Those who wish to retain Affirmative Action regulations argue that America has a moral obligation to right the wrongs of the past - that Blacks and other minorities, whose ancestors have suffered institutionalized discrimination for hundreds of years, have earned preferential treatment. Race-neutral hiring, say proponents, actually discriminates against minorities because the majority of available jobs are not advertised. Rather, they are learned about by word-of-mouth, and minorities are not plugged into the "old-boy networks" through which they might hear of these jobs. Affirmative Action must be maintained for minorities to rise above the glass ceiling to management positions, and for poor minorities to rise from poverty and unemployment. Affirmative action has been the subject of increasing debate and tension in American society, and through this heated debate, the fight between Angle males and minorities actually sets the two groups apart instead of bringing them together. However, the debate over affirmative action has become ensnared in rhetoric that pits equality of opportunity against the equality of results. The debate has been more emotional than intellectual, and has generated more tension than shed light on the issue. Participants in the debate have over examined the ethical and moral issues that Affirmative Action raises while forgetting to scrutinize the system that has created the need for them. Too often, Affirmative Action is looked upon as the panacea for a nation once ill with, but now cured of, the virulent disease of racial discrimination. Affirmative Action is, and should be seen as, a temporary, partial, and perhaps even flawed remedy for past and continuing discrimination against historically marginalized and disenfranchised groups in American society. Working as it should, it affords groups greater equality of opportunity in a social context marked by substantial inequalities and structural forces that impede a fair assessment of their capabilities. However, its failure highlights the potential for an aura of racism in this country which may perpetuate for many generations on.

As Martin Luther King once said, "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character." Affirmative Action would make this dream virtually impossible, bringing race in as a factor in judging college admissions and employment. Those who want to eliminate Affirmative Action regulations argue that preferential programs encourage racial tensions when white students and workers feel they are not getting fair consideration. Why should whites suffer for society's past mistakes? ask Anti-Affirmative Action activists who also note that Affirmative Action programs make whites the victims of reverse discrimination. Affirmative Action works against minorities, the argument continues, because it is assumed that an individual who benefits from such programs is automatically considered inferior to other candidates for jobs or schools, and because the majority who benefit from Affirmative Action are already middle-class, those most in need of the programs, rural and inner-city blacks, have gained nothing. Protestors against Affirmative Action have already taken steps to abolish the abominable doctrine through the passing of Proposition 209 in California. The measure would eliminate Affirmative Action programs

Some common words found in the essay are:
Affirmative Action, affirmative action, University California, Daniel Boorstin, John Kennedy, Black Americans, Luther King, Randall Kennedy, Richard Nixon, Opportunity Act, Jimmy Carter, equal opportunity, reverse discrimination, minorities women, affirmative action programs, action programs, affirmative action regulations, national origin, goals timetables, admissions employment, affected measure, action regulations, college admissions employment, female applicant flow, ethnicity preferential factors,
Approximate Word count = 2329
Approximate Pages = 9 (250 words per page double spaced)