Affirmative Action

Extracted Attributes

• Goal

  Increase representation, foster diversity and inclusion, rectify effects of past discrimination, promote social justice.

• Definition

  Policies and practices designed to address systemic discrimination and promote equal opportunities for historically underrepresented groups.

• Legal Status

  Subject to significant legal challenges and Supreme Court rulings.

• Primary Focus

  Education and employment

• Target Groups

  Racial and ethnic minorities, women, individuals with disabilities

• Observed Impact

  Increased minority enrollment in higher education (historically), significant declines in states with bans.

• Key Debate Points

  Redressing historical injustices vs. reverse discrimination and entrenching racial antagonism

• Implementation Methods

  Government mandates, voluntary programs, limited preferences

Timeline

• During the Reconstruction Era, a policy similar to affirmative action, known as 'Forty acres and a mule,' was proposed to provide land and goods to freed black slaves. (Source: Web search results)

  1863-1877

• Debates over non-discrimination policies began, leading to federal executive orders requiring non-discrimination in employment policies of some government agencies and contractors. (Source: Web search results)

  1940s

• Affirmative action policies emerged during the Civil Rights Movement as a response to systemic discrimination. (Source: Summary, Web search results)

  1960s

• President John F. Kennedy issued Executive Order 10925, mandating government contractors to 'take affirmative action to ensure that applicants are employed, and that employees are treated during employment, without regard to their race, creed, color, or national origin'. (Source: Web search results)

  1961-03-06

• The federal government instituted affirmative action policies under the landmark Civil Rights Act of 1964. (Source: Web search results)

  1964

• President Lyndon B. Johnson's administration issued an executive order (later amended) forbidding businesses receiving federal funds from discriminating based on race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, or gender identity. Government contractors were also required to document their affirmative action programs. (Source: Web search results)

  1965

• The Supreme Court's decision in *Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard* rejected race-based affirmative action in college admissions, stating that race cannot be a determining factor. (Source: Summary, Related documents)

  2023

Web Search Results

• Affirmative action - Wikipedia

  Toggle the table of contentsAffirmative action46 languagesAfrikaansالعربيةAzərbaycancaБеларуская (тарашкевіца)CatalàЧӑвашлаDanskDeutschEestiΕλληνικάEspañolEsperantoEuskaraفارسیFrançaisGaeilgeGalego한국어Հայերենहिन्दीHrvatskiBahasa IndonesiaItalianoעברית...

• What Is Affirmative Action? How It Works and Example

  Affirmative action is a series of policies that aims to increase the opportunities provided to underrepresented members of society. Learn its history and how it works.

• Affirmative Action

  Dive into the concepts behind the Affirmative Action Brief and discover how it influences social justice and equal access.

• Affirmative action in the United States - Wikipedia

  Toggle the table of contentsAffirmative action in the United States4 languagesEspañolFrançais한국어中文Edit linksArticleTalkEnglishReadEditView historyToolsToolsmove to sidebarhideActionsReadEditView historyGeneralWhat links hereRelated changesUpload file...

• A Brief History of Affirmative Action and the Assault on Race-Conscious Admissions

  EdTrust in Texas advocates for an equitable education for Black and Latino students and students from low-income backgrounds across the state. We believe in centering the voices of Texas students and families as we work alongside them for the better ...

• Affirmative Action Brief: Understanding Its Impact - The Policy Circle

  Affirmative action refers to policies and measures implemented to address historical and ongoing discrimination and promote equal opportunities for underrepresented groups, particularly in employment and education. The aim is to actively counteract the effects of past and present discrimination based on factors such as race, ethnicity, gender, or disability. [...] 2. Addressing historical discrimination: Affirmative action is intended to rectify the effects of past discrimination and promote social justice. It acknowledges the barriers faced by marginalized groups due to historical inequalities and aims to provide them with a fairer chance at education and employment opportunities. By considering race as one factor among others, affirmative action attempts to level the playing field and create more equitable outcomes. [...] 1. Promoting diversity and inclusion: Affirmative action can help foster a more diverse and inclusive workforce or educational environment. It aims to provide representation for historically underrepresented groups, giving them access to opportunities that were previously limited due to systemic biases and discrimination. By including individuals from diverse backgrounds, organizations, and educational institutions can benefit from a range of perspectives, experiences, and talents, which can

• Affirmative action in the United States - Wikipedia

  "Affirmative action is a national policy that concerns the way Americans feel about race, past discrimination, preferences, merit – and about themselves. This is why it is an American dilemma, and that is why we must understand how it developed and how its rationale and definition have changed since the 1960s.": 283 #### Reagan (1981–1989) [edit")] [...] The policy now called affirmative action was talked about as early as the Reconstruction Era (1863–1877) in which a former slave population lacked the skills and resources for independent living. In 1865, General William Tecumseh Sherman proposed dividing the land and goods from Confederates in Georgia "Georgia (U.S. state)") and granting those items to freed black slaves. The idea was called the "Forty acres and a mule" policy. The proposal was controversial because it would reverse the policy [...] Affirmative action policies were developed to address long histories of discrimination faced by minorities and women, which reports suggest produced corresponding unfair advantages for whites and males. They first emerged from debates over non-discrimination policies in the 1940s and during the civil rights movement. These debates led to federal executive orders requiring non-discrimination in the employment policies of some government agencies and contractors in the 1940s and onward, and to

• affirmative action | Wex | US Law | LII / Legal Information Institute

  Affirmative action is defined as a set of procedures designed to eliminate unlawful discrimination among applicants, remedy the results of such prior discrimination, and prevent such discrimination in the future. Applicants may be seeking admission to an educational program or looking for professional employment. In modern American jurisprudence, it typically imposes remedies against discrimination on the basis of (at the very least) race, creed, color, and national origin. #### Legal Origins [...] Employers who contract with the government or who otherwise receive federal funds are required to document their affirmative action practices and metrics. Affirmative action is also a remedy, under the Civil Rights Act of 1964, where a court finds that an employer has intentionally engaged in discriminatory practices. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, created by Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, enforces the following employment anti-discrimination laws: [...] In 1961, President John F. Kennedy issued an executive order mandating government contractors to "take affirmative action to ensure that applicants are employed, and that employees are treated during employment, without regard to their race, creed, color, or national origin" (Executive Order 10925). Since 1965, government contractors have been required to document their affirmative action programs through compliance reports, to contain "such information as to the practices, policies, programs,

• Affirmative action | Definition, History, & Cases - Britannica

  Affirmative action was initiated by the administration of President Lyndon Johnson (1963–69) in order to improve opportunities for African Americans while civil rights legislation was dismantling the legal basis for discrimination. The federal government began to institute affirmative action policies under the landmark Civil Rights Act of 1964 and an executive order in 1965. Businesses receiving federal funds were prohibited from using aptitude tests and other criteria that tended to [...] Affirmative action was initiated during U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson’s administration in the 1960s. The federal government instituted affirmative action policies under the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and an executive order in 1965. Businesses receiving federal funds were prohibited from using discriminatory tests and criteria, and Johnson’s executive order, as later amended, forbade these businesses from discriminating “because of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender [...] affirmative action, in the United States, an active effort to improve employment or educational opportunities for members of minority groups and for women. Affirmative action began as a government remedy to the effects of long-standing discrimination against such groups and has consisted of policies, programs, and procedures that give limited preferences to minorities and women in job hiring, admission to institutions of higher education, the awarding of government contracts, and other social

• A Brief History of Affirmative Action and the Assault on Race ...

  Affirmative action emerged during the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s as a response to the systemic discrimination faced by racial and ethnic minorities, as well as women, in employment and educational opportunities. The concept aimed to ensure that marginalized groups were afforded equal opportunities for advancement and inclusion. Executive Order 10925 (E.O), signed by President John F. Kennedy in 1961, was the first official policy to implement affirmative action. The executive order

• Instance Of

  Q13433827