As I wrap things up with my blog, I want to take a few moments to express what I have taken from this experience. I have learned to be able to express how I actually feel about a certain issue without being afraid of what others would say to me or how they would feel about the topic. The blog has allowed me to effectively say what I think and feel. However, with this blog I have also learned that my opinions are not what everyone else believes in. In writing my posts, I have learned to be unbiased so that I appeal to both sides of the issue. I have also attempted to present information from either side so that my readers may become more informed and aware of what is actually going on with the issue.
In presenting both sides of the issue, I became aware of how much bias I really do have about the subject. I also able to identify certain things from my upbringing, enviroment, and ideas imposed upon me as I grew up that affect what I think about the issue of affirmative action. Overall this blog has made me more aware of my biases and how I can effectively elminate them without compromising what I believe in.
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
A Question for Both Sides
I would like to try and pose a question to both sides of the issue of affirmative action. This problematized question is meant for the opposing sides to come together and work to make the issue better. For the issue of affirmative action I came up with the question of "Why does affirmative have to give only one group of people an advantage? Can the affirmative action give different groups different advantages as other ones?"
Monday, November 26, 2007
What's at Stake?
Having an effective argument starts by the two sides agreeing on what the issue is exactly about. For the issue of affirmative action we can say that the conflict takes place in a moment of competition. This ethos is unbiased because both sides could agree that they are in competition for jobs, acceptance to schools, and other positions. In the argument for the issue of affirmative action there are many "players". Players are people who are part of the argument who actually have something at stake in the issue. We can begin in the issue of affirmative action by saying that the two factions are whites and blacks. Affirmative action is a racial issue and can definitely be stated that the two factions are whites and minorities. Whites can be broken down in to men and women because affirmative action is said to help women along with minorities. What is at stake for all of the players? As I stated before, affirmative action occurs in a moment of competition. When whites and minorities are fighting for a job, acceptance into a university, or any other position they are in competition with each other and affirmative action takes place. Therefore, both sides could possibly give up job positions and chances to go to elite schools in the issue of affirmative action. Some people say that if affirmative action were not in effect then minorities would not have jobs and when it is in effect it is said that whites are not given the positions they deserve. Concluding, whites and minorites, along with women are the major players of the issue and all players could possibly give up the chances into school institutions and job positions.
Wednesday, November 14, 2007
History and My Bias
In doing some research on the topic of affirmative action, I ran across some very interesting facts and history about the issue. In the article titled "The University of Michigan Reluctantly Honors a Foe of Its Affirmative Action Policies" from The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education, it talks of the Washington-based Center for Individual Rights. The group has filed two class-action lawsuits against the University of Michigan. Both lawsuits deal with white students who think that unfair racial preferences "improperly denied them admission to the Univeristy of Michigan's College of Literature, Science, & the Arts and admission to the university's law school. Data from the school's admission office shows that in 1994 only one out of nine white students was admitted to the school with a high school gpa between 2.80 and 2.99 and with an SAT score of 1100-1199. On the other hand ALL black students with these same credentials were given admission to the university. Professor Cohen, a professor of philosophy at the school, was given a copy of an admission's office document that stated "white applicants with a gpa of 3.3 and SAT of 900 should be rejected for admission but minority applicants with the same credentials should be admitted." Less than 5% of white applicants to the law school at Michigan with gpa's between 3 and 3.24 and with a score of 156 to 166 on the Law School Admission Test were admitted while 85% of blacks were. Why are these results so in favor of the minorities?
Affirmative Action also claims to help women as well. The article "Women and Affirmative Action" by Jonathan S. Leonard stated that affirmative action has contributed "negligibly to women's progress in the workplace." He also states that black females have gained far more than white females under the policy. Overall he states that women have gained hardly anything in terms of employment from the policy. The history of the issue makes me wonder if it really does help minorites and women fairly without hurting the employment opportunities of white males.
Affirmative Action also claims to help women as well. The article "Women and Affirmative Action" by Jonathan S. Leonard stated that affirmative action has contributed "negligibly to women's progress in the workplace." He also states that black females have gained far more than white females under the policy. Overall he states that women have gained hardly anything in terms of employment from the policy. The history of the issue makes me wonder if it really does help minorites and women fairly without hurting the employment opportunities of white males.
Sunday, November 11, 2007
My Bias and the Issue
I have grown up in a family where your success depended on how hard you worked and how bad you wanted what you were trying to achieve. I was taught as a young child that things shouldn't be handed to you; you should earn the things that you wanted. Perhaps these things have influenced my opinion on affirmative action. I believe that minorities should work just as hard as whites to get certain positions. Just because they are a person of color I don't believe they should be given a job position or accepted into an educational institution.
I have also grown up knowing that everyone, no matter race, gender, or religious affliation, should be treated equally. Everyone should be given the same advantages and no one race should be held above the others. Sometimes I think that affirmative action is a form of reverse discrimination. Affirmative action sometimes discriminates whites even though they may be more appropriate and qualified for a job than an African American who gets the position. I think that everyone should be on a level playing field especially when it comes to being accepted into a college institution or being hired for a job.
Therefore, perhaps by upbringing as a child has affected how I feel about the issue of affirmative action. People should have to earn what they get, not just be of a certain race to get advantages. Also, the most qualified and suitable person should be the one accepted and race should not be a factor. How far you get in life should be based on your hard work and determination, not your race.
I have also grown up knowing that everyone, no matter race, gender, or religious affliation, should be treated equally. Everyone should be given the same advantages and no one race should be held above the others. Sometimes I think that affirmative action is a form of reverse discrimination. Affirmative action sometimes discriminates whites even though they may be more appropriate and qualified for a job than an African American who gets the position. I think that everyone should be on a level playing field especially when it comes to being accepted into a college institution or being hired for a job.
Therefore, perhaps by upbringing as a child has affected how I feel about the issue of affirmative action. People should have to earn what they get, not just be of a certain race to get advantages. Also, the most qualified and suitable person should be the one accepted and race should not be a factor. How far you get in life should be based on your hard work and determination, not your race.
Wednesday, November 7, 2007
Looking at Affirmative Action
In this world of discrimination, Affirmative Action was created to promote access to education and employment among socially non-dominant groups, such as minorities and women. The purpose of this policy is to stop discrimination and to give minorities more representation in many public institutions. The two sides of the issue are often in a heated battle to deteremine who is "right" about the topic.
Opponents of the issue believe that it is just another form of discrimination. They say for affirmative action to work it must use the very discrimination that it is trying to eliminate. Often times, qualified applicants are denied entry into various educational institutions or are rejected from some form of employment because they are from the socially dominant groups, whites and males. Opponents believe that by accepting less qualified students into certain educational programs will cause higher drop out rates among minority students.They also feel as though, because of the policy, minorities groups are given an advantage into getting in universities and the workplace while whites and males are looked over. Many people feel as though qualified people are missing out of great opportunities just because these institutions are trying to fill their "quotas" of minorities.
Proponents of affirmative action believe that it decreases discrimination among minority groups while also increasing diversity in various public institutions. People in favor of affirmative action believe that it also increases the numbers of women and minority groups in all levels of employment even those that used to be exclusively male. They think that affirmative action has also led to increased earnings and more gains in educational attainment of women and minorities. Overall, people for affirmative action believe that it improves the opportunities for women and all minority groups to have better representation and better job positions.
Both sides of the issue of affirmative action have valid arguments and show the pros and cons of each side. So I ask you, the reader, what side of affirmative action are you on?
Opponents of the issue believe that it is just another form of discrimination. They say for affirmative action to work it must use the very discrimination that it is trying to eliminate. Often times, qualified applicants are denied entry into various educational institutions or are rejected from some form of employment because they are from the socially dominant groups, whites and males. Opponents believe that by accepting less qualified students into certain educational programs will cause higher drop out rates among minority students.They also feel as though, because of the policy, minorities groups are given an advantage into getting in universities and the workplace while whites and males are looked over. Many people feel as though qualified people are missing out of great opportunities just because these institutions are trying to fill their "quotas" of minorities.
Proponents of affirmative action believe that it decreases discrimination among minority groups while also increasing diversity in various public institutions. People in favor of affirmative action believe that it also increases the numbers of women and minority groups in all levels of employment even those that used to be exclusively male. They think that affirmative action has also led to increased earnings and more gains in educational attainment of women and minorities. Overall, people for affirmative action believe that it improves the opportunities for women and all minority groups to have better representation and better job positions.
Both sides of the issue of affirmative action have valid arguments and show the pros and cons of each side. So I ask you, the reader, what side of affirmative action are you on?
Monday, November 5, 2007
Affirmative Action Links
The following are a list of websites that contain useful information concerning the issue of affirmative action. Be sure to read the brief summary of the site to find whether any biases exist within the source. Please feel free to follow the links and comment about what you think of them!
1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Affirmative_action: This site is actually useful to learn more about affirmative action because it offers information for both sides of the issue. It talks of what opponents of affirmative action believe and what those who believe in affirmative action think. This site also gives information about how other countries around the world are using affirmative action today. The only downfall to this site is that anyone can post information on it and it can be edited by anyone, so sometimes the information is not 100% reliable.
2. http://www.affirmativeaction.org/: This site is very biased. It is totally one-sided for the issue of affirmative action. The site is made by the group American Association of Affirmative Action and they list the goals of their group on the website. Some of the goals include fostering affirmative action programs and marinating ethical standards for the professions. This site would be useful for someone that agrees with affirmative action, but someone who is against the issue would have some frustration with this site.
3. http://www.now.org/nnt/08-95/affirmhs.html: This site is in association with the National Organization for Women, so the site is very biased. The site gives a counterargument to what opponents of affirmative action say is “reverse discrimination”. The site says that it is not reverse discrimination and the site gives the history and origins of affirmative action. The site is fairly useful to see the history of the issue but you can still see the bias of the site.
4. http://www.civilrights.org/issues/affirmative/care.html: This site is also very biased in favor of affirmative action. The first line of the website states that affirmative action means taking positive steps to end discrimination. This site also offers background on the issue of affirmative action and gives what some critics think of the issue. They attack the problems that some opponents have with the issue and offer their own argument for affirmative action. The site is also somewhat biased because the group responsible for the website is called Leadership Conference on Civil Rights.
5. http://www.cnn.com/2003/LAW/06/23/scotus.affirmative.action/: This is an article that comes from the website of CNN News; therefore, it is a very reliable source to use. The article is about a Supreme Court ruling that colleges may include race as a factor in admissions and that social value may be gained by diversity in the classroom. This site states the facts of how affirmative action seems to be progressing forward. The site also tells what the Supreme Court rulings really mean and how it will affect the rest of society. I believe that this is a very useful site to learn how the issue is advancing in our society today.
6. http://www.aclu.org/racialjustice/aa/index.html: This site is founded by the group American Civil Liberties Union, who are in favor of equal rights. In that case, this site may be somewhat biased because this site is all in favor of affirmative action. The site offers myth busters about affirmative action and also offers links to various articles about Supreme Court rulings and other incidents involving affirmative action. Overall the website is very informative although it is biased in a sense.
7. http://www.psu.edu/dept/aaoffice/: This website is from Penn State University’s office of Affirmative Action. The website is very biased in favor of affirmative action. It actually states in the first paragraph that Penn State University is committed to affirmative action to ensure equal opportunity. The site has various useful links to policies, definitions, statements, laws, and executive orders about affirmative action; however, you must keep in mind that the site is in favor of affirmative action.
8. http://www.nationalcenter.org/AA.html: This site is founded by the National Leadership Network of Black Conservatives so it is also somewhat biased in favor of affirmative action. The website offers various commentaries on many different issues within affirmative action. These commentaries are very informative and take all sides of the issue. The site also offers links to legislation and litigations that have to do with affirmative action. These result in Supreme Court cases all the way to new laws being passed in favor of the issue. Overall, the website is informative although it is a little biased.
9. http://www.indiana.edu/~affirm/: This site is from Indiana University’s Office of Affirmative Action. They also state that they are in favor of equal opportunity as a result of affirmative action. The website also offers links to policies, procedures, complaints, grievances, FAQ, and laws about affirmative action. The website seems to show both sides of the argument fairly enough and I believe that this is a very informative website to get information for each side of the issue.
10. http://ethnicmajority.com/affirmative_action.htm: The website comes from the ethnic majority. The website gives a clear definition of exactly what affirmative action is. The website says that affirmative action clearly helps Hispanics, African Americans, and Asians. The site also addresses the controversy that affirmative action uses quotas, which is what many people against affirmative action use as their argument against it. The site is biased defends the use of affirmative action throughout the website.
11. http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-oe-sander26sep26,0,3998908.story?coll=la-opinion-rightrail: This is an article from the Los Angeles Times addressing the issue that affirmative action actually may hurt minorities. Of course this does show bias against the issue of affirmative action. It does use research to actually prove that affirmative action can actually hurt the minorities it is trying to help. The information is also very reliable since it was printed in a top newspaper in our nation.
12. http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/30/magazine/30affirmative-t.html?ref=magazine: This is a reliable source because it comes for the New York Times. This cite gives us a story of a young black woman and how affirmative action has affected her life. The article states how affirmative action has changed over the years. The article does have somewhat of a bias because of the story of the young black woman.
13. http://www.dailybruin.com/news/2007/oct/29/affirmative-action-ban-discussed/: This website is the school newspaper for UCLA and it discusses a possible ban of affirmative action. It tells of a proposition passed ten years ago that banned affirmative action and it talks of how public employment and education have been affected by that. There is not much bias present in this source, since it looks at straight facts and effects of the ban.
14. http://www.cnn.com/2005/LAW/01/07/amar.affirmative.action/index.html: This was an article posted on CNN News’ website. It discusses how affirmative action that was practiced by law schools 30 years ago actually ended up hurting African Americans, who the issue was supposed to help.
1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Affirmative_action: This site is actually useful to learn more about affirmative action because it offers information for both sides of the issue. It talks of what opponents of affirmative action believe and what those who believe in affirmative action think. This site also gives information about how other countries around the world are using affirmative action today. The only downfall to this site is that anyone can post information on it and it can be edited by anyone, so sometimes the information is not 100% reliable.
2. http://www.affirmativeaction.org/: This site is very biased. It is totally one-sided for the issue of affirmative action. The site is made by the group American Association of Affirmative Action and they list the goals of their group on the website. Some of the goals include fostering affirmative action programs and marinating ethical standards for the professions. This site would be useful for someone that agrees with affirmative action, but someone who is against the issue would have some frustration with this site.
3. http://www.now.org/nnt/08-95/affirmhs.html: This site is in association with the National Organization for Women, so the site is very biased. The site gives a counterargument to what opponents of affirmative action say is “reverse discrimination”. The site says that it is not reverse discrimination and the site gives the history and origins of affirmative action. The site is fairly useful to see the history of the issue but you can still see the bias of the site.
4. http://www.civilrights.org/issues/affirmative/care.html: This site is also very biased in favor of affirmative action. The first line of the website states that affirmative action means taking positive steps to end discrimination. This site also offers background on the issue of affirmative action and gives what some critics think of the issue. They attack the problems that some opponents have with the issue and offer their own argument for affirmative action. The site is also somewhat biased because the group responsible for the website is called Leadership Conference on Civil Rights.
5. http://www.cnn.com/2003/LAW/06/23/scotus.affirmative.action/: This is an article that comes from the website of CNN News; therefore, it is a very reliable source to use. The article is about a Supreme Court ruling that colleges may include race as a factor in admissions and that social value may be gained by diversity in the classroom. This site states the facts of how affirmative action seems to be progressing forward. The site also tells what the Supreme Court rulings really mean and how it will affect the rest of society. I believe that this is a very useful site to learn how the issue is advancing in our society today.
6. http://www.aclu.org/racialjustice/aa/index.html: This site is founded by the group American Civil Liberties Union, who are in favor of equal rights. In that case, this site may be somewhat biased because this site is all in favor of affirmative action. The site offers myth busters about affirmative action and also offers links to various articles about Supreme Court rulings and other incidents involving affirmative action. Overall the website is very informative although it is biased in a sense.
7. http://www.psu.edu/dept/aaoffice/: This website is from Penn State University’s office of Affirmative Action. The website is very biased in favor of affirmative action. It actually states in the first paragraph that Penn State University is committed to affirmative action to ensure equal opportunity. The site has various useful links to policies, definitions, statements, laws, and executive orders about affirmative action; however, you must keep in mind that the site is in favor of affirmative action.
8. http://www.nationalcenter.org/AA.html: This site is founded by the National Leadership Network of Black Conservatives so it is also somewhat biased in favor of affirmative action. The website offers various commentaries on many different issues within affirmative action. These commentaries are very informative and take all sides of the issue. The site also offers links to legislation and litigations that have to do with affirmative action. These result in Supreme Court cases all the way to new laws being passed in favor of the issue. Overall, the website is informative although it is a little biased.
9. http://www.indiana.edu/~affirm/: This site is from Indiana University’s Office of Affirmative Action. They also state that they are in favor of equal opportunity as a result of affirmative action. The website also offers links to policies, procedures, complaints, grievances, FAQ, and laws about affirmative action. The website seems to show both sides of the argument fairly enough and I believe that this is a very informative website to get information for each side of the issue.
10. http://ethnicmajority.com/affirmative_action.htm: The website comes from the ethnic majority. The website gives a clear definition of exactly what affirmative action is. The website says that affirmative action clearly helps Hispanics, African Americans, and Asians. The site also addresses the controversy that affirmative action uses quotas, which is what many people against affirmative action use as their argument against it. The site is biased defends the use of affirmative action throughout the website.
11. http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-oe-sander26sep26,0,3998908.story?coll=la-opinion-rightrail: This is an article from the Los Angeles Times addressing the issue that affirmative action actually may hurt minorities. Of course this does show bias against the issue of affirmative action. It does use research to actually prove that affirmative action can actually hurt the minorities it is trying to help. The information is also very reliable since it was printed in a top newspaper in our nation.
12. http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/30/magazine/30affirmative-t.html?ref=magazine: This is a reliable source because it comes for the New York Times. This cite gives us a story of a young black woman and how affirmative action has affected her life. The article states how affirmative action has changed over the years. The article does have somewhat of a bias because of the story of the young black woman.
13. http://www.dailybruin.com/news/2007/oct/29/affirmative-action-ban-discussed/: This website is the school newspaper for UCLA and it discusses a possible ban of affirmative action. It tells of a proposition passed ten years ago that banned affirmative action and it talks of how public employment and education have been affected by that. There is not much bias present in this source, since it looks at straight facts and effects of the ban.
14. http://www.cnn.com/2005/LAW/01/07/amar.affirmative.action/index.html: This was an article posted on CNN News’ website. It discusses how affirmative action that was practiced by law schools 30 years ago actually ended up hurting African Americans, who the issue was supposed to help.
Saturday, October 27, 2007
Is Affirmative Action Fair?
I am a person who believes in equal rights and I think that everyone should be on a level playing field. The purpose of affirmative action is to promote access to eduacation and employment to nondominat groups in society like minorities and women. The goal of affirmative action is to decrease discrimination that these groups faced in the past while it encourages various social institutions to be more representative of the whole population. I personally don't agree with affirmative action. I'm not a racist person, I just believe that everyone should have the same opportunities. If a white male is more qualified than an african american male, then the white male should be hired and vice versa. I feel as though social institutions such as universities miss out on qualififed white people because they are trying to fill their quotas for minorites. This is unfair fro the "majority" groups and in a sense causes discrimination against them. The purpose of affirmative action is to decrease discrimination, however I feel that minority groups are just discriminated against more because they are labeled as inferior to whites so they should get advantages over them. I believe that race should not even be a factor in getting a job, being accepted to a university, and various other things. The question of race shouldn't be asked on applications; people should be hired or accepted based on their qualifications and merit. Then, the person most qualified and right for the job should be hired not based on their race. I do believe in equal rights, but I think it should be equal rights across all of society. Whites should not be discriminated against because we are trying to prevent it in minority groups. I don't believe affirmative action is the answer; why can't everyone just be treated the same and profit in life based on their own merit and not because of some act that gives you a head start?
Affirmative Action
The purpose of this blog is to inform others of the widely talked about and controverial issue of affirmative action. I hope through this blog that I can learn more about the issue, as well as my readers, and I hope to get some feedback on what you think of the issue. As I said before affirmative action has been very controversial and caused much debate between mainly whites and other minority groups. In this blog I hope to answer these few questions: 1. What, if any, is the causal relationship between affirmative action and the increase in the number of minorities in colleges and universities? 2. What, if any, is the causal relationship between affirmative action and the dropout rate of minorities in rigourous educational programs? 3. What, if any, is the causal relationship between affirmative action and the decrease in discrimination among minority groups? 4. What, if any, is the causal relationship between affirmative action and the ability of minority groups to compete for jobs against the majority?
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