Today in one of my classes we had a discussion about the effects of affirmative action on sports. In sports, the majority of the position of powers such as coaches and owners are held by the white males.
Is this fair? Probably not. So we try to enact some affirmative action to try to get females or somebody of color into those spots in an effort to even the playing field. We try to make it fair by getting these people in those positions but is it really fair?
It is a good notion to try to get other people in but many times, the people, who are allowed in because the organization has to hit a certain quota, are not as qualified and sometimes set up to fail. I remember going to my doctor's office one day and he asked me about my studies. He asked what I was studying, and he then recommended me to try to go for Biology at UC Riverside. I then told him about my below average GPA and he laughed and said exactly these words, "I made it into the program with a 2.4 grade point average. Then again, maybe that's because I am Latino."
Now I'm all for balancing the scales but the fact people must save a spot for somebody else, even if they are lesser qualified, just seems unfair. Sports coaches are the same. Women can and should be able to coach but sometimes we let some in just because they are a woman. Until we can find a way fix this issue, is affirmative action really a helping hand or is it a handicap?
Bryant Pham
Kin332 1230TuTh
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