Veteran Affirmative Action Term Paper

Veteran Affirmative Action

Affirmative action

The concept of affirmative action has been in the limelight for many decades and most significantly in the 1965 onwards during the tenure of President Lyndon Johnson. He once gave a speech that was concerned with offering everyone fair opportunity to compete in line with the capabilities that they have and taking into account the disadvantages that the individual has suffered. He is quoted to have said that "You do not take a person who, for years, has been hobbled by chains and liberate him, bring him up to the starting line of a race and then say you are free to compete with all the others, and still just believe that you have been completely fair." (Civil Right 101, 2014)

The real focus of the affirmative action is on opportunity provision for all. The affirmative action programs are predominantly meant and formatted to break down the barriers that could be visible or otherwise and to level the playing field with an aim of making sure that each individual is granted an equal break. The affirmative action is also geared towards guaranteeing equal results and was and still is meant to ensure that women, African-Americans and the people with disabilities as well as any other group that faces discrimination are fairly taken care of and represented in the workforce of the nation as well as the educational institutions.

This piece of legislation that was incepted in the 1942 under Franklin Roosevelt has undergone a lot of adjustments and modification to be in tune with the prevailing realities of the society at the moment.The war veterans have been considered often to be a group that deserves to benefit from the affirmative action provisions. Indeed this has gone further to look at the veterans who have some form of disabilities and debate has been raging over whether they should be given preferential treatment over the other veterans. This case presents a double consideration of one being a veteran and also being disabled hence needs to be critically looked at.

Apparently, the federal government has already taken this issue into consideration by ensuring that their agencies have to put in place a comprehensive plan to recruit, employ and help in advancement of the disabled veterans. These agencies are required to annually prepare Disabled Veterans Affirmative Action Program (DVAAP) Plans. Apart from this, they are require to annually submit DVAAP reports in which they have to describe the efforts they have put in ensuring the disabled veterans are put into employment (Hiring Veterans).

This then brings up the debate whether such a step is in order with the hiring process and if it is fair especially when considering the better qualified veterans who are not disabled. The subject solicits a lot of varied responses and the varying justifications that come with these responses. There is one reason….....