The issues of equality in the workplace and affirmative action have been hovering over the working world's head for many years now. The controversy seems to be nonstop, and many wonder if it is really doing anybody any good. Although the positive and necessary benefits of equality and equal opportunity are shown in many situations, there are an equal number of incidents that turn out being a complete and total disaster.
             It has been the common misconception of many Americans that since the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960's, discrimination has ended and all is well. It is ignorance such as this that leads to the downfall of modern-day society.
             If we were to travel back into time and visit the early 1900's, we would see that things were fairly simple, and there was not a whole lot to worry about. For the most part, men worked on the farm or in the factory while the women stayed home to raise the children. The slave trade was in full force, blacks worked as slaves in the southern part of the United States. This made things very simple. There were very few issues that dealt with gender and/or racial based discrimination in the workplace. Both "ethnically different" people and women had specific roles in society that were rarely challenged. There was not a need for "equal opportunity employment" simply because nothing needed to be "equalized." Although there were instances of discrimination against people of "different" religious backgrounds such as those with Jewish beliefs, the conflicts were minimal, and did not create a large-scale problem. With these factors in mind, there was really no need for any type of s!
             ystem to provide "fairness" in the workplace.
             In today's complex and sometimes frustrating society, there is a large need for a system that gives everybody an equal chance. The end of the Civil War began a period of reform in America. Nee...