While the United States abolished slavery 150 years ago and segregation theoretically came to a conclusion 50 years ago, this country is still racially polarized, although now in more discrete ways.  It is important to recognize the underlying principles and forms of legislation that contribute to this racial divide and work towards bridging this gap.  Affirmative action legislation is a vehicle for helping to reduce racial tensions in this country.  This is a pressing issue in today’s society, as demonstrated through the most recent ruling on Harvard College’s usage of this practice in their admissions, but it is also one that must not be dealt with hastily.  This article evaluates both historical case law to provide a background context and focuses on a more recent decision in an attempt to illuminate the necessity of implementing affirmative action practices in both the academic and work setting.  

Implicit biases are defined as any unconsciously held set of associations about a social group. In the United States, these unintentional thoughts and beliefs help explain police discrimination within the criminal justice system. Even though crime rates in this country are actually decreasing, the current issue is not centered on trends in crime rates but on the identity of the players representing these statistics. After close examination, it becomes evident that these are racial minority communities that fall victim to biases in policing. These implicit racial biases plague the criminal justice system and have served as an impetus for large-scale public outrage and social protest. It is important to both recognize that implicit biases create extensive problems in this country and simultaneously work towards developing feasible solutions that can institute a positive structural change.