In 250–300 words reply to the two attached discussion board post!

Discussion Board One

Reverse Discrimination

Shannon Ashley

Discussion Board One: Reverse Discrimination

In a world that is quick to state discrimination has taken place, there is a new discrimination emerging (i.e., reverse discrimination). Is this form of discrimination really discrimination? What diversity practices would you put in place to prevent any kind of discrimination?

Discrimination is, “The unjust or prejudicial treatment of different categories of people or things, especially on the grounds of race, age, or sex” (“Discrimination,” n.d.). Overcoming discrimination has continuously been a challenging struggle throughout the United States. Laws such as the Equal Pay Act of 1963, Civil Rights Act of 1964, Age Discrimination Employment Act of 1967, Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008 have been put into place in an attempt to extinguish discrimination in the workplace (U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, 2014). Over time, these acts have been amended in an effort to keep up with incessantly changing employee dynamics and work environments. Together with these efforts, which have undoubtedly influenced progressive approaches for equality, the argument reverse discrimination has been presented. Gomez-Mejia, Balkin, and Cardy (2012) define reverse discrimination as when a member of a non-protected class receives unfair and prejudicial treatment based on their race (p.111). To illustrate a comprehensive understanding and thorough analysis of this concept, the arguments for and against the validity of reverse discrimination will be evaluated. In addition, helpful practices to prevent discrimination will be discussed.

The Validity of Reverse Discrimination

The argument of reverse discrimination became a hot topic of debate throughout the 1970’s. In 1977 this dispute reached the Supreme Court in the case of Regents of the University of California versus Bakke. In this case a white student named Allan Bakke accused the University of California of reverse discrimination because of repetitive denial into the university’s medical school. As a result, the Supreme Court governed that academic institutions can take race and ethnicity into consideration when deciding student admissions as a practice of affirmative action, but exhausting strict racial quotas is unconstitutional (U.S. Department of Interior, 2014). An article called Does Affirmative Action Punish Whites, published by the Associated Press, describes how the results of this case stemmed a broader debate: “Does protecting minorities discriminate against the majority?” (2009).

The repetitive occurrences of court cases similar to Regents of the University of California versus Bakke have illustrated a demand for more comprehensive and specific guidelines regarding discrimination in the workplace. Supporters of Affirmative Action dispute the need for continuous anti-discrimination efforts for minorities. For example, Dennis Parker, the director of the American Civil Liberties Union’s Racial Justice Project states, “We like to believe there is an equal playing field. In fact, there isn’t. In this country, whites are still advantaged in many ways. You can say we shouldn’t take race into consideration, but that just continues the advantage” (“Does Affirmative Action Punish Whites,” 2009). To the same point, arguments disputing the need for reverse antidiscrimination have been made by arguing that the ‘playing field’ will never be equal if the efforts to protect minorities lead to overprotection, and therefore unfair advantages (Bouie, 2009).

A prime illustration of the reverse discrimination dilemma is illustrated in a debate hosted by Bryant Gumbel where the court case Adarand Constructors, Inc. versus Pena is discussed. Gumbel (1995) summarizes the court case by describing how Randy Pech, the owner of Adarand Constructors, Inc., filed a reverse discrimination suit when he lost work towards a minority contractor. Gumbel (1995) explains how Pech initially lost this case but appealed it to the Supreme Court, which ruled that the lower court must reconsider his case. Throughout Gumbel’s (1995) debate, Pech expressed his opinion that it shouldn’t be lawfully encouraged for individuals or businesses to discriminate solely based on a business owner’s race. A skeptic of reverse discrimination, Representative Kweisi Mfume, stresses the constitutional right of Affirmative Action by stating, “They’ve acknowledged the fact that discrimination is still a very real part of our society and that affirmative action has its place. In fact, the court said in its opinion that even race-based remedies were legal when it met these new standards” (Gumbel, 1995). When the case was tried again in lower court, the majority ruled that race-conscious laws and regulations should be rigorously subjected to detailed judicial inquiry to certify equal protection is not overstepped for individuals of all races (U.S. Department of Interior, 2014).

Overview

Is reverse discrimination truly a form of discrimination? To justly answer this question it is vital to recognize that reverse discrimination would not be the subject of repetitive debates if it did not exist to some extent. In addition, court rulings of numerous cases have indisputably illustrated the existence of reverse discrimination. However, regardless of an individual’s view on reverse discrimination, the most important notion to take from this continuous debate is the judicial effort to progressively strive towards fair treatment for all. Bouie (2012) states, “We live in a country where honest conversation about race is rare.” By unremittingly debating this topic, people have been forced to discuss topics of race and prejudice, and to explore resolutions for discrimination.

From an organizational standpoint, there are many practices that can be put into place to prevent discrimination. For example, Gomez-Mejia et al. (2012) discusses the value of creating a strong equality-based organizational culture. To cultivate this culture, top management must be committed to valuing diversity in the workplace. In addition, numerous practices can be conducted such as diversity training programs, support groups, diversity audits, senior mentoring programs, and apprenticeships (Gomez-Mejia et al., p.146-150, 2012). As described in Acts 10:26, “But Peter lifted him up, saying, ‘Stand up; I too am a man’” (ESV), these practices will foster a unified and equal organizational culture by effectively promoting diversity education, awareness, responsibility, and accountability.

Most notably, strides for equality at all levels, from practices performed by individual companies to constructive debates to rulings by the Supreme Court, powerfully aid in diminishing and preventing discrimination.

References

Bouie, J. (2012, Apr 26). Race, millennials and reverse discrimination. The Nation. Retrieved from http://www.thenation.com/blog/167590/race-millennials-and-reverse-discrimination

Does affirmative action punish whites? (2009, Apr 28). The Associated Press. Retrieved from http://www.nbcnews.com/id/30462129/ns/us_news-life/t/does-affirmative-action-punish- whites/

Gomez-Mejia, L. R., Balkin, D. B., & Cardy, R. L. (2012). Managing human resources (7th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education. ISBN: 9780132729826.

Gumbel, B. (Reporter). (1995, June 13). Two Sides of the Reverse Discrimination Debate. [Television series episode]. NBC Today Show. Retrieved from https://archives.nbclearn.c om/portal/site/k-12/browse/?cuecard=2315

Discrimination. (n.d.) In Cambridge Dictionary online. Retrieved from http://dictionary.cam bridge.org/us/dictionary/american-english/discrimination

U.S. Department of Interior. (2014). Reverse discrimination cases. Retrieved from http://www.doi.gov/pmb/eeo/cases/reverse.cfm

U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. (2014). Laws enforced by EEOC. Retrieved from http://www.eeoc.gov/laws/statutes/