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2/24/2003 09:39:00 AM | Richie Jay Inferior Action? Stefan Beck '04 pens a misguided attack on affirmative action in today's Daily Dartmouth. Referring to affirmative action as 'inferior action,' he demonstrates a fundamental lack of understanding of racialized heirarchies of privilege and inequitable access to resources such as higher education (and the suburbs). He writes, "Nobody should accept a springboard to greatness while others must slog through the mud," implying that because he is white, grew up in the suburbs of Chicago, and attended a school with the word 'academy' in its name, he slogged it all the way to Dartmouth, while those students of color who receive a "twenty-point freebie" at Michigan should feel cheated for being allowed to simply prance their way into that institution of higher learning. I will not use this space to argue for or against the merits of Michigan's point system (not being a UMichigan admissions officer, I admit that I have not had adequate access to applications and decision-making meetings in order to decide whether or not the process is as fair as it can be). However, I will restate that Mr. Beck, despite seemingly good intentions, fails to recognize that his privately-educated, almost exclusively white upbringing 10 miles north of Chicago (Wilmette, IL: 0.6% Black, Median Household Income: $107,000) may have entitled him to different things than many of his peers 10 miles to the south (Chicago, IL: 36.8% Black, Median Household Income: $39,000). perma link |
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