Richard Rodriguez assimilated at a very young age into American mainstream culture, but political and social instabilities of the early nineteen sixties created a dilemma for Rodriguez, who all of the sudden became a minority student. In the early sixties, the unrest of Civil Right Movements prompted the idea affirmative action. The Affirmative Action came as a result of minority groups demanding integration of socially disadvantaged students into the higher education. They argued that those students should be given priority placement regardless of educational factors and preparation because of discrimination existing in the higher education. Thus, the dilemma for Rodriguez was that his physical features labeled him as a minority student while