US High Court to Reconsider ‘Affirmative Action’ Policies at Colleges

US High Court to Reconsider ‘Affirmative Action’ Policies at Colleges

In 1961, President John F. Kennedy ordered businesses working for the U.S. government to treat workers and people applying for jobs "without regard to their race, creed¹, color, or national origin." He said the businesses should take "affirmative action" to make this happen.

"It was really a recognition² that African Americans were excluded from the American dream for many years," said Natasha Warikoo, a sociology³ professor at Tufts University in Massachusetts.

She added that elite⁴ colleges in the United States also wanted to increase the percentage of African Americans and other minorities attending their schools. "And then taking into account race in the admissions process grew," she said.

Today, affirmative action refers to policies designed to increase representation⁵ of minorities and women in jobs and in higher education.

Katharine Meyer is with the Brookings Institution, a policy group in Washington, DC. She said affirmative action in higher education has two goals:

The first is to increase the diversity of student populations so that students may learn from more points of view. The second is to give chances to those students who grew up in areas with poor schools and fewer educational resources.

Sixty years later, Americans disagree about affirmative action. Courts have issued rulings on affirmative action. They continue to do so. The U.S. Supreme⁶ Court is currently⁷ considering two cases arguing that affirmative action discriminates⁸ against Asian American students. The justices could ban colleges from admitting students based on their race.

Mike Gonzalez is with the Heritage⁹ Foundation, another policy group in Washington. He supports ending affirmative action.

"It really violates¹⁰ all of our ideals," he said. "We're a multiethnic country where it's very important that government, or even the private sector¹¹, do not use race to pick and choose who rises and who doesn't rise. And getting into a school is one of the most important rungs in the ladder of success."

Nine states have banned affirmative action based on race. The states include California, Washington, Florida, Michigan and Nebraska. Arizona, New Hampshire, Oklahoma and Idaho also ban the policy.

A study from 2014 aimed to follow an affirmative action ban in a group of states from 1992 to 2004. The study found that its measures of affirmative action decreased by several percentage points in states that banned affirmative action.

Some colleges in those states now use other methods — like admitting students in the top 10 percent of their high school's graduating class.

But Warikoo said there is no way to choose the very best students. She said this is because not everyone agrees on what qualities and qualifications "best" students should have.

"Do we want to have a higher education system that is accessible to people regardless of their class backgrounds or their racial background?" she asked.

Gonzales said there are qualities that do not include race or ethnicity that colleges should look for in students. These may include how much students give to charity, what activities they do, and how much leadership they show.

"Race or category or national background is an awful way to make any choice by government or by the private sector. It should be so obvious to everybody that I don't even understand why I have to explain this," he said.

However, Warikoo worries about possible long-term effects of the Supreme Court ruling against admitting students to schools largely because of their race. "I don't want to be dramatic, but I think it undermines¹³ our democracy," she said.

She said that Americans believe education gives people a way to have success and a good life. But, she added, it is a problem if student populations in higher education do not have the same representation as high school students in the US.

The Supreme Court is expected to rule on the future of race-based admissions by June.

Words in This Story

creed -n. a set of beliefs or principles that strongly affect the way people live

origin -n. that from which a person or thing has its very beginnings; the root or primary beginning

exclude -v. to not allow inclusion of someone or something into a group or category

elite -adj. available to only a small set of people and/or showing unusually high levels of performance

taking into account -v. (phrasal) to consider or include in one's thinking

points of view -n. mental attitudes, opinions, or perspectives particular to each person or persons

sector -n. an area or category

rungs in the ladder -n. (idiomatic) the steps in a process which help progression towards achievement of some goal or task

accessible -adj. easily reached or obtained

regardless -adv. without taking into consideration

charity -n. the act of giving money to people or organizations in need

awful -adj. very bad

obvious -adj. easily seen, noticed, or understood

undermine¹² -v. weaken

1 creed   

n.信条；信念，纲领

参考例句：

• They offended against every article of his creed.他们触犯了他的每一条戒律。
• Our creed has always been that business is business.我们的信条一直是公私分明。

2 recognition   

n.承认，认可，认出，认识

参考例句：

• The place has changed beyond recognition.这地方变得认不出来了。
• A sudden smile of recognition flashed across his face.他脸上掠过一丝笑意，表示认识对方。

3 sociology   

n.社会学，社会关系学，群落生态学

参考例句：

• He is studying sociology.他正研究社会学。
• A pioneer of legal sociology in Germany was Max Weber.德国法律社会学的先驱是马克斯·韦伯。

4 elite   

n.精英阶层；实力集团；adj.杰出的，卓越的

参考例句：

• The power elite inside the government is controlling foreign policy.政府内部的一群握有实权的精英控制着对外政策。
• We have a political elite in this country.我们国家有一群政治精英。

5 representation   

n.表现某人（或某事物）的东西，图画，雕塑

参考例句：

• The painting is a representation of a storm at sea.这幅画描绘的是海上的暴风雨。
• All parties won representation in the national assembly.所有政党在国民大会中都赢得了代表资格。

6 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

7 currently   

adv.通常地，普遍地，当前

参考例句：

• Currently it is not possible to reconcile this conflicting evidence.当前还未有可能去解释这一矛盾的例证。
• Our contracts are currently under review.我们的合同正在复查。

8 discriminates   

分别，辨别，区分( discriminate的第三人称单数 )； 歧视，有差别地对待

参考例句：

• The new law discriminates against lower-paid workers. 这条新法律歧视低工资的工人。
• One test governs state legislation that discriminates against interstate commerce. 一个检验约束歧视州际商业的州立法。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法

9 heritage   

n.传统，遗产，继承物

参考例句：

• The ancient buildings are part of the national heritage.这些古建筑是民族遗产的一部分。
• We Chinese have a great cultural heritage.我们中国人有伟大的文化遗产。

10 violates   

亵渎( violate的第三人称单数 )； 违反； 侵犯； 强奸

参考例句：

• Anyone who violates law and discipline must firmly be slapped down. 对于任何违法乱纪的人都必须坚决予以打击。
• The country violates the international agreements. 那个国家违背了国际协议。

11 sector   

n.部门，部分；防御地段，防区；扇形

参考例句：

• The export sector will aid the economic recovery. 出口产业将促进经济复苏。
• The enemy have attacked the British sector.敌人已进攻英国防区。

12 undermine   

vt.暗中破坏，逐渐削弱，侵蚀…的基础

参考例句：

• She tried to undermine our friendship.她试图破坏我们的友谊。
• Rivers undermine their banks.河水冲刷堤基。

13 undermines   

在某物下挖洞或挖通道( undermine的第三人称单数 )； 侵蚀…的基础； 暗中破坏； 逐渐削弱

参考例句：

• It undermines cohesion and creates dissension. 这件事会破坏团结，制造纠纷。
• In healthcare, the cash nexus undermines the doctor-patient relationship. 在医疗行业，金钱有可能扭曲医务人员与患者之间应有的关系。