The term "Affirmative Action" has been highjacked by racists. It arose in the 1960s when the Civil Rights Division of the Justice Department reviewed what companies and educational institutions were doing to combat racism in hiring/admissions. All of the entities reviewed pointed proudly to policy statements that made use of race in decisions forbidden.
The policy statements were window dressing in practice. Racial discrimination against people of color still took place in violation of the policies with no consequences. The attorneys in the Civil Rights Division announced that policy statements by themselves were not enough; it was necessary to ACT AFFIRMATIVELY to broaden the talent pool through such measures as advertising in publications of interest to the underrepresented minorities, holding recruiting events in minority neighborhoods, schools and churches, and soliciting highly qualified individuals from underrepresented groups to apply.
Broadening the talent pool was a goal no one with a measurable IQ could oppose. At some point affirmative action, a logical and admirable undertaking, was stolen and its meaning perverted to the opposite, racial preferences. The authoritarian Left has been allowed to define terms of discussion for too long in too many fora.
Dr. Loury,
The term "Affirmative Action" has been highjacked by racists. It arose in the 1960s when the Civil Rights Division of the Justice Department reviewed what companies and educational institutions were doing to combat racism in hiring/admissions. All of the entities reviewed pointed proudly to policy statements that made use of race in decisions forbidden.
The policy statements were window dressing in practice. Racial discrimination against people of color still took place in violation of the policies with no consequences. The attorneys in the Civil Rights Division announced that policy statements by themselves were not enough; it was necessary to ACT AFFIRMATIVELY to broaden the talent pool through such measures as advertising in publications of interest to the underrepresented minorities, holding recruiting events in minority neighborhoods, schools and churches, and soliciting highly qualified individuals from underrepresented groups to apply.
Broadening the talent pool was a goal no one with a measurable IQ could oppose. At some point affirmative action, a logical and admirable undertaking, was stolen and its meaning perverted to the opposite, racial preferences. The authoritarian Left has been allowed to define terms of discussion for too long in too many fora.