What exactly is Affirmative Action?

Question

What exactly is Affirmative Action?

Answer 1

It's why Obama is the Dem nominee

Answer 2

It involves requiring institutions/organizations to include a certain percentage of a certain race that is seen as having disadvantaged opportunities.  

Answer 3

say 15% of america is black, therefore 15% of the people in your college must be black.  It is a system that puts unqualified people in qualified positions.  It hurts whites and helps blacks and hispanics, but it really hurts asians.

It was an attempt to fight racism with racism.

Answer 4

Originally started under the Nixon administration, the program was started in order to counter the effects of discrimination stemming from the resistance to the Civil Rights acts of the 1960s.  As an example, college admissions were supposed to include minorities to represent a certain percentage.  A leading figure against it today, Ward Connerly, is trying to end it due to the negative message it sends regarding the qualifications of African Americans who had been able to achieve entrance into colleges at the expense of better qualified white applicants.  An important Supreme Court decision, The Bakke decision, dealt with one white student's suit regarding his denial of admission due to the requirements of Affirmative Action.

Answer 5

A regressive attempt to remedy past discrimination through future discrimination.

Answer 6

Its wrong  to assume that minorities are always underqualified.  In some instances they may not be.  For the run at the Whitehouse I'd say experience matters most.

Answer 7

The administration of positive discrimination, unless you are in the minority 48% that make up the male part of the population who are freely discriminated against by law.

Answer 8

its the process of denying someone more qualified in order to usher in someone else based on race.

basically, it is racism

Answer 9

It's a way to tell minorities, "Yes, you can have a job."