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Sharoyal Brown Instructor: Malcolm Campbell English 1102 September 3, 2013 Topic Proposal: Affirmative Action and the 14th Amendment Introduction/Overview !!irmati"e ction is #a policy in which an in$i"i$ual%s color, race, se&, religion or national origins are ta'en into account by a business or the go"ernment in or$er to increase the opportunities pro"i$e$ to an un$errepresente$ part o! society( !!irmati"e action is $esigne$ to increase the number o! people !rom certain groups within businesses, institutions an$ other areas o! society in which they ha"e historically ha$ low representation( It is o!ten consi$ere$ a means o! countering historical $iscrimination against a particular group() *http:++www(in"estope$ia(com+terms+a+a!!irmati"e,action(asp- .his plan was enacte$ in the late 1/00s to protect citi1ens !rom being $iscriminate$ against an$ thus !ollows the 12th amen$ment, which promises e3ual protection un$er the constitution( 4isher "( 5ni"ersity o! .e&as at ustin is a current case in which a girl was re6ecte$ !rom the uni"ersity because o! her race an$ their commitment to enroll more minority stu$ents( She !elt as i! she was being $iscriminate$ against because o! !!irmati"e ction( I will be e&amining the a!!ects o! !!irmati"e ction in uni"ersity a$missions an$ whether or not it actually promotes $iscrimination( 4urthermore, I will e&amine the potential conse3uences i! the plan is abolishe$ as a result o! the case ruling( 4isher loo's at !!irmati"e ction as a plan that gi"es minorities an a$"antage o"er others an$ thus "iolates the 12th amen$ment, which grants e"eryone e3ual protection( s an !rican merican woman, ob"iously my "iew o! this matter is biase$, howe"er, I woul$ li'e to gather !urther "iewpoints !rom whites an$ other groups that !eel as i! !!irmati"e ction is gi"ing them a $isa$"antage( s preliminary research, I rea$ the case o! 4isher "( 5ni"ersity o! .e&as at ustin( In a$$ition, I researche$ $i!!erent "iewpoints !rom blogs an$ articles that !eature$ both si$es o! the spectrum in or$er to see comple& an$ unbiase$ opinions on the issue( I rea$ an article !rom 7all Street 8ournal an$ blogs !rom blogspot(com that conclu$e$ biase$ an$ unbiase$ opinions( I also tal'e$ about the topic with my peers to get their points o! "iew( Some o! them agree$ with my opinion that !!irmati"e ction is nee$e$, howe"er, some o! them also challenge$ me to thin' about the situation as i! it were "ice "ersa( I plan to get more opinions by posting my personal "iewpoint an$ welcoming contro"ersy on the sub6ect "ia 4aceboo' or .umblr( !!irmati"e ction being $iscriminatory is "ery contro"ersial an$ comple& because it was originally put in place to protect minorities, howe"er, now it is being sai$ to gi"e them an a$"antage( !rican mericans ha"e !ace$ $iscrimination in many $i!!erent en"ironments an$ they !eel as i! this plan shoul$ remain in tact to protect them !rom ha"ing une3ual opportunity( 9owe"er, it seems that 6ust because a minority is ta'ing a white person:s place at an institution, they are at a se"ere $isa$"antage( .his raises 3uestions such as, #;oes an a"erage C minority stu$ent not $eser"e the same opportunity as an a"erage white stu$ent< 7oul$n:t .9 . be $iscrimination<) .his issue is rele"ant to current an$ !uture college stu$ents, because this issue coul$ a!!ect their a$mission into college or gra$ school( .he ma6or groups contributing to the con"ersation are purely white an$ blac' stu$ents =speci!ically white stu$ents that !ear not getting into their #$ream school) because o! the !!irmati"e ction plan an$ blac' stu$ents that are

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currently in college because o! this plan( .he 4isher "( 5ni"ersity o! .e&as at ustin has cause$ many contro"ersial con"ersations on se"eral blog sites an$ e"en national news sites( Initial Inquiry Question s! ;oes the !!irmati"e ction plan place minorities at an a$"antage when it:s suppose$ to promote e3uality< I! !!irmati"e ction is abolishe$, how will college a$missions be $etermine$< "y Interest in this Topic I am intereste$ in this topic because it coul$ a!!ect my !uture as a law stu$ent( It coul$ also result in a negati"e cur"e in minorities being a$mitte$ into college( s a !uture lawyer an$ 6ustice a$"ocate, I am passionate about racial e3uality an$ non$iscrimination( lso, as an !rican merican woman with interests in pursuing law, I !ear that I will not ha"e e3ual opportunity because I will not only be a minority by genetics, but I will also be a minority in my career !iel$( I 'now that this plan was put in place to protect women an$ men li'e mysel! !rom being $iscriminate$ against an$ to gi"e us e3ual opportunity( 9owe"er, I want to learn how this is or can be mo$erate$ when race is still a $etermining !actor in the a$missions process( #e$t %teps My ne&t steps to !urther my research on this topic will be rea$ing more unbiase$ news articles an$ research articles !rom the local newspapers in ustin, .e&as as well as national news co"erage on the topic( lso I woul$ li'e to !in$ research that e&plains the possible results o! school a$missions i! !!irmati"e ction is abolishe$( 4urthermore, I will be as'ing "arious groups o! people aroun$ campus what they thin' about the issue an$ how they belie"e it coul$ possible a!!ect them( .he library:s $atabase will also be a great help in my research e!!orts !or sources relating to the topic(