Affirmative Action: Is affirmative action a good idea?

http://www.economist.com/debate/days/view/967#pro_statement_anchor

Many different governments have carried out policies of affirmative action to compensate for past discrimination of racial minorities. Supporters declare that it shatters the glass ceiling, allowing certain ethnic group to enter higher economic and social status. Adding on, affirmative action creates a classroom of diverse ethnicities and makes up for the pure luck involved in birth by providing more opportunities to those who aren’t so lucky. On the other hand, opposing views point out how such policies only benefit the powerful and wealthy households of such ethnicities that have been historically discriminated. Further on, affirmative action cannot be justified as it’s merely an extension of discrimination by ethnicity and race. Professor Ashwini Deshpande further supports Affirmative Action by talking about how it will have a trickle-down effect with social minorities in decision making positions and how it will level the playing field. She also rebuts to a few points, such as the criticism that AA only further stigmatizes these minorities. She points out that AA counters the current stigma that exists independently and that critics should shift their focus to successful cases like the castes of India. She claims that the criticism about AA being regressive is merely a myth. On the opposing side, professor Lino A. Graglia states that AA is inconsistent with an important value that humanity upholds, equality. He claims the actual problem is that certain ethnic groups lack in certain abilities and that the society is merely trying to cover this fact up.