Affirmative Action in Oklahoma: Benefits and Harms

Benefits:

Why Oklahomans Need Affirmative Action Programs

Affirmative action programs are enacted in so many different parts of our lives. Without them, the minority representation in those parts could very likely begin to decrease, like we've seen in California and Washington State. These programs make a difference in employment in many fields. 

For example, in Oklahoma, there are affirmative action programs in all the following:

Oklahoma. Dept. of Public Safety, Office of Personal Management, Oklahoma. Office of the State Auditor and Inspector, Oklahoma District Attorneys Council, Oklahoma Real Estate Commission, Oklahoma. Dept. of Transportation, Oklahoma Scenic Rivers Commission, Oklahoma. Dept. of Human Services, Oklahoma. Dept. of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services, and Oklahoma Water Resources Board. 

So imagine what would happen to the number of minorities in these fields if affirmative action programs were banned? 

To answer this question, lets look at statistics on the number of minorities in Oklahoma.

• Minority children are now the majority among children in 11 Oklahoma counties, including Oklahoma County, the state’s largest county. That’s a big change from a decade ago, when just four Oklahoma counties had “majority-minority” child populations. 
• Hispanic children and children of two or more races accounted for most of the state’s under-18 population growth in the last decade, according to an analysis of census data by The Oklahoman. 
• Overall, 44 percent of Oklahoma’s children were minorities in 2010. That compared to 27 percent of adults who identified themselves as minorities. Since 2000, the number of Hispanic children (of any race) grew by more than 62,000, or 89 percent. 
• At the same time, the number of children of two or more races grew by almost 27,000, or 49 percent, and the number of Asian children increased by 4,400, or 41 percent.
• The number of American Indian children grew by more than 6,300, or 7 percent. 
• To contrast that, the state’s population of white children fell by nearly 57,000, or 10 percent, during the last decade. 
• The number of black children fell by more than 6,700, or 8 percent. From this we can see that the percentage of minorities in steadily increases by the year. 

That is why affirmative action programs are more important than ever now because of the growth in minority population across the state. Without such programs, will the minorities be equally represented? Probably not. 

Harms:

Why Affirmative Action in Oklahoma is Unnecessary

Unemployment rates are higher than ever nationwide. In Oklahoma, rates have increased to 5.9%. This percentage is made up of all kinds of Oklahomans, whites, blacks, Hispanics, etc. Whites alone make up a good part of this 5.9. Not the most, but still a decent chunk of whites are unemployed. 

Affirmative Action programs could possibly make it harder for this rate to decrease any time soon. Just because minorities are more commonly seen suffering by racial discrimination, does not mean majorities aren't feeling the toll. The government should be concerned for the well-being of every citizen, black, white, or brown, not just those who are suffering more than others. 

Whites do not need any more obstacles in their way when looking and applying for jobs. Affirmative action programs in Oklahoma could actually create more obstacles for unemployed whites and other majorities. 

Also, from the statistics above discussing the current changes in Oklahoma's demographics, you can see that Hispanics and blacks, who are considered minorities, are now increasing greatly in the whole state. Who knows, soon blacks and Hispanics could become part of the majority at the rate their numbers are increasing. So would affirmative action programs really be helping them? Or would they just be a temporary solution that will soon cause permanent problems for Oklahomans?