Legal Expert Paper Affirmative Action - 1800 Words

Legal Expert Paper: Affirmative Action Ashley Dantzler Daniel Harris DaWayne Nettles Tiffany R. Pickard Columbia College Affirmative action is an outcome of the 1960 s Civil Rights Movement, intended to provide equal opportunities for members of minority groups and women in education and employment. In March1961, President Kennedy was the first to use the term affirmative action in an Executive Order that directed government contractors to take affirmative action to ensure that applicants are employed and those employees are treated equally during employment, without regard to their race, creed, color, or national origin. The Executive Order also established the President’s Committee on Equal Employment†¦show more content†¦They are not meant to guarantee equal results -- but instead proceed on the common-sense notion that if equality of opportunity were a reality, African Americans, women, people with disabilities and other groups facing discrimination would be fairly represented in the nation s work force and educational institutions. With affirmative action in position, policies are needed for guidance and fairness. Affirmative action policies initially focused on improving opportunities for African Americans in employment and education. However, eight states currently ban race-based affirmative action at all public universities. California, Washington, Michigan, Nebraska, Arizona, and Oklahoma all passed bans through voter referenda. Affirmative action policies that were previously successful in improving representation of blacks and other disadvantaged students are now either dismantled or greatly restricted. Ironically, African Americans who were at the forefront of the successful struggle to open America s colleges and universities to more diverse participation now face exclusion from California s and the nation s most prestigious institutions. Hispanic and African Americans enrollment at the University of California, Berkeley, and the University of California, Los Angeles dropped sharply after voters approved a statewide ban on affirmative action. Those numbers have not recovered, even as t he state’s Hispanic population has grown. Affirmative action refers to