The NAACP cannot and absolutely refuses to let anyone defeat the gains of diversity in America. America's national security and American businesses benefit by recruiting men and women from diverse races, ethnicities, and backgrounds. We contend that the government has a “compelling interest” in promoting diversity in education and the workplace. Diversity and racial integration are essential to a smoothly functioning, high quality military. A diverse and racially integrated workforce is essential for US companies to compete in an increasingly global economy. We need diversity because US companies must be able to access a diverse pool of talented students from the best schools so that they can train, promote, and build a high caliber workforce capable of meeting the diverse needs of customers in the global marketplace.
Affirmative Action Programs serves as a remedy for minorities who have systematically been excluded and discriminated against. Preferences should be designed to help and not hinder and implemented when there is a “most compelling reason” or” intermediate scrutiny”. This dynamic is crucial to combat and overcome the persistent, lingering effect, and practice of discrimination toward minority groups in our country. We do not desire “reverse discrimination” which only serves to foster anger, resentment, and stir the flames of racial hatred. Americans favor affirmative actions in the abstract but oppose racial preferences; therefore, America supports Affirmative Action.
Affirmative Action would not be necessary, if a serious commitment to hiring of minorities and women regardless of race, color, sex, physical handicap, national origin, religion, age, disability, or sexual orientation were in effect. If true equal opportunity was afforded to qualified individuals regardless of their race, color, religion, national origin, ancestry, age, sex, disability, or sexual orientation and people were promoted to the fullest realization of equal employment opportunity for minorities and women through a fair system, Affirmative Action would not be necessary. If a “fair system” covered all aspects of employment relationships for current employees and future employees, including recruitment, hiring, assignment of duties, promotion, tenure, compensation, selection for training and termination; Affirmative Action Programs would not be needed.
The U.S. Supreme Court has acknowledged that we do not yet have a colorblind society. Therefore, we need affirmative action programs.
What does affirmative action do? It sets up a proactive system that identifies barriers that have kept people out of positions, and it develops a means, a mechanism: for taking those barriers apart and ensuring that qualified women, qualified minorities, qualified blacks, Hispanics, Asians and others, have an opportunity to compete on a level playing field with anyone else; for a job, for a contract, for a seat in public education. That's what affirmative action is all about." If most Americans were color blind, or gender blind, then we would not need these programs. Because of affirmative action business, politics, education and so many other positions, and people in those positions look like all Americans. People ought not forget why this law was adapted in the first place. This should tell the world the whole story and the reasoning behind Affirmative Action Programs. Until there is no discrimination in hiring and politics, we will need affirmative action. When people start telling “half truths” about why these programs are needed, they endorse “hate mongers” and those with other motives. The Anti- Affirmative Action movement is aimed at shutting down much of the progress that's been made over the past few years in terms of employment, public contracting and public education. This is an orchestrated serious, well funded campaign which is an effort to roll back the gains of the last decades, but we shall not be moved.
To work, Affirmative Action must help all races, and create equal opportunity where demographics are reversed and hire the best people qualified. The NAACP stands resolute in support of Affirmative Action Programs and vehemently opposes any attempt to dilute its aims. The NAACP will bring to bear the necessary resources to facilitate the desired outcome, which results in the America our “fore-fathers” longed and many yet search for. We have not arrived, we will not go “backwards” but we are determined to seek new gains. Check our resume.
