AFFIRMATIVE ACTION MEANS TAKING POSITIVE STEPS TO END DISCRIMINATION, TO PREVENT ITS RECURRENCE, AND TO CREATE NEW OPPORTUNITIES THAT WERE PREVIOUSLY DENIED TO QUALIFIED WOMEN AND PEOPLE OF COLOR
The Supreme Court has consistently made clear that gender or race can be taken into account in programs designed to expand opportunities for women and people of color. Indeed, in the words of Justice Harry Blackmun, "In order to get beyond racism, we must first take account of race. There is no other way." And as Justice Sandra Day O'Connor emphasized in Adarand Constructors Inc. v. Pena: "The unhappy persistence of both the practice and the lingering effects of racial discrimination against minorities in this country is an unfortunate reality and government is not disqualified from acting in response to it." The same is true for sexism: gender-based affirmative action programs are an antidote to the sex discrimination that too often infects decisions about jobs, education, and business opportunities.
Relevant Legislation and Propositions:
Executive Order 10952 (1961) - Responsible for the formation of the EEOC
Civil Rights Act of 1964 - Monumental legislation in the fight against discrimination
Age Discrimination Act 1964 - Legislation to forbid age-based discrimination
Executive Order 11246 (1965) - Government contracting
Voting Rights Act 1965 - Act which granted African Americans the right to vote
Fair Housing Act 1968 - Act which forbids housing discrimination
Philadelphia Plan (1970) - President Nixon's plan to end discrimination in the workplace
Pregnancy Discrimination Act 1978 - Act which protects the rights of pregnant women
Americans with Disabilities Act 1990- Act which protects disabled citizens
Civil Rights Act of 1991 - Reversing Supreme Court losses
Proposition 209- California anti-affirmative action legislation
Initiative 200 - Washington state's initiative
Relevant Court Cases:
Barnes v. Costle (1977) - Sexual harassment
UC Regents v. Bakke (1978) - "Reverse discrimination"
Steelworkers v. Weber (1979) - Affirmative Action in employment
Meritor Savings Bank v. Vinson (1986) - Sexual harassment in the workplace
Wards Cove v. Atonio (1989) - "Discriminatory impact"
Patterson v. McLean Credit Union (1989) - Re-addressing the Civil Rights Act of 1866
Richmond v. J. A. Croson Co. (1989) - Government contracting set-asides
Adarand Constructors Inc. v. Pena (1995) - Changing standards for affirmative action
Piscataway Board v. Taxman (1997) - On appeal to U.S. Supreme Court
The Glass Ceiling Commission: