What about the white guy?
...ying, 'you are free to compete with all the others,' and still justly believe you have been completely fair . . . This is the next and more profound stage of the battle for civil rights. We seek not just freedom but opportunity—not just legal equity but human ability—not just equality as a right and a theory, but equality as a fact and as a result. (Affirmative Action Timeline) President Johnson issued “Executive Order 11246,” on Sept. 24, 1965, which enforced affirmative action for the first time. The executive order requires government contractors to "take affirmative action" toward prospective minority employees in all aspects of hiring and employment. Contractors must take specific measures to ensure equality in hiring and must document these efforts. On Oct. 13, 1967, the order was amended to cover discrimination on the basis of gender. I would like to use an example, which my Uncle Jeff emailed to me, that illustrates the problems that this discrimination created for him. He was a police officer in Florida during the 1970’s. My uncle had to pass a test in order to be accepted. To help minorities, points were awarded to any one that met certain criteria. If a black, disabled, veteran, female could only score a 60% on the test; she would also receive 10 points for each criteria (40 points in all), giving her a score of 100%. (Mitchell) Obviously this would beat out the 97% score of the poor white guy that studied and worked to pass the test. Which one would you like to have protecting you? Tossing affirmative action aside may not be a solution for every state, but Arizona is a very likely candidate. “Approximately half of the people in Arizona reported to be in at least one minority group in the 2000 Census.” (Arizona Quickfacts) That would mean that the majority group is not quite the majority any more. “All people…have the same inherent capacity to succeed given a level playing field.” (Watulak, 122) It seems that in Arizona we now have a level playing field, so why isn’t the outcome even? Another possible solution is to take gender and race out of the picture. If the government wants to help someone that may not have certain opportunities, then the government should look at what is stopping that person from achieving their goal. A person’s race or gender does not inhibit their capacity to learn or to achieve. We do not live in Korea were “the birth of a girl was a disappointing one,” and set a future of failure and of little achievement. (Choi, 106) We live in America; the land of equality and of the free. Why should our race or gender have anything to do with what we can accomplish. On the other hand, disabilities and available income most definitely can limit our accomplishments. If affirmative action is to be continued, then the guidelines should not be concerned with skin color or...