Adolphus Belk, Jr., Ph.D.
College of Arts and Sciences
In the realm of higher education, Affirmative Action has been a matter of dispute amongst college administrations, state legislatures, and even the Supreme Court of the United States. Affirmative Action was created in order to help ensure that underrepresented groups have a fair chance at obtaining a college education. This has not only affected colleges and universities in the United States but also Brazil. This research did a cross-country comparative analysis of two nation states that posses a similar history when it comes to race relations and how that has affected the condition of equity in higher education. Though both countries have had similar histories, the story of affirmative action has played out in very different ways. This research showed that while affirmative action has been established as a proper way to address historical wrong-doings for certain groups of people, that notion has not yielded the same results in the United States. The United States chose to take a more conservative political and judicial approach when examining the use of affirmative action for college and university admissions. Affirmative action has gradually deteriorated over the years in the United States and will continue to deteriorate, while still progressing and continuing in Brazil.
Toves, Taylor and Belk, Adolphus Ph.D.
"The Case of Affirmative Action in Undergraduate Admissions: United States and Brazil,"
The Winthrop McNair Research Bulletin: Vol. 2
, Article 12.
Available at: https://digitalcommons.winthrop.edu/wmrb/vol2/iss1/12