Introduction
Affirmative action is a state of positive discrimination against individuals which is based on race, color, gender, ethnic background and religion. The article looks into a case in the U.S Supreme Court that a plaintiff filed against the implementation of affirmative action in the University of Michigan. The ruling comes out clear abolishing the quotas in admission based on racial grounds (Skrentny, 34). The author argues that it is wrong to give added points in the admission process to alumni children and varsity athletes. The implementation of affirmative action brings in the air a lot of public hostility and tension.
The ruling in the case affected the historians especially the teachers since they had taught on how the less disadvantaged groups were discriminated against. The author reflects on how he taught at Princeton about the American history which eliminated the movements that fought for women rights, slavery abolition, the westward expansion and other discriminatory forms. The author feels that they are differences between affirmative action and affirmative effort (McPherson, p.134.). The instance where women fought to be given a chance in education shows a form of affirmative effort because they prevailed against the strong resistance.
James McPherson gives an example of how he benefited from affirmative action and it’s ironical that he does not support its existence. Affirmative action seems to give an advantage to some groups and at the same time discriminate against the minority. The author says that the white men had a chance to occupy higher executives’ positions and the most prestigious careers. At the moment, the newer version of affirmative action does not favor the same group but still it has not reached a point to eliminate all forms of past injustices (McPherson, p.154). The old wounds cannot be cured easily and it will take time since time is the cure of all pains.
Works cited
McPherson, James M. The Struggle for Equality: Abolitionists and the Negro in the Civil War and Reconstruction. Princeton, N.J: Princeton University Press, 1964. Print.
Skrentny, John D. Affirmative Action: Dynamics of Policy Development. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications, 1998. Print.
