untitled

60 CAREER ADVICE FOR LIFE SCIENTISTS

Affirmative Action for the

Next Generation

Donella Wilson

The American Cancer Society

W

hat has been known for decades as “affir-

mative action” is being strongly chal-

lenged from a variety of directions, and

the concept is being perceived in a spirit far different

from that which was originally intended. In reality,

affirmative action has never been precisely defined.

Instead, the principle that connotes equitable treatment

and inclusion has evolved as a collection of laws and

executive orders over the last 60 years in an attempt to

remove barriers to opportunities for minorities and

women. Yet today, there are still glass ceilings in uni-

versities, hospitals, law firms and other workplaces

due to vestiges of deliberate exclusion of underrepre-

sented populations, as well as to thinly veiled, but no

less real, practices of non-inclusion.

Affirmative action becomes a business issue for acade-

mia as colleges and universities attempt to create diverse

faculties to serve increasingly diverse student popula-

tions, and at the same time compete in the global society.

One reason women have been more successful than

minorities in bridging the gap legislatively is that their

numbers are greater and their pipeline readily devel-

oped. As a result of our country’s history, pipelines for

minorities need to be built. However, it is not legal to

even consider race when providing opportunities in

universities. The 1995 case of Hopwood v. Texasruled

There are still glass ceilings in univer-

sities, hospitals, law firms and other

workplaces due to vestiges of deliberate

exclusion of underrepresented popula-

tions, as well as to thinly veiled, but no

less real, practices of non-inclusion.