essays

The benefits of affirmative action will yield side effects counter to America's battle with discrimination. In an article by Millery Polyne, two main reasons for eliminating affirmative action are discussed.
One: Affirmative action often excludes students or employees from admittance or jobs because of a minority quota that must be met. The classic Supreme Court case of Bakke v. University of California gives the best example of this.
In the case, Wayne Bakke was denied entry into medical school even though he had met all requirements. The University of California was trying to meet a minority quota. Bakke won the case and is now a well-respected pediatrician in California.
The fact that this was allowed to happen is absurd.
Special treatment is not equality nor is it diverse to use racial reasons for admitting students into schools.
Two: By allowing minority quotas, and similar practices to exist, the achievements of minorities are undermined.
For instance, look at Oprah Winfrey. She is wealthy, well-respected and very successful. To say that because she was a minority she was allowed to succeed, is a fallacy - an incorrect assumption.
The fact that Oprah is African American is beside the point of her being successful. Black people will continue to excel in spite of racism.
In my opinion, affirmative action just gets in the way of actual change in the realm of discrimination. Policies that segregate the minority from the majority only widen the gap between the two groups and that is what affirmative action most effectively does. It should be eliminated.
Keaton Mattera
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