The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission

On July, 1964 the 88th Congress passed the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The Act prohibits discrimination in housing, education, employment, public accommodations, and the receipt of federal funds on the basis of race, color, gender, national origin, or religion. (Bennet-Alexander, D and Hartman, L, 2003)

The word discrimination comes from the Latin "discriminare", which means to "distinguish between". To discriminate socially is to make a distinction between people on the basis of class or category without regard to individual merit. Examples of social discrimination include racial, religious, sexual, sexual orientation, disability, ethnic, height-related, and age-related discrimination. Whether a given example of discrimination is positive or negative is a subjective judgement (i.e., in the eye of the beholder). Distinctions between people which are based just on individual merit (such as personal achievement, skill or ability) are generally not considered socially discriminatory. (Discrimination. August 20, 2006)

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is a government commission, which was created by the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The original purpose for the commission was to end discrimination in employment and to promote programs to make equal employment opportunity a reality. The commission receives charges of discrimination, investigates, and if they appear true, attempts to remedy them through conciliation. Any individual who believes that his or her employment rights have been violated may file a charge of discrimination with EEOC.