The Supreme Court's 1954 Brown decision, which addressed itself to the question of race, was as applicable to the national media as to the nation's public schools. In its watchdog role, the media has often preached to government and businesses, without applying the same standards to itself. The media, an industry governed and ruled by white males…

Testing practices have come under considerable scrutiny and criticism in recent years. Testing practices in the Federal government have certainly not been immune from this movement as the use of standardized written tests for selection purposes has been increasingly under attack. The most recent attacks have focused on implications or findings of…

Asserts that there is a need in all higher education, including the health professions, for racial, ethnic, and other kinds of diversity, and describes two court cases involving the University of Michigan's affirmative action admission policies. Discusses why "colorblind" and "socioeconomically oriented" admission policies do not work. (EV)

Today, the United States stands at a critical crossroad with regard to civil rights; the choice is between an officially colorblind society and a government-supported, race-conscious one. The purpose of the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments was to end a discriminatory system and to erect in its place a regime of race neutrality. In 1896, the…

This paper underscores the importance of increasing the number of minority faculty at community colleges, cites examples of programs currently being conducted to achieve this objective, and suggests actions to be taken by community leaders and educators. Section I reviews reasons for concern about achieving a significant presence of minority…

In this speech, the Assistant Attorney General of the Federal Civil Rights Division outlines Title VII enforcement activities in order to support the assertion that the Reagan administration is sincerely committed to equal employment opportunity. The major points emphasized are that the administration believes race to be an impermissible basis on…

Some Americans believe that governmental attempts to end discrimination in employment have gone too far, leading to reverse discrimination and excessive governmental power. Others believe that the government has not gone far enough. Evidence shows that discrimination against women and members of minority groups has declined, even though it is…

Despite 30 years of affirmative action, the full-time tenured professoriate, especially at research universities, is composed almost entirely of white males. In fact, 91% of full professors at research universities are white, and 75% are male. Of part-time faculty, 85% are white, and 64% are male. Illuminating these data makes some policymakers,…

This discussion of affirmative action in higher education identifies the benefits of diversity for all students and the threats to diversity, especially recent actions by state governments of California and Texas to eliminate affirmative action at state universities. The paper proposes more research on diversity and affirmative action and support…

This study examined whether female college freshmen have higher first-year retention rates when a greater percentage of their classes are taught by female faculty, especially students in science, math, and computer science (SMC) courses. Data from the admissions, course, and student files at Binghamton University (New York) were analyzed over a…

This paper uses Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 as a case study to explore the education field and the impact on civil rights legislation dealing with gender. The U.S. record in gender-equity legislation has been mixed, no doubt due in part to the fact that female representation in U.S. legislative bodies has been among the lowest in…

Young students not impressed in mind and heart by their school's curricula are likely to be influenced by the media with which they amuse themselves. Video arcade games and television suffused with militarism and violence will help them create their own culture and develop their own values. They may begin to believe nothing can be done to ensure…

This paper reports on the development of a "change index" and its application in evaluating the relative performance of individual doctorate-granting universities in hiring and promoting women faculty. Employee data collected in the annual Higher Education General Information Survey (HEGIS) by the National Center for Educational…

Sex bias in performance evaluations has been found in laboratory research as well as in a variety of organizational settings. To explore the effects of hiring practices on performance evaluations and other personnel decisions in an experimental analog of affirmative action, 154 female undergraduates rated a fictitious male or female college…

In these remarks, William Bradford Reynolds, Assistant Attorney General of the Civil Rights Division, Department of Justice, discusses American civil rights in the light of past and present Federal policy. A review of constitutional provisions, legislation, and court litigation reveals how policy has variously provided for equality and perpetuated…