Talking About Affirmative Action

Myth: Affirmative Action is "reverse discrimination" — let's stop giving special rights to certain groups while others are left out.

Fact: Affirmative Action is fair!
Affirmative Action levels the playing field so people of color and all women have the chance to compete in education and in business. White men hold 95% to 97% of the high-level corporate jobs. And that's with affirmative action programs in place. Imagine how low figures would be without affirmative action. Of 3000 federal court decisions in discrimination cases between 1990 and 1994, only 100 involved claims of reverse discrimination; only 6 of those claims were found to be valid.

Myth: Affirmative Action isn't necessary anymore because discrimination is illegal.

Fact: Women and people of color still face discrimination.
Despite the enormous gains made by the civil rights and women's rights movements, women and people of color still face unfair obstacles in business and education. An astonishing 70% of schools are not in compliance with Title IX, the federal equal education opportunity law. For every dollar earned by men, women on a whole earn 74 cents, African American women earn 63 cents and Latina women earn 57 cents. According to the Census Bureau, only 25% of all doctors and lawyers are women. Less than 1% of auto mechanics are women. And women are only 8.4% of engineers.

Myth: Women-owned companies get fewer contracts because there aren't very many of them.

Fact: Women-owned businesses don't get their fair share of government contracts.
Less than 3% of federal contracts go to women-owned firms. In Washington, less than 10% of state contracts and purchasing dollars go to women-owned firms — even though women own 39% of firms.

Myth: Affirmative Action should be based on economic need.

Fact: Affirmative Action is necessary so that women and people of color of every economic class have the opportunity to enter all fields.
Women and people of color should, of course, have the chance to compete for jobs in the trades, construction, skilled labor — and they should have access to professional jobs in engineering, medicine and the law as well as policy-making positions in executive suites and on boards of directors.

Myth: Affirmative Action lowers standards in education and the workplace by letting unqualified people get ahead.

Fact: Affirmative Action helps qualified candidates overcome racism and sexism.
Affirmative Action is an investment in the future. By the time today's college students are at the height of their careers, one-third of the population will be comprised of African Americans and Latinos/Latinas.

Myth: My son can't get into a good school because of affirmative action.
Fact: If half of the people of color who are admitted to schools under affirmative action programs were cut, the acceptance rates of white men would only increase by 2%.
Women still face barriers in schools. In Washington, women receive only 12% of doctorates in engineering, and women are substantially under-represented in computer science nationwide.

Myth: Nobody else gets special consideration when applying to a college or for a job. Why should all women and people of color?

Fact: Lots of people get "special" consideration when applying for jobs or to schools.
Veterans often get preferences in workplaces and on campuses — which usually benefit men more than women. The children of alumni get preferential treatment over others in admission to college. Friends help friends and acquaintances get jobs. Affirmative Action helps open doors for women and people of color who often don't have those connections.

Myth: Affirmative Action won't help me.

Fact: Everyone benefits when discrimination is eliminated.
The majority of families depend on the income of women. When Affirmative Action opens up education, employment, and business, families and communities have greater economic security. Business leaders understand that affirmative action is necessary to develop a strong workforce. Women and people of color have a lot to offer their communities. Affirmative Action helps insure that everyone gets the chance to contribute.

Myth: Affirmative Action = Preferences

Fact: Affirmative Action = Equal Opportunities
Affirmative Action programs merely acknowledge that hundreds of years of discrimination cannot be erased in a few decades and still hold women and people of color back. Affirmative Action is the bridge between changing the laws and changing the culture.

Myth: Things are different now, we don't need affirmative action any more.

Fact: Until women and people of color get equal pay and education, we need affirmative action.
The radical right wing would have us believe that women and people of color earn less because we don't work as hard or we're not as smart. That simply isn't the case. Laws have changed, but discrimination persists. Affirmative Action only opens doors, women and people of color have to walk through those doors by themselves.

Sources:
The Shape of the River, Bok, Derek and Bowen, William G., September, 1998
The Federal Glass Ceiling Commission Report, December, 1995
The Census Bureau, Statistical Abstract of the United States, 1996
The U.S. Department of Labor, Women's Bureau, September, 1996
The Department of Transportation, 1995
The National Council of Women's Organizations, "Women Speak on Affirmative Action," 1998