I took the title of this column from the name of a book written by Yale Law professor Stephen Carter. It was published in 1992, during my last year as an undergraduate at Northern Illinois University.
In it, he talks about being the beneficiary of affirmative action, but also being a victim, in a sense.
Carter says affirmative action started out with the best of intentions, but the end result has been twisted.
I agreed with it back then and I agree with it now.
One of the basic premises of his book was that affirmative action was simply a way for whites to exercise their liberal guilt by handing out benefits to what he called “the best Blacks” and then forget about the rest who likely needed the most assistance.
During my time as a student, I made it a point to take advantage of whatever white liberal guilt or affirmative action program I could get my hands on. I did it because I was smart enough to figure out the system and make it work for me.
This is why I don’t get worked up over the recent 6-2 U.S. Supreme Court decision regarding the decision by Michigan voters to end affirmative action by ending the use of race in college admissions. I had some people (mostly whiny Blacks and whites infected with liberal guilt disease) tell me that this was just another example of “rolling back the clock” on civil rights and this was going to harm diversity.
I disagree. If anything it allows more people from different walks of life to get access to higher education who really want to pursue it.
Look at who benefits the most from affirmative action college admission programs in the 21st century. It is usually more well-educated, well-off African-Americans.
In my own family, my niece who attends Ohio State University will be the third generation in my family with an advanced degree, my Dad and me being the other two. Her parents had the financial resources to send her to school and she had the drive and the initiative to do the rest. People like us don’t need affirmative action.
However there are lot of folks who do, so here’s a thought, instead of using race in college admissions, I have always believed using income and geography would get you a better result. Colleges and universities could really reach those bright students who come from low-income areas and give them access to higher learning. Because I really don’t think a wealthy Black kid from Hyde Park should get an extra boost over a poor white kid from rural Appalachia.
Now don’t get me wrong. I do believe diversity is a good thing when done properly. However, do we achieve a more diverse society by bringing in folks from all walks of life and giving them an opportunity or do we just want a bunch of “Cosby kids” to reap the rewards and benefits?
The point of affirmative action 40 to 45 years ago was to provide an opportunity for people who had traditionally been left on the margins of society. That was a laudable goal then and it still is today. I just think we need to do it a little differently than back in the 1960s and 1970s.
Abdul-Hakim Shabazz is an attorney, political commentator and publisher of IndyPolitics.org. You can email comments to him at abdul@indypolitics.org.
