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Since the 1970s, cases have been heard by the US Supreme Court questioning the constitutionality of affirmative action policies in both hiring and higher education. This study seeks to explore the cause of an anti-affirmative action affect among White women. Specifically, it seeks to uncover a cause of the fragility that exists among some White women who fear that affirmative action has caused them to lose something of value to a less-qualified minority. It sheds light on a cause of White fragility and what this means for the future discourse of affirmative action. Using multivariate analyses, this research shows that due to White fragility, White women have a higher propensity to oppose affirmative action in higher education. Because of the far-reaching implications of affirmative action in hiring and higher education, this research argues that the need for affirmative action has not dissipated in the twenty-first century, and how we discuss affirmative action needs to be revisited.
Keywords: Affirmative action, White fragility
INTRODUCTION
In June 2016, the US Supreme Court delivered a much-anticipated decision on affirmative action in the case Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin. While many had anticipated that this would be the case where the use of affirmative action in higher education would be ruled unconstitutional, the Supreme Court in a 4-3 decision upheld the use of affirmative action in college admissions.1 We have seen previous affirmative action cases in higher education go before the Supreme Court, but have we questioned why mainly the very individuals whom have benefitted greatly from affirmative action policies have been the public faces of these cases? This paper will investigate why such cases going before the Supreme Court continue to be brought mainly by White women.
Since its inception in the 1960s, affirmative action has been one of the country's most controversial issues in regard to race. As the United States has experienced historic milestones, including the election of the first African American president in 2008, many still question the relevance and importance of affirmative action in American society today. But the question remains: Why is affirmative action such a heated topic? Is it because of the way affirmative action is viewed and discussed? Often, affirmative action is discussed only through the lens of Black...