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.