Essay on Education and Affirmative Action - 1082 Words

What does equality mean? For many centuries, America has had a difficult time answering that question. In the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, African Americans were not equal: white Americans would call them their property, put them into iron shackles, and would mercilessly beat them. From the seventeen to the nineteen hundreds and a lot longer before then, women were forbidden to vote; instead, women were expected to act as homemakers or work long hours within small factories in filthy conditions. Yet today, the issues of equality have been challenged by affirmative action. Across the nation, the use of affirmative action in education has stirred significant controversy. Some people believe that instigating affirmative action in the†¦show more content†¦Paul Gaston, a university professor who has taught for more than 40 years, has witnessed the changes on campus after affirmative action was introduced and concluded that â€Å"before African American undergraduates ar rived on campus, white students used to feel they had permission to say just about anything that came to mind about race† (Clayton). The ethnic diversity of students has made a remarkable change on campuses today. Now, students not only gain knowledge from their professors, but from their fellow students as well. â€Å"It made people [be] more honest, think harder, learn more, and be more sensitive to others,† Professor Gaston commented (quoted in Clayton). A diverse college experience encourages students acclimate to being more tolerant of diversity, thus giving them an opportunity to learn and to live in harmony with people of different backgrounds. Besides the fact that Affirmative Action can create a diverse environment, it also helps increase the chance for minority groups to get accepted into higher education systems as well. Studies have shown that students from families where few people have pursued higher education are less likely to excel in high school. On average, African American students will be four years behind the typical white or Asian student by 12th grade (Thernstrom). Two of the à ©lite University of California campuses, Berkeley and UCLA, witnessed a dramatic decrease in African American and HispanicShow MoreRelatedAffirmative Action And Its Impact On Education985 Words   |  4 Pagesthe executive order of Affirmative Action, which first barred government employers from discriminating based on â€Å"race, creed, color, or national origin† (Kennedy, 1961). Overtime the use of affirmative action moved from jobs to the education system. Affirmative action in schools truly gained momentum following the Brown v. Board of Education as educational institutions began to comply with the Supreme Court’s ruling to integrate schools. When the Supreme Court ruled on education President Johnson affirmedRead MoreAffirmative Action And Its Effect On Education2230 Words   |  9 PagesAffirmative Action(,/;?) Necessary or Detrimental to Education? Martin Luther King Jr. once proclaimed â€Å"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.† This quote is infamous, and has been adopted as the essential basis of the minority equality movement. However, minority equality supporters and activists also support a policy that directly contradicts Martin Luther KingRead MoreAffirmative Action And Its Impact On Education3441 Words   |  14 Pages Since its creation in 1965 affirmative action has been heralded by supporters as a landmark achievement and a means to erase the legacy of discrimination and raise the educational outcomes and benefits of America’s protected classes.1 Despite the support it has received, there are large numbers of people who have expressed their opposition to affirmative action in education, claiming that it is a form of discrimination, and questioning its effectiveness. As the debate rages, researchers have exhaustivelyRead MoreIs Affirmative Action in Higher Education Outdated?783 Words   |  3 Pagesï » ¿Is Affirmative Action in Higher Education Outdated? Affirmative action policies have been in place since 1957 (Rubio 144). Presidents Kennedy and Johnson signed executive orders in 1961 and 1964, respectively, requiring government agencies and their contractors to take affirmative steps to ensure minority participation. Johnsons order was modified two years later to include women. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 outlawed discriminatory hiring, promotion, and retention practices in both the privateRead MoreEssay about Education and Affirmative Actions951 Words   |  4 Pageschallenged through affirmative action. Across the nation, the use of affirmative action in education has stirred controversy. Some people believe that instigating affirmative action in the college admissions process would create a diverse education. Nevertheless, some consider that it is merely a policy of reverse discrimination against white and Asian students. In 1961, the notion of affirmative first appeared when President Kennedy told government contractors to take â€Å"affirmative action to ensure thatRead MoreAffirmative Action Programs : Education And Employment Essay2090 Words   |  9 Pages Affirmative action (AA) programs began as a management tool designed to ensure equal opportunity both in education and employment in the United States for members of underrepresented racial groups. There are numerous amounts of evidence to support that affirmative action programs have done exactly what they were established to do, but like with â€Å"any government policy that gives a positive meaning to some non-class non economic group difference†(Steinberg : 270) there are critics, who fail toRead MoreGender And The Board Of Education And Affirmative Action2864 Words   |  12 PagesHistorically, certain groups have been underrepresented and unsuccessful in higher education. These groups include Hispanics, Latinos, African Amer icans, etc. Efforts have been made at the federal and institutional level to reverse this phenomenon, namely Brown vs. The Board of Education and Affirmative Action. Despite these efforts, African Americans, or Blacks, still lag behind in graduation rates relative to other races and Black males even more so. There has been a myriad of research done andRead MoreRace Based Affirmative Action On Higher Education Essay1445 Words   |  6 PagesRace-Based Affirmative Action in Higher Education In 1961, President John F. Kennedy issued Executive Order 10925, which created the Committee on Equal Employment Opportunity, or CEEO. One purpose of the CEEO was to â€Å"recommend additional affirmative steps which should be taken by executive departments and agencies to realize more fully the national policy of nondiscrimination† (Kennedy). This executive order planted the seeds that grew into what is today known as â€Å"race-based affirmative action,† or theRead MoreEssay on The Negative Effects of Affirmative Action on Education1472 Words   |  6 PagesUniversity was required to select a set amount of minorities before them thanks to something knows as affirmative action. On the other hand, you may be a minority who simply can’t earn the feeling of equality because of educational and employed handicaps. Affirmative action in our education system it an unjust practice that we can do without if we can learn to live in a color-blind society. Affirmative action was first established in 1961 in order to ensure that minorities could secure a job based on theirRead MoreAffirmative Action : The Education System And Job Market1284 Words   |  6 Pagesprogram affirmative action was instilled into universities around the nation, it set different qualifications for minority applicants and assigned points based off race. With these new criteria instigated, people saw the program as alluding to the notion that if you came from a particular race, the bar was no longer set at a high standard and therefore no need to work as hard as before. Others saw it as a great step forward to helping those who needed the extra assistance. Affirmative action began

Analysis Of I Don t Have A Mama - 1647 Words

1. See, I said, you don t have any family and neither do I. I ve got the preacher, of course. But I don t have a mama. I mean I have one, but I don t know where she is. She left when I was three years old. I can t hardly remember her. And I bet you don t remember your mama much either. So we re almost like orphans pg 21. Opal say this to Winn- Dixie when Opal takes him into their home and considers him a family member. The quote makes the image of her and Winn-Dixie’s lives very lonely and sad. This makes me think she has no one to talk to and that her father is just there. Why doesn’t she count her father as family? The image makes it look like her father is not emotionally connected to her and she need more love in her life. The reason why I can connect and relate to the book is because I only have a mother. I grew up in a single parent household. My father pasted away when I was Twelve years old. I didn’t even know my father that well even in those Twelve year s. I can relate with Opal not being able to recall anything about a parent. My mother doesn’t talk about my father so it is hard to know things and to know what and how she is thinking. Opal can relate to this because her father doesn’t talk much about her mother either. Whenever my mother does say something I will keep it in my memories forever because it’s the only things I have to hold on to about my father. Opal did the same thing when her father told her ten things about her mother. Opal and IShow MoreRelatedThe Roles Of Sexism And Dreams1377 Words   |  6 Pagessupporting roles just like their mother, Mama Lena. Debuted on Broadway in 1959, the dramatic work, A Raisin in the Sun, is composed by Lorraine Hansberry, who depicts the issues of sexism and dreams. Considering these themes, how can we explore the presence of dreams as well as the ideology of sexism that is registered in Black America? Through Walter’s quote, Hansberry’s screenplay challenges gender stereotypes through Walter and Beneatha while exploring Mama s domestic narrative; these three charactersRead MoreThe Heritage Of The Past1402 Words   |  6 Pageswriting. In â€Å"Everyday Use,† by Alice Walker, the mother narrates her perception of her two daughters, Dee and Maggie. Mama, the narrator, describes herself as a â€Å"big-boned† woman with hands that work like a man. She describes her daughters as opposite in personality. Dee is perceived as a pretty, independent, and fortunate college woman, whom later is identified as â€Å"Wangero.† Mama shared a dream that she had about Dee, as a TV show guest, that claims something special and beautiful about Dee. Mama’sRead MoreLiterary Analysis Of The House On Mango Street1163 Words   |  5 PagesEzra Collins English 9: Tetlak Literary Analysis: The House on Mango Street November 3, 2017 Remember Where Your From The House on Mango Street On average 40,093,000 people in the United States move annually. In the book The House on Mango Street the main character Esperanza and her family are included in this number. They Come very poor roots, and they don t have much money. They move often, one day dreaming to live in a real house, one they don t have to share, one with their own yard, withRead MoreAnalysis Of The House On Mango Street 1367 Words   |  6 Pagessocietal message and its understanding of the Latinx culture in the United States. I chose to write my review on this book due to the fact that as being a Latina in the United States, this book is something that I can relate to and understand in a more profound way since I have experienced some of the things that Esperanza experienced living on Mango Street. This essay will have a brief summary, character description, analysis of the central theme, and a review on the quality of writing and the impact onRead MoreDrag Queens : Lifestyle Or Disguise1397 Words   |à ‚  6 PagesDrag Queens: Lifestyle or Disguise Mama Ru (RuPaul Charles’ Drag Queen persona) gave her perspective on an episode of Drag Race with this quote: â€Å"If you can’t love yourself, how in the hell are you gonna love somebody else?† the aspiration with this quote, it is to show the relevance that even with a different lifestyle, such as the â€Å"drag† life, self-love is respected in that controversial world. Over the centuries, men dressing as women has been going on since the dawn of the theatre, but whatRead MoreBiblical Names In Toni Morrisons Song Of Solomon1574 Words   |  7 Pagesare named after, or so that he or she may carry on the name of a beloved family member. Many names that are popular today are names from the Bible, since most of the biblical characters possess characteristics that parents would want their child to have. Names like Noah, Jacob, David, and Miriam, are names currently in the top 1000 child names in the world, and they are all biblical names. Names from the Bib le are also found in many works of literature, like Toni Morrison’s Song of Solomon, a comingRead MoreThe Life You Save May Be Your Own1506 Words   |  7 Pagesfixing the car, we see that he says that the trouble with the world was that nobody cared, or stopped and took any trou- ble. (Flannery O Connor, The Life You Save May Be Your Own) By the end of the story, Mr. Shiftlet had married the daughter of mama Lucynell Crater, who s name is also Lucynell Crater, and they eventually stop at a diner called The Hot Spot in which Mr. Shiftlet leaves her there. After he has abandoned the younger Lucynell Crater and he picked a boy hitchhik- er on his way toRead Moreevery day use3221 Words   |  13 Pages Date Paper draft (for example, Paper #1 Draft A or In-class Essay #2) On subsequent pages, in the upper right corner write: The paper s title Your name Page number Character analysis of the story â€Å"Everyday Use† by Alice Walker 1) Pay attention to the character’s ethics. Does the character make just or unjust choices? Consider Atticus Finch in Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird. Atticus does not make morally correctRead MoreToni Morrison s Beloved And The Bluest Eye2300 Words   |  10 PagesJada Warner Razor Ap Lit- 5 8 December 2016 Author/Work Literary Analysis Paper Toni Morrison s Beloved and The Bluest Eye Toni Morrison is known for her use of poetic language. In many of her writings Morrison captures the pursuit of African Americans identities(Parnell). Considering Morrison never experienced the horrific tragedies she writes about, she is a witness to many identities that were destroyed by society depiction of them. The themes that Toni Morrison illustrates in her worksRead MoreWillie Lynch Syndrome: Effect on the African American Community2273 Words   |  10 Pagesdisputed because of the language used. However, this writer feels that the methods describe are consistent with the way the African American community has been fractured in their treatment of one another, in his lifetime and history gives a brief analysis of the difference skin color has played in the African American community. Willie Lynch Syndrome: Its effect on the African American community, past and present. Reasonably account of the treatment of a race of people or hoax? Is this a reason

Censorship in Huck Finn Free Essays

Censorship and the Importance of Accurate Historical Sources Mark Twain’s classic novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn has been criticized since the day it was released. A library in Concord MA banned the book only a month after it was put into print and other libraries and schools have followed suit (Mark Twain’s Adventures of Huckleberry Finn). The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is not the only story to be widely banned, but it is one of the most controversial and well known. We will write a custom essay sample on Censorship in Huck Finn or any similar topic only for you Order Now Many people claim that the novel is racist due to the frequent use of racial slurs and the disrespect and mistreatment of the character Jim who is a runaway slave. Mark Twain’s famous novel is not a racist text because it is a historical account of the south during the 1840s, when racism was commonplace. The book’s purpose was to emphasize real life and mock the faults in human nature. In The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, a young boy named Huckleberry Finn runs away from his life and travels down the Mississippi River with his friend Jim, a runaway slave. The story follows Huck’s moral growth and maturity throughout his many adventures and experiences. The major turning point of the book is when Huck realizes that Jim cares about him, and that he cares about Jim in return. As a child, Huck is taught that Jim isn’t a person because of his skin color and that he does not deserve respect, but Huck discovers that Jim is a person and deserves more respect than most people Huckleberry met on his journeys. He comes to this decision because Jim cares for him and treats Huck better than his own father. Huck says â€Å"All right, then, I’ll go to hell. when he decides to go against the racist teachings of his childhood and help Jim get his freedom (Twain 216-217). The book was written to show what life was like in the 1840s and successfully revealed the way people viewed each other and people of other races. In the beginning of the story, Huck treats Jim poorly because he is taught that Jim isn’t a real person and h e could get away with it. One of the many tricks Huckleberry plays on Jim was hiding a snake in the cave they were living in, but the snake bites Jim and Huck realizes how cruel his trick was and begins to feel sorry for how he treats Jim (Twain 55). Events like this are the reason people believe that Mark Twain’s book is racist, but without these examples the book’s purpose is muddled and the historical reliability is gone. The book The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is considered a controversial text because it contains derogatory language and examples of disrespectful behavior towards people of color. Speech and actions like the ones in the book were common in the setting of the book (Knab 1). People want to ban or edit the original text of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, because of these elements, but they still allow these remarks in other literary works. Fredric Douglass used the same language in his narrative that was published in 1845, forty years before Twain published The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, but people don’t challenge his work because he was a slave and his story is a historical account of a slave’s life (Bowker). The two stories are based in the same time, are about the same topic, and both aim to be realistic portrayals of everyday life in the 1840s, yet one is constantly challenged while the other is allowed to be as it is. People today are concerned with being â€Å"politically correct† and â€Å"non-offensive†, but they have reached the point where they are willing to change history to protect the feelings of certain people (Kay). If these â€Å"racist† remarks and actions were removed from The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, the message of the book would not be evident, its historical accuracy destroyed, and the book would just be a meaningless children’s story. Censorship is useful to an extent, it allows people to keep mature information from children, but when it is used on history it takes away from the importance of knowing about and learning from the past. The reason racism is so important to avoid now is because of the negative effects it had in the past. If people don’t learn about these effects, then they can not understand the importance of equality now. When books are censored, their historical accuracy is lost and they are unable to educate people on the importance of the past to modern-day (Kay). Without learning about the good, bad, and ugly of the past, people wont be able to comprehend why the world is the way it is and how they can avoid the mistakes of the past. If the offensive content of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is removed, then people will not be able to see the severity of racism during the 1840s (Bosman). If the book is censored, then the point where Pap starts ranting about the â€Å"injustice† of a well educated black man being able to vote will not have the impact it should, representing the opinion of the average white male in the south (Twain 28). The novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is seen as a masterpiece (Mark Twain’s Adventures of Huckleberry Finn) and a classic (Robert O’Meally) due to the original riting and arrangement. Without these elements, that people want to change, the book would not be as renowned or highly regarded. Although The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn may have some content that offends some people and they believe that it would be better to remove the offensive content, it would take away from the plot and meaning of the story. If the novel really offends someone, then they do not have to read it again or even finish reading it, but they do not have the right to change the words of someone else to suit their own ideals. The words of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn were all carefully picked by Mark Twain to carry the message of his story and editing them would be defacing his hard work. Twain often complained about his proofreaders and editors changing his work (Kurutz). The book was written by Mark Twain and if he saw the need to add these controversial elements, then we should not interfere with his decision or his historical accuracy (Kay). Then novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is not a racist text, nor is Mark Twain a racist himself. Mark Twain’s novel was written as a historical account of life in the 1840s and as a result, any content that could be considered offensive to some is all added to make the literary work more realistic and a more accurate portrayal of life in the setting. Without these elements, the story of Huckleberry’s moral growth would not be as developed and the message of the book will not be as prominent. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn should not be censored because the way the book is written provides an accurate account of life in the 1840s and without the writing staying as it is, the whole integrity of the work will be diminished. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is considered a classic because of how it was written. Changing the text changes the whole book and since the book is so highly regarded as it is, it should remain the same. When people claim that a book is racist, they make this assumption based on the content of the book. What people need to note is when the book is set, its publication date, and the purpose of the offensive content. With The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, the story takes place in the 1840s when racism was very common. It also was published in 1885 when people in the United States were struggling with racism after the Civil War. The offensive content of the book is used to portray what life was like in the 1840s and to mock the behavior of the people of that time. When the book was written, language like that used in the text was still common and not seen as offensive as it does now. Mark Twain’s novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is not racist, it just contains racist content, and this content makes the story what it is and develops its meaning. To take away this major element of the literary work to protect the feelings of some individuals would ruin the story and would hurt more people than it would help. To censor The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn would take away a valuable source of historical knowledge that allows us to see the importance of how our society has changed and developed. Without this knowledge, people will forget the importance of the progress humankind has made and will not be able to avoid the mistakes we have already made as a whole in the past. Because of these reasons, changing the great literary work of Mark Twain Is unnecessary because The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is not a racist text and exposure to the harsh realities in the story will help the people of today to truly understand our past as a whole and improve our future. Works Cited Page Bosman, Julie. â€Å"Publisher Tinkers with Twain. † National Post. 4 Jan 2011. Print. Bowker, Gene. â€Å"Mark Twain, racism and Huckleberry Finn. † Examiner. com. Web. 9 Feb 2013 ;http://www. examiner. om/article/mark-twain-racism-and-huckleberry-finn; Kay, Barbara. â€Å"We Shouldn’t Censor History. † National Post. 10 Jan 2011. Print. Knab, Jakob. Racism in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. 2011. Print. Kurutz,, Steven. â€Å"A Twain Scholar Reacts to the New, Censored Version ‘Huckleberry Finn’. † National Post. 9 Jan 2011. Print. PBS. â€Å"Mark Twain’s Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. † Web. 9 Feb 2013 ;http: //www. pbs. org/wgbh/cultureshock/flashpoints/literature/huck. html; Twain, Mark. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. New York: Barnes and Noble, 2003. Print. How to cite Censorship in Huck Finn, Essay examples

Mi Guia free essay sample

â€Å"Dale!† I heard through the whoosh of the city traffic. I jerked my head in the direction of the familiar salutation and instantly recognized her. I hadn’t seen her in almost three months, but with her oversized floppy straw hat draped over her head and the familiar, rich blue and yellow dress that clung to her tan shoulders, she still looked the same. â€Å"Carina!† I shouted back as we both moved closer for a hello hug. After three months I had been reunited with my group leader. She was a twenty-two year old native New Yorker who had led me and my group on a five week trip to Spain. Fresh from four years at Smith College, she studied Spanish, Economics and traveled the world. Though our trip was my first experience traveling and seeing the world, it was a eye opening one that has left me thirsty for more adventure. We will write a custom essay sample on Mi Guia or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Much of the change that the trip brought about in me came from Carina because she inspired me to push myself while in Spain. She urged me to speak more Spanish and try new foods; she introduced me to Spanish History in fact, when she passed along a book about the Inquisition and Re-Conquest, I spent many late nights of my home stay, with my head perched on my pillow and eyes plowing through the words on the page. Carina and I went to a rundown Spanish bar to play some sloppy but competitive games of billiards. We laughed and joked about our lack of skill as we fumbled through each shot blaming our misfortunes on the unfamiliar Spanish rules. After the game we sat at a small table directly across from an enormous leg of cured Serrano ham, eating some sort of smelly fried fish tapas. We discussed the rancor of the Catholics against the Jews and Muslims in the last decade of the fifteenth century and though I am not a history buff, I was engrossed by the topic and it helped me learn more about the rich Spanish culture that I had been thrown into. Now that we were reunited in New York, our conversation picked up again, this time it was crowded by our looming futures. Unfortunately, this meeting was less of a reunion and more of a goodbye. She had a one-way ticket to San Francisco on a flight leaving the next day; she was packing her life into a single box and two suitcases and moving to the other side of the country. â€Å"So do you have a job lined up yet or a place to stay?† I asked, eager to know more about her plan. â€Å"Well I can stay at my friend’s for a few days until I find an apartment, but I’m going to start looking for a job when I get there.† Although her decision struck me as terrifying, I understood why she was making it. The truth is, I too wanted more than anything to pack my bags and go somewhere new. Still her decision seemed so difficult to make. She already had a job, an apartment and friends in New York. â€Å"I am not staying here just because its the easier thing to do. Make sure that you do the same in your college endeavors,† she urged me. The truth of Carina’s words made me realize that the world is full of things to explore and now, as I reach adulthood, I’m ready to discover them. I’ve lived in a small New England town my whole life, and I’ve squeezed the last drops of adventure from its depths; so it’s time to leave and go somewhere I can do something remarkable. I see college as a chance to take a risk and discover new things. I want a school that introduces me to new cultures, beliefs, and ideals and that serves as a base of operations for me to travel the world, putting new knowledge to the test. Whether it’s helping people as a doctor, or performing research for a field study, I want to DO something. I simply want to be more like Carina and not cower in fear of trying something new. She introduced me to the world of bold and daring, and now that I’ve gotten a taste, I’m going to strive for more.