affirmative action

noun

: the use of policies, legislation, programs, and procedures to improve the educational or employment opportunities of members of certain demographic groups (such as minority groups, women, and older people) as a remedy to the effects of long-standing discrimination against such groups

Note: Affirmative action gives limited preference to qualified groups (which may include racial and ethnic minorities, women, older people, people with disabilities, and some veterans) in job hiring, admission to institutions of higher education, the awarding of government contracts, and other social benefits.

The term affirmative action was … used in an executive order issued by President Johnson in 1965, which banned all federal contractors and subcontractors, as well as unions involved in federal work, from practicing employment discrimination.

—Michael L. Levine

Unlike previous measures, such as the Civil Rights Acts of 1964 and 1965, which prohibited discrimination, the goal of affirmative action was to adopt a proactive approach to redressing past discrimination. It goes beyond the prohibition of overtly racist practices by requiring employers, public contractors, and college admissions officers to cast a wider net in their searches for qualified workers and students through active recruitment of racial minorities.

—Shirley J. Yee et al.

Examples of affirmative action in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Following the end of affirmative action, Duke University will discontinue its Reginaldo Howard Memorial Scholarship Program, a program for top Black applicants. —Rayna Reid Rayford, Essence, 16 Apr. 2024

But the last several months have been mired by higher education woes, such as the Supreme Court's gutting of affirmative action last year and President Joe Biden's initial student debt relief plan introduced in 2022 (and struck down by the Supreme Court last year). —Arthur Jones Ii, ABC News, 11 Apr. 2024

Many schools declined to release the racial and ethnic makeup of their pool of admits (either indefinitely or until the official end of the admissions cycle), following the Supreme Court’s ruling on affirmative action. —Christopher Rim, Forbes, 29 Mar. 2024

January 2012 New Hampshire bans affirmative action New Hampshire’s ban on affirmative action in the public sector and college admissions takes effect. —Emma Kumer, Washington Post, 9 Mar. 2024

The nullification of affirmative action policies in the United States presents an additional challenge, but not an insurmountable one, as is evidenced by the University of California at Davis’ success in achieving representation that matches or exceeds the United States population. —Tricia Pendergrast, STAT, 7 Mar. 2024

Writing for the majority, John Roberts, the chief justice, asserted that affirmative action is in itself a form of discrimination. —Jessica Guynn, USA TODAY, 6 Mar. 2024

The high court ruling against affirmative action and new research have changed the national climate around legacy admissions, which could improve the legislation’s chance of passage compared with an unsuccessful attempt in 2019, Ting said. —Teresa Watanabe, Los Angeles Times, 29 Feb. 2024

Nikole Hannah-Jones examines how the fall of affirmative action may be viewed as part of a 50-year campaign to undermine the progress of the civil rights movement. —John Hodgman, New York Times, 5 Apr. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1961, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

affirmative action

noun

: an active effort to improve the educational and employment opportunities of members of minority groups and women

Legal Definition

affirmative action

noun

: an active effort (as through legislation) to improve the employment or educational opportunities of members of minority groups or women