Resolved: Affirmative Action to Promote Equal Opportunity in the United States is Justified.

I am presenting the negative case in a more casual debate style. There is no real format, but am open to debate any style aff case. My argument is as follows: Since I believe that affirmative action is extremely counterintuitive to the entire cause of the black race, I argue that affirmative action policies are not the best means for college admission. There are three important points to reveal about affirmative action: is contradictory to equality, we can do well by ourselves, and lastly, it is racist. 1. Affirmative Action is contradictory to equality For hundreds of years, African Americans have been fighting for equality. Dr. Martin Luther King once said, "I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal.'" This did not only apply to black people. It referred to all people. As soon as we have received some assemblance of equality via desegregation, via anti-slavery, and via the first black president of the United States, as soon as we took most of the upper hand away from whites, now we want the upper hand? Now we want to get ahead of the white race? This is not equality; in fact, it is inequality in favor of the black race. We always are quick to celebrate the success of Dr. King's dream. However that celebration is only in vain, as we continue to violate his dream in some ways, some ways as affirmative action. Let us live out the entirety of his dream, and advocate equality for all, including white people. 2. We can do well all by ourselves We all know it. We have all seen the footage. Black people gave up precious blood, sweat, and tears so that their descendants, us, can live a better life. They fought and won by themselves, without any help. Why do we need help now? Why do we need to have spots saved? Getting into college because you are black doesn't always mean you were the best fit for that college. It only means that you are just a number, filler, so the school can't get sued. There is no sense of accomplishment with affirmative action. Furthermore, why are we now seeking the easy way out, instead of trying our hardest and fighting to win? Is the hard work that the people before us did all for nothing? The fight is not over and we don't need help. Oprah Winfrey once said, "Excellence is best deterrent to racism or sexism." Therefore, there is no need for any of us to get into college because we are black, only because we are excellent beyond compare. If we are excellent, we won't even need affirmative action, because we would get in based on our successes. Mediocrity is no longer good enough to get in, only excellence will be. 3. IT IS RACIST! The bottom line is, however anyone may believe, affirmative action is racist. Ernest Pasour furthers. Pasour, Ernest. Affirmative Action: A Counter-Productive Policy. http://www.theadvocates.org... Affirmative action also causes reverse discrimination. Discrimination against white males is just as bad as discrimination against minorities. Some people say that affirmative action is justified as a way of making up for past discrimination. Although discrimination still exists in the U.S., as it does in the rest of the world, most blacks entering the job market today were born after the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and have suffered little or no prejudice in terms of salary. When this Civil Rights Act was passed, its spirit was not one of reverse discrimination but of getting employers to consider applicants objectively in filling jobs within their companies. Hubert Humphrey, a major sponsor of the Act, swore that he would eat the bill if it were ever used for discrimination of any sort. The past cannot be changed and we should stop compensating people who were never hurt at the expense of people who have done them no harm. We need to reevaluate the role of affirmative action. It is inherently racist, but because black people are finally on the benefitting end of the spectrum, we don't want to see it as a problem. But I am here to tell you today it is a problem. If we truly want equality and want to see an end to racism and discrimination, we need not be hypocrites and support it only when it benefits us. We need to advocate it for everyone, white, Hispanic, Asian, and black.