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There is still need of Affirmative action in society in employment, public contracting, and in the academy. And of these three arenas, the fields of higher education are the most barren and in desperate need of leadership and tending from affirmative action professionals. It has been strongly argued that people of color have made great progress socially and economically. Because they perceive that progress has been made, they conclude that efforts like affirmative action are outdated, unfair and unnecessary. The fact is that racism, discrimination, exclusion and economic marginalization based on skin color continue to impede the progress of, and are a part of the current reality for too many, people of color in this country (Soto).
The Center for Individual Rights (the organization behind the law suits at the University of Texas) in October 1997 filed a lawsuit against the University of Michigan on behalf of two white students who were denied admission last year. The lawsuit claims the university's affirmative action policies discriminate against "qualified" whites in favor of "unqualified" minority students. University President Lee Bollinger says the school will not back down: "For almost 200 years, public universities have unlocked the doors to social and economic opportunity to students from many different backgrounds. We believe it is absolutely essential that they continue to do so."
Students of color continue to suffer from the neglect, disinterest, mis-guidance, and passive hostilities of educators and educational systems that just don't understand, don't care about, or don't see the too often negative consequences of being a person of color in this country even after thirty-three years after passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Soto, 1997).
“I know some people are honestly concerned about the times affirmative action doesn't work, when it's done in the wrong way. And I know there are times when some employers don't use it in the right way. They may cut corners and treat a flexible goal as a quota. They may give opportunities to people who are unqualified instead of those who deserve them. They may, in so doing, allow a different kind of discrimination. When this happens, it is also wrong. But it isn't affirmative action, and it is not legal.” (Clinton)
In spite of the fact the recent U.S. Court of Appeals 5th Circuit decision (Hopwood v. University of Texas, 1996), the use of race as one of many appropriate criteria to consider in making admissions decisions in higher education is permitted (Bakke v. University of California-Davis, U.S. Supreme Court, 1978). The Supreme Court refused to hear an appeal case on Proposition 209 and lets the decisions of the lower courts stand in November 1997, which means that the prohibition on affirmative action in California has been upheld. This was not a decision by the Supreme Court (though they decided not to hear the case) and it arguably does not set a national precedent. However, one should note that the House Judiciary Committee is set to continue its work on legislation similar to Proposition 209. This legislation would ban the federal government from granting preferences in hiring, contracting and other programs. Anti-affirmative action drives and ballot initiatives also abound in Washington state, Houston, and Michigan.
"Affirmative action programs stamp minorities with a badge of inferiority" no matter how competent they are or how hard they work. The beneficiaries of special treatment, says Justice Thomas, too often "develop dependencies or adopt an attitude that they are entitled to preferences." A rollback of affirmative action by the courts, politicians, and public opinion, however, does not leave the nation at a dead end in terms of economic fairness and group equity. Instead, it can open the roads that lead to the real causes of inequality. In the black community, progress in lowering the high dropout rates in schools and raising the proportion of intact families would produce more upward mobility than all of the government's affirmative action programs combined (Reiland).
The critics of affirmative action do not see the need for, and thus do not offer, reasonable alternatives to affirmative action. Nor do they take any personal responsibility for finding reasonable solutions to problems that undergird the need for affirmative action. The majority of Affirmative Action's critics refuse to take any direct and meaningful action to eliminate the racism that continues to negatively impact on a daily basis the lives of people of color (Soto, 1997). Those who most vehemently denounce affirmative action are typically the ones who have the power and authority to do something to make affirmative action unnecessary. For example, implementing alternatives that will ensure that people of color who are qualified are not always at a disadvantage, such as finding solutions to the oppressive social conditions that have plagued people of color in this hemisphere since 1492, such as eliminating racism and its effects in their own sphere of influence and authority (Soto, 1997). Their attacks on affirmative action and their refusal to act affirmatively do nothing to remedy the situations and conditions that continue to make affirmative action necessary.
According to Soto (1997) affirmative action is not anachronistic, dead, or useless. It is timely, alive and very much needed. A dominant culture controlling and reaping the benefits and privileges of power, while qualified and deserving people of color (and others similarly disenfranchised, e.g., gays/lesbians, women, immigrants, the poor) continue to struggle for inclusion, equal opportunity, and acknowledgment that they too are worthy partners in American society. Abolishment of racism in this country will go far toward eliminating the need for Affirmative Action programs (Soto, 1997). However, rejection of Affirmative Action programs, will do nothing to eliminate the racism that justifies the continued existence of these programs.