Why We Need Afirmative Action Essay, Research Paper

This was a cerimonial speech

Specific Purpose: To inform my audience about the importance of affirmative action.

Thesis: Minorities and women would not have gained as much progress as they have without the creation and enforcement of affirmative action policies.

I. Attention Grabber

A. Nancy was about to fill an entry position at the local bank, when the hiring personnel was going over her pay she found out that she was being paid $50 a month less than what a man was being paid in the same position. She was furious, because she felt that she was just as qualified and that she was being discriminated against because of her sex. But, when she confronted the hiring personal he didn’t see what the problem was, and he didn’t think that anything was wrong with it. Then several years later she interviewed for the supervisory position.

B. Now, how would it make you feel if you were told that you were told that you were the most qualified candidate for the position but a man was going to get the job instead. Why because he was a man and she was only a women. The reason that this hits so close to home is because this story is about my mother, and this very same situation happened to her.

Transition: By going over the background, clarifying misconceptions, you will understand why I feel that affirmative action is a law worthy of praise.

II. Let me begin by introducing you to some of the history of affirmative action.

A. It’s beginnings can be traced back to the 1800’s when the 14th amendment was added to the constitution.

1. It made the freedmen citizens and prohibited states from enforcing laws that would take away the privileges of any citizen, depriving men of life, liberty, property without due process of the law, or denied me equal protection of the laws.

B. But, a more modern connection began with Kennedy’s proposal of the civil rights act.

C. It was signed into law on July 2, 1964 by Lyndon B. Jhonson.

1. Title VII of the act banned employment discrimination based on “race, color, sex, and nationality.”

2. It also created a permanent equal employment opportunity commission to enforce its provisions.

3. The act also for the first time included obligations not to discriminate against private employees, labor unions, and governmental agencies (Urofsky 17).

III. Affirmative action helps women and minorities by providing equal chances at employment possibilities.

A. Sonia Liff was quoted as saying “Women and minorities fail not because they are less able to carry out the tasks; they are excluded because of the way that their necessary qualifications are defined (Webb 545).

C. The competition is structured against women and minorities because the job is perceived as requiring skills, experience and working patterns far more likely to be found amongst white men, or indeed seen as inherently male.

D. What should be asked of employers is not that they accept less qualified, less able women or minorities in preference to white men but that they rethink what the job requires does not rule out competent women or minorities.

IV. Misconceptions of Affirmative Actions

A. Affirmative action is a growing argument among our society.

B. It is multifaceted and can be defined in two ways.

1. First as the ability to strive for equality and inclusiveness.

2. Second as a quote-based system for different minority groups.

C. Those opposed to the idea of affirmative action feel that it is actually reversed discrimination at work and college entrances.

1. But, by a recent study by Alfred Blumorosen, a professor at Rutgers University law school, found there were only a few dozen reported cases of reverse discrimination in federal courts over the past 4 years, most of which were rejected by the courts (Hugh 27).

2. There is another misconception that affirmative action policies are taking away from a majority of acceptances into colleges away from white males but if half of the people of color who are admitted to schools under affirmative action programs were cut, the acceptance rates of white men would only increase by only 2%. (www.auaa.org)

V. Those were just a few of the misconceptions surrounding affirmative action policies, the truth of the matter is

A. That affirmative action’s plans are not to place people in jobs that they are not qualified for.

1. You cannot stay employed in a job if they do not have the skills to perform their tasks.

B. And to say that affirmative action acts on the basis of prejudice is not true.

1. It does not display bias or has an irrational hatred of a particular group, race, or religion.

2. It is just a way of helping people get jobs.

VII. Affirmative action is praiseworthy for the simple fact that it can help qualified people get the jobs they deserve.

A. Affirmative action was originally designed to help minorities, but women especially have made the greatest gains because of these programs.

B. Thanks to today’s interpretation and enforcement situations like the one I mentioned earlier are becoming rarer.

C. It has helped women and minorities to further their careers.

1. According to the Americans United for Affirmative Action web site women now hold 40% of all corporate middle-management jobs, and the number of women-owned businesses has more than doubled since 1982.

2. But, this is just the beginning, the National Organization for Women states that white men still hold 95% of the high end level corporate jobs.

D. Affirmative action is necessary so that women and people of color of various economic classes have the opportunity to enter all fields, it helps qualified candidates overcome racism and sexism.

VI. History has shown that discrimination has and always will be a problem as long as society remains ignorant of its existence.

A. By hearing about the background and by the clarification of misconceptions you will understand why it is important to have policies such as affirmative action because they help to fight discrimination, and other unfair practices by constantly reminding us the importance of fairness.

American United for Affirmative Action. www.auaa.org

Hugh, Graham. The American Judicial System. New York: Scribner, 1997.

National Organization for Women. www.now.org

Urofsky, Melvin. The Conflicts of Rights of New York: Scribner 1990.

Webb, Janette and Liff, Sonia. Play he white man: the social construction of fairness and

competition in equal opportunity. The Sociological Review v. 36, Aug 88 532-51.

Nancy was about to fill an entry position at the local bank, when the hiring personnel was going over her pay she found out that she was being paid $50 a month less than what a man was being paid in the same position. She was furious, because she felt that she was just as qualified and that she was being discriminated against because of her sex. But, when she confronted the hiring personal he didn’t see what the problem was, and he didn’t think that anything was wrong with it. Then several years later she interviewed for the supervisory position. Now, how would it make you feel if you were told that you were told that you were the most qualified candidate for the position but a man was going to get the job instead. Why because he was a man and she was only a women. The reason that this hits so close to home is because this story is about my mother, and this very same situation happened to her.

THESIS

And even though this happened less than 30 years ago Affirmative Action laws can be traced back to the 14th Amendment to the Constitution but based on today’s definition of Affirmative Action it began with Kennedy’s proposal of the civil rights act. It was signed into law on July 2, 1964. Title VII of the act banned employment discrimination based on “race, color, sex, and nationality,” it also created a permanent equal employment opportunity commission to enforce it’s provisions. The act also or the first time included obligations not to discriminate to private employees, labor unions, and governmental agencies (Urofsky 17). But, even with these laws in effect equal opportunity is far from a matter of “following a simple program”(Webb 545). Sonia Liff was quoted as saying “Women and minorities fail not because they are less able to carry out the tasks; they are excluded because of the way that their necessary qualifications are defined. The competition is structured against women and minorities because the job is perceived as requiring skills, experience and working patterns far more likely to be found amongst white men, or indeed seen as inherently male. What should be asked of employers is not that they accept less qualified, less able women or minorities in preference to white men but that they rethink what the job requires does not rule out competent women or minorities. Affirmative action was originally designed to help minorities, but women especially have made the greatest gains as a result of these programs. Affirmative Action is a growing argument among our society. It is multifaceted ans very often defined vaguely, many people define AA as the ability to strive for equality and inclusiveness. Others might see it as a quote-based system for different minority groups. I feel that AA is praiseworthy for the simple fact that it can help qualified people get the jobs they deserve. Thanks to today’s interpretation and enforcement situations like the one I just mentioned are becoming rarer. It has helped women and minorities to further their careers. According to the Affirmative Action web site women now hold 40% of all corporate middle-management jobs, and the number of women-owned businesses has more than doubled since 1982. But, this is just the beginning, the National Organization for Women states that white men still hold 95% of the high end level corporate jobs. Affirmative Action is necessary so that women and people of color of various economic class have the opportunity to enter all fields, it helps qualified candidates overcome racism and sexism. There is a misconception that AA policies are taking away from a majority of acceptances into colleges away from white males but if half of the people of color who are admitted to schools under AA programs were cut, the acceptance rates of white men would only increase by 2%.

History has shown that discrimination has and always will be a problem as long as society remains ignorant of its existence.