Leveling the Playing Field: The Merits of Affirmative Action in Higher Education Undergraduate Admissions
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2009
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Haverford College. Department of Political Science
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Award
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eng
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Haverford users only
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Abstract
The purpose of affirmative action is not just to ensure underrepresented peoples fair consideration in jobs and education but also to remediate past injustices by equalizing marginalized groups' opportunities for success. Affirmative action policy from its first insinuation has proven to be highly controversial. One of the primary challenges that higher education administrators faced was how to transition blacks and other underrepresented groups into an arena of higher education that wasn't meant to facilitate them. Critics of affirmative action in higher education admissions feel it is unjust for them to suffer the repercussions of race-preferential policies; for example by not gaining admittance into their schools of choice. The primary problem with these critics of affirmative action policy is that they: 1. limit the debate too narrowly and 2. Refuse to confront how America's uncomfortable history has contributed to current societal inequalities. Much of the debate surrounding the legitimacy of affirmative action needs to be interpreted through the lens of understanding privilege. Affirmative action for marginalized peoples in undergraduate admissions is not the first instance of the United States utilizing government backed affirmative action policies. The argument that race-based policies take away from a color-blind society is highly idealistic and a flawed interpretation. This belief relies on the assumption that all people are color-blind. In our society that is just not the case. Simply ceasing to utilize that policy does not repair the societal damage. The stigma associated with individuals who may or may not have benefited from affirmative action policy is not significant enough to discredit or disband the policy. Much of the stigma applied to affirmative action is a reflection of the projection of stereotypes. In order to deliver the best education a university must construct a class which will provide its students with exposure to a variety of ideas and backgrounds. Affirmative action has become a key tool in not only achieving greater equality in our nation but also encouraging industrial innovation and support sustained economic growth.