Affirmative Action
In Brief
The term "affirmative action" was first
used when President Kennedy established the President's Committee on Equal
Employment Opportunity in 1961. The Report of the Citizen's Commission on Civil Rights (1984) describes affirmative action as
any measure, beyond simple termination of a discriminatory practice, adopted to correct or compensate for past or present discrimination or to prevent discrimination from recurring in the future.
Affirmative action has been frequently challenged, especially at the state level. The most
visible victory for oppenents of affirmative action was California's appoval of Proposition 209 in
1996. Proposition 209 bars state and local governments from granting preferential treatment based on race or sex in
public employment, education and contracting. The Supreme Court has refused to interfere with the implementation of
the law.
Former President Clinton lobbied to "mend it, don't end it." In 1997, he began an Initiative on Race to
encourage dialogue on race issues.
Affirmative Action Resources
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