Hilary O. Shelton

About the author: Hilary O. Shelton is acting director of the Washington Bureau of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP).

Affirmative action programs are needed because serious discrimination still exists in American society. Without affirmative action, many promising young people will be barred from institutes of higher learning and successful careers. For example, when affirmative action was eliminated in the University of California system, black enrollment at Boalt Law School plummeted. As long as discrimination based on race and gender exists, affirmative action will be needed to ensure equal opportunity for minorities and women.

Affirmative action is necessary because discrimination is still very much a part of our country and our institutions. Some believe that equal opportunity programs such as affirmative action are no longer needed because discrimination no longer exists or because...