Collection

1997 Annual Conference

Authors

Robert H. Willis

of affirmative action are intricately linked to discrimination in the UnitedStates. The following is a brief outline of this history. 1940s: President Roosevelt signed an order making discrimination illegal in defense contracting. 1954: The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Brown v. Board of Education that “separate but equal” facilities on the basis of race were unconstitutionally discriminatory. 1964: Congress passed the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibiting discrimination based on race, sex, national origin and religion in employment and education. 1965: President Lyndon Johnson signed an executive order requiring federal contractors to undertake affirmative action to increase the number of