Deck 16: Current Debates: Affirmative Action, Immigration, and Race Versus Class

Question 1

Critics of affirmative action claim that it amounts to:

A) Setting up reverse discrimination against white males
B) Improving the quality of workforces and student bodies
C) A quota system to keep minorities out of organizations
D) Discrimination against women and homosexuals

Answer 1

A

Question 2

Which of the following statements reflects the criticism of conservative African Americans of affirmative action?

A) It amounts to an unfair quota system
B) Minority applicants may be passed over because their test scores are lower than whites whom the test is geared toward
C) It make it seem like minorities are in certain positions to fill a quota rather than because they are qualified
D) It creates self-doubt among majority members

Answer 2

C

Question 3

What is the name of the program in which state and local governments set aside a certain portion of their business for companies owned by minorities or women?

A) Affirmative action
B) Minority set-aside programs
C) Quota
D) Societal discrimination

Answer 3

B

Question 4

In their 1998 research on affirmative action at top universities and colleges,Bowen and Bok found of all the following EXCEPT:

A) Most minority students admitted to these schools under affirmative action graduated
B) Graduation rates for minority students at these schools were actually higher (even with lower average SATs) than those minority students who attended less select universities and colleges
C) Many minority students admitted under affirmative action at these schools earned advanced graduate and professional degrees
D) The graduates of these schools have little impact on the numbers of minority professionals in the United States

Question 5

Which of the following is true about affirmative action?

A) When asked on a survey first about affirmative action based on race and then gender, whites were more supportive of this policy based on race
B) When asked on a survey first about affirmative action based on race and then gender, whites were less supportive of this policy based on gender
C) When asked on a survey first about affirmative action based on gender and then race, whites were more supportive of this policy based on gender
D) When asked on a survey about affirmative action based on gender and race, whites were not supportive of this policy for either group

Question 6

According to Cross (1998),the low graduation rate of black students in many colleges is due to:

A) Social isolation and financial problems
B) Inability to complete the academic work
C) Criminal charges
D) Lack of commitment and desire to get a college degree

Question 7

Supporters of affirmative action argue that:

A) Less qualified minority applicants will be hired
B) Unqualified minority candidates will not be hired, it is just that minority applicants may appear to be less qualified because traditional measures are biased in favor of white males
C) It results in quotas that must be filled regardless of the qualifications of the candidates
D) It amounts to reverse discrimination against white males

Question 8

Discriminatory processes in education include all of the following EXCEPT:

A) Unequal funding of schools
B) Afrocentric content in educational materials
C) Unequal expectations of student achievement
D) Tracking and ability grouping

Question 9

The Supreme Court ruling in the Bakke case was that:

A) "Separate but equal" facilities were unconstitutional
B) Quotas are legal as long as they are for the purpose of increasing representation of groups that have been held back
C) Racial preferences are legal; quotas are not
D) Racial preferences are illegal

Question 10

Those who support affirmative action believe:

A) That it is a form of reverse discrimination against whites
B) That it is a quota system which helps the least qualified minorities get jobs and education
C) That the net effect of failing to consider race in admissions and hiring decisions is to discriminate against minorities
D) That this is a permanent program that will always be needed

Question 11

Affirmative action measures are required of:

A) All unions
B) All businesses
C) Organizations doing business with the federal government
D) Colleges and universities

Question 12

The term affirmative action means:

A) Quotas for minority hires on jobs
B) Contractors are supposed to make special efforts to ensure that they are not discriminating
C) Only hiring minorities for certain jobs
D) Promoting minorities who are often not qualified to positions in companies

Question 13

The effect of affirmative action on low-income,poorly educated,chronically unemployed minorities:

A) Has been central in creating employment opportunities for this group
B) Has had almost no effect
C) Has been important in helping this group into college
D) Has been helpful in creating more equality in incomes among various racial and ethnic groups

Question 14

The courts view a "suspect category" as:

A) Groups of people who are suspected on not needing help
B) Groups of people who have been convicted of crimes in the past
C) Anyone who uses this category as a basis of consideration for employment or educational programs must demonstrate that some compelling interest is served by doing so and not to discriminate on the basis of this category
D) Anyone who uses this category as a basis of consideration for employment or educational programs are suspected of being out of compliance with affirmative action

Question 15

Which of the following is true?

A) White men earn higher incomes than anyone else
B) Affirmative action programs have most helped those from the lower classes
C) Blue-collar manufacturing firms that have labor contracts with the federal government have increased their workforce in the United States dramatically in the last few years
D) Affirmative action has helped black and Latina women to earn more than white women

Question 16

What percent of scholarships in the United States as of the early 1990s were set aside for minority students?

A) 10%
B) 20%
C) 4%
D) 30%

Question 17

Which of the following is true about the Bakke case?

A) It settled the affirmative action issue
B) Despite an increasingly conservative Supreme Court the Bakke case has not been reversed for most of the United States
C) The administrations of Reagan and Bush supported the Bakke decision
D) Affirmative action rulings have been consistent across all institutions

Question 18

The Weber case argued that the affirmative action plan of a union was discriminatory against whites because it provided that half of the people trained for skilled positions would be minorities until the time that minority representation in that position was representative of the local population.The Supreme Court ruled in this case:

A) That the union practice was legal
B) That the union practice was illegal
C) That the union practice was illegal, but not discriminatory
D) That the union practice was illegal, but could be applied in a different way with the same goal

Question 19

Which of the following is true about minority professionals?

A) The number of minority doctors and lawyers has increased dramatically in the last few years
B) There is a serious shortage of minority doctors and lawyers in this country
C) The number of minority doctors and lawyers is representative of the minority population in the United States
D) There are more minority doctors and lawyers than is representative of the minority population in the United States

Question 20

What is the fundamental argument for affirmative action?

A) Minority groups are less able so they need special consideration
B) All employers will discriminate so affirmative action is needed to prevent them from doing so
C) Whites have been harmed by past discrimination
D) Preferential treatment is the only way to undo the harm of past discrimination

Question 21

The Immigration Reform and Control Act has:

A) Has increased illegal immigration by about 20 percent
B) Attempted to prevent employers from hiring illegal aliens
C) Had lead to a decrease in employer discrimination
D) Increased wages and benefits of Mexican American workers

Question 22

Which of the following is true about immigrants and economics?

A) The overall percentage of immigrants receiving some form of public assistance is higher than for the nonimmigrant population
B) Immigrants usually have higher educational levels than nonimmigrants
C) Economic growth is negatively correlated with immigration
D) Overall, the long-run national fiscal impact of immigration is usually positive

Question 23

Unauthorized immigrants enter the US in two main ways.One is illegal border crossings,and the other is:

A) Coming in illegally on ships or planes
B) Through the illegal use of marriage licenses to Americans
C) People enter legally and then overstay their visas
D) Through illegal adoptions in other countries

Question 24

6.Minority physicians are more likely to locate in low socio-economic areas.

Question 25

3.The effects of discrimination cannot be overcome simply by stopping that form of discrimination.

Question 26

2.Affirmative action programs were strongly supported during the Regan-Bush era.

Question 27

Which of the following have occurred due to the rolling back of affirmative action programs during the 1990s?

A) There have been sharp drops in minority undergraduate students at several University of California campuses
B) The law school at Berkeley has seen a major increase in minority students
C) California's medical schools have seen sharp drops in minority enrollments
D) The enrollment of minorities at Texas's four state medical schools increased by 25 percent

Question 28

1.The concept of affirmative action dates back to 1967.

Question 29

The largest percentage of new immigrants to the United States comes from what area of the world?

A) Central or South America
B) Asia
C) Mexico
D) Caribbean

Question 30

5.If whites believe that the system is basically fair they are less likely to support affirmative action.

Question 31

According to William J.Wilson,the primary cause of black economic discrimination today is:

A) Race and class
B) Class more than race
C) Race more than class
D) Race

Question 32

According to Wilson,the black group that is mostly falling below the poverty level and living in the inner city is called:

A) The poor
B) The working class
C) The underclass
D) The exploited

Question 33

7.The salaries of black male college graduates have surpassed the earnings of white male college graduates.

Question 34

10.The 1986 Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA)has lead to an increase in hiring discrimination.

Question 35

According to Wilson,all of the following are examples of why class and not race are better explanations for large levels of poor blacks in many inner cities,EXCEPT:

A) Blacks lack marketable skills due to past discrimination
B) The economic conditions of inner cities has worsened and the middle class has fled
C) There is a concentration of poverty in inner cities and increases in family disruptions
D) An increase in the number of role models of blacks working in stable jobs for those who are young.

Question 36

9.Today's immigrants are far more likely to come from non-European countries.

Question 37

Opposition to the building of the fence along the border with Mexico have included all the following groups EXCEPT:

A) Indian Reservations
B) Ranchers who live along the border
C) Wildlife protection groups like Sierra Club
D) NAACP

Question 38

4.African American conservatives are generally supportive of affirmative action.

Question 39

8.The 1991 Civil Rights Act reversed some earlier Supreme Court decisions on affirmative action.

Question 40

Two recent studies in the United States have shown what effect on the financial costs and benefits from immigration?

A) No fiscal effect
B) Substantial fiscal benefits since the average immigrant contributes more in taxes and government fees than he or she takes in services
C) Substantial fiscal costs since the average immigrant consumes more in government services than he or she gives in taxes and fees
D) Some fiscal costs through the consumption of services including education and health care

Question 41

3.Describe the argument over which is the more important cause of inequality: racial discrimination vs.social class.

Question 42

1.Summarize the results of the research of Bok and Bowen on affirmative action at select universities and colleges.

Question 43

2.Describe the overall economic impact of immigrants on the United States.