 percent whose parents both graduated from college (Tough, 2014).” The University of Texas is asking the question, why? Why are minorities not succeeding like the other students? The student’s academic records show that they have the ability to succeed. The University of Texas’s “efforts are based on a novel and controversial premise: If you want to help low-income students succeed, it’s not enough to deal with their academic and financial obstacles. You also need to address their doubts and misconceptions and fears (Tough,