What does equality mean? For many centuries, America has had difficulty answering this question. In the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, African Americans were not equal as Americans called them property, put them in chains, and beat those people. From the eighteenth to the twentieth century, women were forbidden to vote; they had to stay at home or work in a small factory, so they were not equal. However, nowadays, issues of equality are being challenged through affirmative action. Across the nation, the use of affirmative action in education has sparked controversy. Some people believe that instigating affirmative action in the college admissions process would create a diverse education. However, some believe that this is simply a policy of reverse discrimination against white and Asian students. treated in the course of employment, without distinction of race, creed, color, or national origin” (Kennedy, Executive Order 10925). But it wasn't until 1978 that the first college admissions controversy arose, through the case Regents of the University of California v. Bakke. Since then, the question of whether or not affirmative action increases equality in the admissions process has been and remains a heated debate. Many people believe that affirmative action helps prepare students for multicultural environments. More selective universities say a rich ethnic mix on campus is attributable to a better education. Paul Gaston, a college professor who has taught for more than 40 years, has witnessed the changes on campus and said that “before… middle of paper… affirmative action is like a wheelchair for those who don't need it ”. . Why give a person a wheelchair if they don't have a broken leg? Works Cited Anonymous Author, “Focus on Affirmative Action in Michigan.” The Los Angeles Times. June 26th. 2001. Clayton, Mark. “The Case for Race at a University.” The Christian Science MonitorApril 1. 2003.Hernandez, Michele. “The problem is the athletes.” The New York Times. November 13, 2011. Kennedy, John F. “Executive Order 10925,” March 6, 1961. Krauthammer, Charles. “Lies, damned lies and racial statistics.” Time. April 20, 1998. Samuelson, Robert. “Affirmative ambiguity”. The Washington Post. June. 2003.Thernstrom, Abigail. “Affirmative action; College rulings add insult to injury; The Court's support for admissions preference glosses over the need for better early education. The Los Angeles Times. June 29th 2003.