In a world where the struggle for equality will never truly end, the concept of affirmative action seems to undermine thousands of years of development towards a society unpolluted with prejudice.

When John F. Kennedy issued Executive Order 10925, better known today as affirmative action, his focus was putting an end to discrimination in the workplace and the quest for employment.

When Kennedy issued that order in 1961, it proclaimed that no applicant for a job could be discriminated against on the basis of race, creed, color or nationality.

After decades of revision, affirmative action today means that it is unacceptable to have fewer 'minorities' (this refers to women, African-Americans, Hispanic-Americans, etc.) in a higher education setting or workplace than would be determined by their ratio in the qualified pool of applicants in comparison to 'non-minorities' (namely Caucasian males).

Ultimately, this can be summarized by saying that applicants of similar qualifications could both apply for the same position and one would receive that position based upon his race, gender or ethnicity rather than his or her qualifications.

In some cases, this type of quota system has been outlawed, but since 1961 many companies and schools have been forced to incorporate this program into their admissions criteria. In those institutions, applicant selection is no longer based solely on ability — Affirmative action requires these institutions to discriminate in certain cases in order to maintain a certain percentage of minority employees and students; competence or merit becomes secondary to ethnicity or gender.

While intentions behind the order have equality in mind, affirmative action has more drawbacks than positive points.

While affirmative action could provide wonderful opportunities for minorities who are discriminated against on a daily basis all their lives, it has been documented that even those who benefit from the order still suffer from the drawbacks.

Because of affirmative action's role in the securing of positions for minorities, the group sometimes feels as if they are succeeding without regard to their abilities. Their prosperity is instead considered unjustified and undeserved, founded on the idea that organizations must now take on a certain number of minorities in order to appease the stipulations of affirmative action.

Similarly, non-minorities face the possibility of not landing their dream job or getting into their first choice college not because of their capabilities but because they are part of the majority.

This is called reverse discrimination.

Instead of picking the most competent or deserving student or employee with the best references and training, must we now assure that each ethnicity and gender is equally represented in the name of equality?

I think I would be more content in getting the job I deserve, rather than one I received in order to appease an ethnic or gender quota.

Despite the fact that affirmative action is nearing its 40th birthday, little has changed. White males still procure much larger salaries in comparison to their female or international counterparts, regardless that affirmative action's conditions were aimed at leveling the playing field for all human beings, regardless of any biological difference, be it pigment or structure.

Instead of focusing our efforts on making sure that each ethnic group and gender are equally represented in all aspects of the workplace and school yard, let us instead gauge ability without the tainting of race, gender, and ethnic differences in our vision.

Instead of discriminating in hopes of eradicating discrimination, let's just do what we already know we need to do to create the land of equality that we know America can be — look beyond the skin.