After reading an article about John McCain's endorsement to end affirmative action, I began wondering whether the system is still necessary.
McCain has been on record against such quotas for quite some time, but this seems to be the firmest stance he's taken on affirmative action so far.
(http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/07/27/AR2008072701832.html)
Sen. Barack Obama criticized McCain, saying, "I am disappointed...that John McCain flipped and changed his position." When discussing the affirmative action system, Obama said, "You know, the truth of the matter is, these are not designed to solve a big problem, but they're all too often designed to drive a wedge between people."
Although affirmative action was initially created to rid of discrimination, has our society reached a point where it is no longer necessary?
Are the intentions of the affirmative action system undermined by the divisions and racial tension it has created?
Or is such a system still necessary in order to assure equal opportunity within education and the work place?
4 comments:
I think that affirmative action is certainly no longer necessary. This day in age, it seems to create more problems and discrimination than it does ease those troubles. I also believe that, simply looking at the presidential hopefuls (a senior, an African American, and not long ago a woman), discrimination has almost completely left us.
I agree with Tierney. I think affirmative action was necessary when it was first put in place. It was able to get our society to where it is today. However, I think it is beginning, if not already started, to have an opposite affect.
Colleges and universities have to admit a certain number of minority students each year. While I agree that this is necessary in order to assure everyone gets an equal opportunity for a better education, I think sometimes it is taken too far. Sometimes minority students are admitted over a majority student just because they are a minority. I don't think this is necessarily fair, especially if the majority student is better qualified.
The color of your skin should not play a factor into what school you are admitted to or if you get a certain job. It should be based on how well you are qualified and if you deserve it or not.
I believe that affirmative action is starting to cause more racial tensions instead of diminish them, since it only calls attention to your race.
I completely agree. If our society is trying to reach equality, why are they attempting to do so using inequality?
I agree with what everyone has said. I also do not think affirmative action is needed with college acceptances, in the work place or anywhere in our society.
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