The following topics are discussed in this special issue: affirmative action for blacks; the bases of contemporary affirmative action attitudes; reverse discrimination cases; how the media and the public react to affirmative action; and affirmative action strategies for the future. (RM)

Reverse discrimination is an effect of affirmative action that cannot be overlooked: it is discriminatory and it has victims. If laws may be used to discriminate against Whites, they may once again be used to discriminate against Blacks if we do not retain our respect for equal rights. (Author/KH)

As a result of court suits and affirmative action programs, occupations traditionally held by White males have become open to women and minorities. However, these two groups still face a number of barriers, some quite subtle, to advancement in these nontraditional occupations. These barriers are discussed in this journal issue. (RM)

Women continue to hold relatively few positions as school administrators; old boy networks, resistance to the idea of female authority figures, and the absence of affirmative action policies make it increasingly necessary to seek redress through lawsuits. The inaction of schools on Long Island, New York, exemplifies a national problem. (JBM)

Although Canadian women undoubtedly enjoy much greater political, social, and economic equality today than ever before, the author believes that they still have a long way to go. After describing the environment within which women work, she discusses various handicaps from which they still suffer and reviews some practical measures taken to combat…

Race is only one of the prisms through which to examine the political and social life of Americans, but it is one in which there has been insufficient determination of contemporary dynamics. For this discussion, the most important issue is the debate within the black community regarding the nature and causes of the crisis facing African Americans…

Examines the status of women and minorities in university departments of sociology, particularly at the University of Oregon. Indicates that women have progressed as professionals in sociology, while the progress of minorities has been more limited. Suggests that affirmative action strategies need to be revised. (Author/MJL)

Describes the history of Black faculty in predominantly White colleges and universities; examines the supply of and demand for minority faculty; and discusses difficulties of affirmative action, the limiting role of institutionalized values (such as merit and autonomy), and problems of post-compliance discrimination in hiring minority college…

Argues that the pervading purpose of the Reconstruction Amendments to the Constitution was not only to secure and firmly establish Blacks' freedom, but also to take color or race into account in remedying discrimination in violation of the spirit, if not the letter, of those amendments. (CMG)

Evaluates the justifications for affirmative action and rebuts current arguments against it. Focuses on the major rationales that underlie arguments for affirmative action: compensatory justice, distributive justice, and social utility. (Author/MJL)

Progress in employment of women faculty and administrators in higher education is examined. Four recommendations are made: simplification of recordkeeping to allow more funds for recruitment; mentorship for new faculty; high level (governance) commitment to affirmative action for women; and administrator commitment to affirmative action during…

Discusses the clash between federal government regulations and the university's right to be autonomous with regard to its own academic affairs. Presents the costs of and justifications for federal regulations. Suggests that subsidies, rather than regulations, are the best means for bringing about change while preserving diversity in universities.…

The effect of the Bakke case, in which the courts first encountered the question of legality of reverse discrimination, is explored; its constitutional significance is examined. It is concluded that the virtue of the decision is in its support of affirmative action and its equal protection implications. (MSE)

Recent Federal Supreme Court decisions on nondiscrimination in federally funded programs are noted in a discussion of two issues: (1) Does the court have an accepted methodology? and (2) Has there been a realignment on crucial legal aspects of race relations? (Journal availability: Wm. W. Gaunt & Sons, 3011 Gulf Drive, Holmes Beach, FL 33510,…

Intervention, a procedure by which an outsider with some personal stake in the outcome of a lawsuit may become a party to it, was sought and denied in the Bakke case. This article reviews federal rules and analyzes criteria for statutory and nonstatutory intervention, and discusses the requirement of "timeliness." (GC)