Perez 1 Student Name John Kubler English 114A 14 September 2013 Discussion on Affirmative Action and Abigail Fisher

There are many people with their own personal opinions on Affirmative Action, one of them being Abigail fisher. She denies Affirmative Action mainly because she didnt get accepted to the University of Texas. The question is, Should Abigail Fisher be denied admission to the University of Texas based on her racial identity? Based on Thursdays discussion on affirmative action Ive been led to believe that affirmative action should stay and that Abigail Fisher should remain denied admission to the University of Texas, not because of her racial identity, but because of the potential she has as a scholar and partially because of the many opportunities other people are receiving with affirmative action intact. In the discussion, one of our classmates argued that affirmative action is not necessary. It should be removed mostly because students who do get admitted, should be admitted because they worked hard in school disregarding their cultural background. They meant to state their facts but not in a racist way for those who agree with affirmative action. In response, I did agree with what they had to say, but they didnt take into consideration the multiple reasons why people from other races should get accepted. People from other cultures attempt to enter universities to gain an education. There are those students who have no means for a better education and are willing to go through extensive work to gain that quality education campuses in the U.S have to offer. According to Paul Kivel and his article on Affirmative Action, affirmative action and its policies have helped vast numbers of people of color, white women and men have gained access

Perez 2 they would not otherwise have had (Paragraph 1 Line 7) Schools acknowledge affirmative action because theyre trying to prevent racial discrimination and to aid the students in getting exposed to different cultures and a better education, including whites. In response to this quote, why should Abigail feel victim of Affirmative Action if people of her race are also being helped? One of our classmates responded that Affirmative Action leads to racism saying that students are being denied because of race and its discrimination. In response, the civil rights act of 1964 made discrimination illegal and established equal opportunity for everyone. What the campus is trying to do is establish a form of diversity for all students so that students can learn and be around an environment where diversity is teaching them. If people were to think and see a side where Affirmative action didnt exist, there would be many people from different cultures being denied a proper education. There are those who come from places that lack a proper education, or cant get an education at all. Affirmative action gives minorities a chance at a better life. Yes, grades do matter when it comes to accepting others into a university, but take into consideration that there are those who are willing to strive for a better life. In Abigail fishers case, she should accept the fact that she didnt get accepted to UT. Abigail is an intelligent scholar with the potential to be accepted to other universities. Abigail being denied has nothing to do with her race. There are laws in the United States protecting her from such discrimination. Affirmative Action is something good to allow students from different cultures to gain opportunity.