Thank you everyone for sharing your thoughts, here are mine:
The reason that "affirmative action" is still used is because of the lopsidedness of power in the US. That is, most people in positions of power ie/government, business executives etc., are still 1)white and 2)men. Why is this? Because of the historical advantage white men have over not only other races, but over the other sex. Maybe it is only me, but when I look around, I can see the pull for white men to hire other white men.
I am a graduate student, and when I go to research meetings, and meet professionals in my field, I can FEEL the advantage I have because I am a white man, all of the other old white dudes cozy up to me. I know in part this is because of my research etc., but I can't deny that this is in part becuase many of the people around me are a different color.
Why is it that workplaces sholdn't strive to have a diverse group of employees, or that government and big business shouldn't be filled with diversity? I am in complete agreeance that "the best man or woman for the job" should get hired, or accepted into college or whatever, but, as many people will fight to the death to deny, there is still an advantage to being white, which in trying to even out this advantage sometimes leads to disadvantages.
On the whole, reading many of the posts on topic, it sounds like people are flat out scared that their advantage is being stripped of them, and now they will have to be just as good (and in some situations, for the time, better) than the black person standing beside them.
As a side thought, I don't know one white person who has never been admitted to a college or university. All of my friends, even those with poor GPA's and average SAT's got into a college or university.
Call me a f@#$ing democrat liberal whatever you want, I'm speaking from my experiences, not necissarily from theory. I see it all around me, and to be honest, there is a comforting feeling that when I move on to get a job that I will have an easier time. On the flip side, If I don't get a job and a black man or woman does, so be it....who is to know if they are more deserving, or if it is because a hiring policy? It is an easy excuse to blame it on a hiring policy instead of admitting that that person is better than me, which is probably the case.
As for affirmative action, I personally do not feel that it is racist to consider one's life (and other) experience when considering that person for admission into a college or on a job interview. In fact, experience is usually a bonus when applying for a job, and why shouldn't it be when applying to a university.
Those are my thoughts