Civil Rights Act of 1964: Reevaluation of the Affirmative Action
Affirmative Action: Then vs. Now
In the 1960s when minorities and whites were equal according to the constitution but unequal in reality, a program was needed to level the playing field. Thus the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was created and prohibited discrimination. It marked the beginning of a debate that has been going on for nearly a half of a century. Affirmative action needs to be reevaluated in educational settings in light of current needs. The words "affirmative action" were first recorded in law in the year 1961 under the presidency of John F. Kennedy. Congress passed Executive Order 10925 instructing federal contractors to take "affirmative action to ensure that applicants are treated equally without regard to race, color, religion, sex, or national origin." In 1964 President Johnson wrote the Civil Rights Act of 1964 into law and it stated that employment discrimination by large employers (large employers is defined as a company having 15 or more employees) was illegal whether they have government contracts or not. In 1965, President Lyndon B. Johnson issued the Executive Order 11246 requiring all government contractors and subcontractors to take affirmative action to expand job opportunities for minorities. Then again in 1967 Johnson amended E.O. 11246 to include affirmative action for women. However, instead of being required to provide opportunities for women and minorities, they only had to make a "good-faith" effort. In 1970, the first thought of quotas came about when President Nixon issued Order No. 4. It authorized flexible goals and timetables to correct "underutilization" of minorities by federal contractors. In 1971, Order No. 4 was revised to include women. The notion of leveling the playing field had not been faced with any major problems until the 1970's when the first outcries of reverse discrimination began to surface. Allan Bakke brought one of the first and most popular cases. He was a 34 year old Caucasian who had
In the 1960s when minorities and whites were equal according to the constitution but unequal in reality, a program was needed to level the playing field. Thus the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was created and prohibited discrimination. It marked the beginning of a debate that has been going on for nearly a half of a century. Affirmative action needs to be reevaluated in educational settings in light of current needs. The words "affirmative action" were first recorded in law in the year 1961 under the presidency of John F. Kennedy. Congress passed Executive Order 10925 instructing federal contractors to take "affirmative action to ensure that applicants are treated equally without regard to race, color, religion, sex, or national origin." In 1964 President Johnson wrote the Civil Rights Act of 1964 into law and it stated that employment discrimination by large employers (large employers is defined as a company having 15 or more employees) was illegal whether they have government contracts or not. In 1965, President Lyndon B. Johnson issued the Executive Order 11246 requiring all government contractors and subcontractors to take affirmative action to expand job opportunities for minorities. Then again in 1967 Johnson amended E.O. 11246 to include affirmative action for women. However, instead of being required to provide opportunities for women and minorities, they only had to make a "good-faith" effort. In 1970, the first thought of quotas came about when President Nixon issued Order No. 4. It authorized flexible goals and timetables to correct "underutilization" of minorities by federal contractors. In 1971, Order No. 4 was revised to include women. The notion of leveling the playing field had not been faced with any major problems until the 1970's when the first outcries of reverse discrimination began to surface. Allan Bakke brought one of the first and most popular cases. He was a 34 year old Caucasian who had
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