Affirmative Action

This round, I will be attacking my opponent's R3 argument (defending my original arguments). I will cover each topic in the order my opponent addressed them. I. Introduction First off, I apologize if I sound racist. My point was too vague. I meant that young black males have higher incarceration rates not because they are black, but because of their education. This can be easily seen in some statistics. Blacks have the lowest education rates (i. e. the highest high school and college dropout rates and the lowest high school and college graduation rates) of any major ethnic group. This is reflected in the fact that blacks make the lowest wages and have the highest unemployment rate of any major ethnic group. [1] This can be further backed up when we see that black women have higher wages and less unemployment than black males, and they also have higher education rates. [1] This can be even further backed up by this: "Equally startling, the risks of prison incarceration rose steeply with lower levels of education. Among blacks, 30.2 percent of those who didn't attend college had gone to prison by 1999 and 58.9 percent of black high school dropouts born from 1965 through 1969 had served time in state or federal prison by their early 30s. "[2] But, is education racist? Well, "One must also take into account numerous other factors, especially where they may lie socio-economically. " and "Education is the key factor for these inequalities. Income is often based on education and experience. " and "Professionals, no matter what their race, make more comparable salaries than when comparing the different incomes across the whole board. "[1] No, it makes no sense. As for my opponent's second racial argument, Asians have and continue to face a high amount of discrimination: Take this, "In 1982, a Chinese American is bludgeoned to death in a racially-motivated attack in Detroit. His killers walk free with a mere $3,000 fine because the judge rules they are "not a threat to society" by virtue of their being gainfully employed citizens at the time of the murder. "[3] Many other statistics and facts are available in that source. Asians have faced a big brunt from discrimination, but they make higher wages than even whites do. Why? Because of education levels to Asians. Asians have a five point IQ advantage, but that's not nearly enough to explain the success. Clearly, success came as a consequence of a strong culture that places a high value on education and initiative. Whatever factor discrimination plays, it is minor by comparison. Asians and Jews have faced large amounts of discrimination, especially in Europe, but their incomes always seem to be higher because both groups are a lot more hardworking and more educated than blacks. Asians faced the idea of psuedo-slavery in the mines of the west (i. e. they were paid, but only enough to basically keep them alive) and, as everyone knows, Jews have faced extraordinary amounts of discrimination, even in America. On the sexism argument, "Men working five percent longer than women alone explains about one-quarter of the wage gap. "[4] And like I said earlier, Other factors include the choice of college major and years of uninterrupted employment. Even though more women graduate from college than men, they tend to major in lower-paying liberal arts. [5] In addition, "Often times, women are willing to trade higher pay for jobs with other characteristics that they find attractive. .. Men, in contrast, often take jobs with less desirable characteristics in pursuit of higher pay. They work long hours and overnight shifts. "[4] And, "Women have many reasons to celebrate today. Women are increasingly taking on leadership roles in businesses around the world. Technology is increasingly creating more flexible work arrangements, creating new options for parents to combine work and family life. Women are excelling academically (earning far more college degrees than men). Given that the economy tends to place a premium on education, we can expect women to contribute (and earn! ) more in the future. "[4] There really isn't that much of a gender gap when considering time worked, industries chosen, and demanded wages between the two sexes. And, women are becoming increasingly important, not because of affirmative action, but because of their higher levels of education and more time to work. Finally, in this argument, I will counter my opponent's final two premises. One, The data show that students admitted to the top level schools under affirmative action did not do well. When affirmative action ended in California, minority applicants applied to school suited to their qualifications, and both admissions and graduation rated increased. [6] "Renner found that black and Hispanic students were concentrated in institutions offering only two-year associate degrees, and very few research universities took large numbers of them. By contrast, of the 30 colleges and universities with the largest numbers of white students, only one offered only two-year degrees, and 26 were research universities. "[7] Affirmative action isn't working, and is harmful. Finally, on incentive, " I am going to say it and some people are going to hate me for it, but Affirmative Action initiatives and organizations that only help people of certain races and religions are not healthy. Taking part in this type of exploitation is a great way to agree with the idea that you are inferior. "[8] It makes minorites feel inferior, thus less incentive. Also, "Affirmative action in fact results in harm to the minority community, Gryphon found, due to the "ratchet effect:" Preferences at a handful of top schools, including state flagship universities, can worsen racial disparities in academic preparation at other schools by luring away qualified minority students who might otherwise attend those schools. "This effect results in painfully large gaps in academic preparation between minority students and others on campuses around the country," according to Gryphon. "[9] Affirmative action is harmful to all. What is the best solution? "Education must be factored as key for these major inequalities among the races. As many people know first hand, racism does exist and is a problem. However, I do not believe it is the number one issue today. One cannot always to turn the past for excuses. The controversy that surrounds affirmative action is that is looks to make up for injustices in the past. It may seem like a good idea, but for people to move forward, they must look forward, and not dwell on the past. The focus must be on the future. Early education of the young children is where many answers lie. The inequalities between the races in income, in the workforce, and unemployment can all be related back to education. The foundation must be concrete! "[1] I apologize, but sources in comments.