In 2006, Michigan voters passed Proposal 2, also known as the Michigan Civil Rights Initiative (MCRI), amending their state constitution to end preferential treatment based on race, ethnicity, or gender at public institutions. Thus, “affirmative action” today is an innocuous-sounding phrase for what are really racial preferences. Over the years, this special treatment based on race has been justified as remedying past discrimination, expanding opportunities for the underprivileged, and, more recently, fostering diversity. Relying on allowances in Titles II and VII of the Civil Rights Act, federal, state, and local governments instituted special racial boosts and preferences with the goal of increasing minority representation in education and employment. Kennedy in 1961 when he issued Executive Order 10925, requiring government contractors to “take affirmative action to ensure that applicants are employed, and that employees are treated during employment, without regard to their race, creed, color, or national origin.” Today, America’s understanding of the term has changed dramatically.Īfter the passage of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, Kennedy’s “without regard” standard was transformed into policies that encouraged public officials, educators, and administrators to actively treat people with regard to race. The term “affirmative action” was first used by President John F. Seven other states have passed similar measures ending race-based policies, and the Court’s ruling in Schuette will have national implications for the future of affirmative action and the pursuit of equal treatment under the law for every individual. Coalition to Defend Affirmative Action, a case that challenges Michigan’s constitutional ban on government racial preference policies. This time, the debate over race-based preferences came to the Court via Schuette v. On October 15, 2013, the topic of affirmative action once again came before the United States Supreme Court.
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