Affirmative Action for the Privileged

For those who bash affirmative action for disadvantaged minority groups in the university admissions process as against our American meritocracy should reconsider that notion. Because, as an article in "the Economist" points out, the elite in this country have their own system to get their children into the best schools.

According to the article (which profiles some of the major findings of a new book called “The Price of Admission: How America's Ruling Class Buys Its Way into Elite Colleges—and Who Gets Left Outside the Gates” by Daniel Golden) "No less than 60% of the places in elite universities are given to candidates who have some sort of extra 'hook', from rich or alumni parents to 'sporting prowess.' " which benefits whites way more than blacks. The power of legacy in these elite universities are staggering. Harvard admits 40% of legacy applicants while accepting 11 % of applicants and Amherst accepts %50 of legacy applicants. Also there are plenty of sports scholarships outside of football and basketball for preppy white kid in sports like fencing, squash, sailing, riding, golf and lacrosse.

This privileged affirmative action is taking its toll on elite universities as they become more socially exclusive:
"Between 1980 and 1992, for example, the proportion of disadvantaged children in four-year colleges fell slightly (from 29% to 28%) while the proportion of well-to-do children rose substantially (from 55% to 66%)." In a time when in the US when social inequality is rising while socially mobility is at a low, the social stratification of college admissions is quite disturbing. The two groups of people that are burdened the most by these admission policies are poor whites and Asian americans.

Efforts to get rid of Affirmative Action across the country may make these trends even worse.

Here in the State of Michigan, there is a ballot initiative called the MCRI (Michigan Civil Rights Initiative) which will end affirmative action not only in state schools but also in the workplace. The campaign behind this initiative, led by Ward Connerly who has pushed this legislation through California and Washington, receives all its funding from donors outside of Michigan. In face of this elite affirmative action, trying to get rid of this program that help disadvantage groups into schools and jobs just seems unjust.