Although there are many different definitions of Affirmative Action(Kaveny, 1996, p. 286), it is generally understood to be a method of encouraging, via varying forms of preferential treatment, the employment or admission of specific groups of individuals normally related to discrimination based on race, gender, ethnicity, or other social grouping. (Adams, 1997; Allen, 2011; Brest & Oshige, 1995; Crum & Naff, 1997; Dworkin, 2000; Lipson, 2007; Moses, 2010; Roberts, 1979, p. 90; Taylor, 2009) Affirmative action is not limited to a single form or strength of implementation instead coming in a variety of forms, strengths, and methodologies. (Taylor, 2009, p. 478)
Generally, affirmative action is understood to be justified by one of two broad …show more content…
The blending of races and ethnicities makes the proper identification of parties complex to say the least. Will we be forced back into definitions of race originally set in the pre-war south (1/4) or the one-drop rule? When should immigrants fall under the protection of affirmative action – permanent resident status, citizenship, 5 years of citizenship, never? What about their children, if to a natural born US Citizen? Would ID or registration numbers be required for college entrance or job applications? These types of questions push us back into levels and reasons for classifications that are the very focus of the backward-looking proponent of affirmative …show more content…
If an affirmative action program is reparations based, then we must assume the program should end once the value of the affirmative action equals the damages from discrimination. This requires us to determine when affirmative action takes place – that is to determine when a minority receives preferential treatment due to affirmative action as opposed to without it. Specifically showing that a person did or did not receive a benefit due to affirmative action would often feed the general objections related to affirmative action mentioned earlier in this article. However, if those problems could be overcome, we are still stuck calculating the value of that admission, promotion, or hiring. Just as it is impossible to put a price on prior discrimination, it is also impossible to accurately calculate the value of one Native American being accepted to college in North Dakota, and even more difficult to calculate that college admission against the value of job for a Black man in Detroit or a Hispanic woman in
Generally, affirmative action is understood to be justified by one of two broad …show more content…
The blending of races and ethnicities makes the proper identification of parties complex to say the least. Will we be forced back into definitions of race originally set in the pre-war south (1/4) or the one-drop rule? When should immigrants fall under the protection of affirmative action – permanent resident status, citizenship, 5 years of citizenship, never? What about their children, if to a natural born US Citizen? Would ID or registration numbers be required for college entrance or job applications? These types of questions push us back into levels and reasons for classifications that are the very focus of the backward-looking proponent of affirmative …show more content…
If an affirmative action program is reparations based, then we must assume the program should end once the value of the affirmative action equals the damages from discrimination. This requires us to determine when affirmative action takes place – that is to determine when a minority receives preferential treatment due to affirmative action as opposed to without it. Specifically showing that a person did or did not receive a benefit due to affirmative action would often feed the general objections related to affirmative action mentioned earlier in this article. However, if those problems could be overcome, we are still stuck calculating the value of that admission, promotion, or hiring. Just as it is impossible to put a price on prior discrimination, it is also impossible to accurately calculate the value of one Native American being accepted to college in North Dakota, and even more difficult to calculate that college admission against the value of job for a Black man in Detroit or a Hispanic woman in