This paper is a summary of the article on whether affirmative action advances racial equality. The article was written by Glenn, C and Williams, W, with Glenn supporting the contention that affirmative action advances racial equality while Williams is against this view. According to Glenn, the prudent use of “race-sighted” policies is essential to reducing the harmful effects that are brought about by race stigmatization, with particular emphasis on the sense of “racial otherness” which is still in existence in the United States. Williams on other hand argues that using race as a preference leads to a reversal of the gains that have been made as a result of the civil rights movement; since it penalizes people and ends up causing more harm to those it is intended to help.
Those who support affirmative action say that there should be a continuation of debate on the issue of racial justice even though there is no formal discrimination anymore. Glenn adds that the use of race–based instruments is characteristically the result, and not the cause, of the widespread racial awareness in the society. Therefore, saying that people should be blind to race is essentially a superficial moral idea. By not recognizing race because we fear others will start thinking in racial terms is living in denial. It is therefore impossible to understand the social orientation that defines the country without referring to race because these categories are embedded in the people’s consciousness and cannot be wished away. It is therefore important for people to be mindful of the race issue as they conduct their public affairs since race is more of a matter of cognition than normative.
The opponents of affirmative action, on the other hand, argue that affirmative action penalizes innocent people simply because they are white, and in most cases, the result is that it leads to people who are not qualified being employed which results in more harm than good to blacks. Williams argues that the civil rights agitation for blacks is over and won. According to Williams the same rights that are enjoyed by whites, are also provided to the African Americans. They are treated equally within the law, can make contracts, sue and be sued, vote and associate, and travel freely. These were rights they did not enjoy previously. They further argue that previously, civil rights activists were against making race a basis for hiring, access to public facilities, and private organizations. Presently, they are fighting for restricted access. To Williams, civil rights groups have stopped focusing on the true meaning of justice and freedoms, especially those related to the association. Racial preferences in resource allocation often result in a zero-sum game, in that while the blacks end up gaining, the loss is transferred to innocent and deserving whites. For instance, affirmative action in university admissions often leads to blacks with lower marks being given admission to prestigious universities at the expense of highly qualified and deserving white and Asian cases. Furthermore, leading colleges that have used affirmative action to recruit blacks have produced disastrous results with the majority of the blacks recruited failing to graduate from those colleges.
I support affirmative action efforts aimed at giving more opportunities to racial minorities. Currently, there is skewed access to resources like education, health care, and job opportunities among the racial minorities, especially African Americans. This can be attributed to historical factors like slavery and government policies that discriminated against racial minorities and gave whites more privileges and opportunities. Therefore, affirmative action should be encouraged because it will help in reducing institutional discrimination and bring about more equality.