Affirmative action: A status report

Affirmative Action, largely dependent as it is upon Executive Orders and judge-made law, has been rather tenuous from time to time. It came under severe stress during the Reagan Administration. Yet, the 1986-89 Supreme Court decisions show that while no revolutionary strides were made, the “core principle” itself was reaffirmed. Consequently, there appear to be some salutary effects insofar as one sees some reversals of other agency postures. Thus, one can say that Affirmative Action survived after having withstood the most relentless assault so far. However, during the 1989 term, the Court opened up issues long settled thus casting a shadow on the prospects of AA. The imponderable is the future composition of the Supreme Court along with the opportunity accorded to President George Bush.