Affirmative action is a government policy that provides opportunities for minorities, women, and any group that has been the victim of discrimination in the past. Affirmative action is the result of the civil rights movement of the 1960s, born from the Civil Rights Act of 1964 which outlawed discrimination based on race, ethnicity or gender. It was the 1978 Supreme Court decision, The Regents of the University of California v. Bakke, to allow the use of race-based preferences as a means of promoting diversity by allowing the use of affirmative action in admissions policies. It was created with the intention of providing equal opportunities for members of minority groups in education and employment. Initially, affirmative action focused on improving opportunities for African Americans. Colleges and universities used affirmative action in their admissions process, with the hope of increasing enrollments of African American and then Hispanic students, two minorities that had lagged in college acceptance rates. According to data from the National Center on Education Statistics (NCES), in 2007, 70 percent of white high school graduates immediately enrolled in college, compared to 56 percent of African American college graduates and 61 percent of Hispanic college graduates. As more and more educational institutions have begun to use affirmative action policies in their admissions process, these have become the subject of much debate. With Americans aligning themselves as affirmative action supporters, opponents, and "reformers", the use of affirmative action has become, and continues to be, a widely debated topic in American society. In today's society, supporters of affirmative action find themselves in the midst of criticism and the large group of states...... half of the document ......d about affirmative action and becomes a member of the "reformers" , hoping to bring many reforms to the current affirmative action policy. From the inception of affirmative action to current policies, affirmative action has been reformed in the past, moving from a policy based on equal employment to a policy used in the college admissions process. So who says he can't be reformed again? With a little help from state legislatures and affirmative action “reformers,” the future looks especially bright for affirmative action policies in the United States. As our society becomes more and more diverse, perhaps affirmative action will eventually fade away altogether. Until then, advocates, opponents, and “reformers” will have to figure out a way to allow affirmative action to reach a broader group of people, giving more Americans the opportunity to succeed..