The New York Times accidentally admitted that affirmative action hurts black college students

wordpress ^ | November 29, 2015 | Dan from Squirrel Hill

[grundle]

The New York Times accidentally admitted that affirmative action hurts black college students

This recent New York Times article talks about a black student at Amherst College whom the New York Times claims is “unprepared academically” for the particular college that she is attending.

So I’m trying to think of all the reasons why someone who is “unprepared academically” for this particular college would get admitted to this particular college. Here are the reasons that I can think of:

1) Their parents made a big donation to the college.

2) They were admitted for their athletic ability.

3) They were admitted as a result of affirmative action.

If anyone here can think of any other reason, please post it in the comment section.

Anyway, it’s that third reason that I’m interested in for this discussion.

Without specifically mentioning affirmative action, the New York Times article makes a good case against affirmative action.

The student in question even says “I always feel like I need to prove to other people that I do belong here.”

I would respond to that by saying that anyone who is “unprepared academically” for this particular college does in fact not “belong” at this particular college.

Please note that no one said this student was “unprepared academically” for college in general. Instead, this student is “unprepared academically” for this particular college.

But there are thousands of other colleges in the U.S.

If affirmative action did not exist, then instead of getting admitted to this particular college, this student would have been admitted to a different college – one for which she was “prepared academically” instead of one for which she was “unprepared academically.”

Attending a college that is too difficult, is far worse than attending a college that matches your abilities. Affirmative action is causing terrible harm to these students. Colleges should get rid of affirmative action, so that each student will be matched up with a college that matches his or her own abilities.

Here is the relevant text from the New York Times article:

One young woman said she went to sleep at night wishing she would not wake up. Imani Marshall, a senior pre-med student from Chicago, who is black, felt a shudder of recognition and started to cry.

Ms. Marshall, who went to a selective public school in Chicago and came to Amherst on full financial aid, said she had felt unprepared academically and socially for Amherst. Yet she felt that by asking for help, she would undermine not just her own standing but that of her entire race.

"I feel like an impostor," Ms. Marshall said the other day over lunch at the central dining hall. "I close myself off a lot of times from help. I always feel like I need to prove to other people that I do belong here."

[euram]

Colleges don’t really care whether black “students” are actually prepared for college, all they want is to add the person to their stats. Since most colleges have softball programs, such as African-American Studies, they are mostly directed to that type of program. Then there is the added benefit of having a large enough group who can be called upon to “fight da man” by being permanently aggrieved and offended, for which they must grant some type of credit it seems, because they sure don’t discipline any of them who specialize in social upheaval and disruption on their campuses.

[exDemMom]

It is really hard to know what is going on here. If, by having to “prove” herself, she means that she studies extra hard in order to keep her grades up—well, there is nothing wrong with that, and it does not mean that she is unprepared academically.

There is a phenomenon that happens to many students when they get accepted into a highly competitive academic program at a top school. Regardless of race, they suspect that their admission into the program is a mistake, that there must have been far more qualified students who were overlooked. It takes a while to accept the fact that the admissions committee knew what it was doing, and that the student *does* belong.

I know I went through that when I was one of over 600 applicants accepted into a class of 8 at UC Davis. For most of the first academic year, I was full of self-doubt, feeling like I really and truly did not belong. Other students felt the same way. The feeling passed—by the 2nd year, I knew I belonged. And I eventually graduated with a PhD.

Of course, there is the possibility that the young woman in the article truly is not prepared academically, and that she is struggling to pass her classes. The article did not say that was the case, though. There is no concrete evidence presented that she is, in fact, an affirmative action admission who did not actually qualify.

[Senator_Blutarski]

Back in 1969 when affirmative action was gaining steam my college had a “transitional year program” that provided a year of remedial education. The program allowed them to waive most of the entrance requirements. It was obvious to the participants there were only minorities in the program. Most of the participants left in the first year. The program was an expensive bust.

The college thereafter followed the more common path of dumbing down requirements and adding “studies” majors.

[sphinx]

Amherst seems an unlikely place for such debate and strife. It prides itself on its diversity — only 42 percent of Amherst students identify themselves as white.

Sheesh. These fragile little flowers are having a meltdown on a campus that is already majority minority. If they feel excluded and marginalized there, what is the solution? Strict racial and gender segregation in the colleges?

[central_va]

Because of PC and AA universities, even the elite ones, are losing the ability to provide a venue for talent mining. How are corps going to get their talent in the future?

I say we go with IQ testing and aptitude testing and skip the 4 year party.

[Sgt_Schultze]

4) The student may have spent his last two years in high school in a drug-induced cloud. They would still have entry into a college as a foreign student instead of as an American. A birth certificate would clarify the lineage and would be pretty convincing.

[grundle]

Good points all around, abut her as well as about your own experience.

[grundle]

Heh heh.

[MayflowerMadam]

Affirmative action doesn’t only hurt black college students. It hurts all of society.

Dear Leader and his he-she “wife” are products of affirmative action and what they’re doing to America is worse than “hurting” it. A Harvard grad saying, “Me and Barack” did such-and-such. (Of course, that seems to be common on TV and in real life now.)

Look at the black talking head attorneys on TV who can’t speak a simple sentence in English. I’d never go to a black doctor, although there are many great ones, e.g., Ben Carson. But how does a person know if the doc’s credentials were earned, or otherwise?

Affirmative action needs to end.

[I want the USA back]

Affirmative action is wrong, illegal and unconstitutional. Any law that “allows” it is invalid.

[sickoflibs]

From NYT link :

In the heat of the moment, the students drafted a list of demands for the administration.
They wanted the college to stop calling its athletes the Lord Jeffs, after Lord Jeffery Amherst, the pre-Revolutionary War British commander who advocated germ warfare against Native Americans and for whom this college town was named. They wanted students who had posted 'Free Speech' and 'All Lives Matter' posters to go through 'extensive training for racial and cultural competency' and possibly discipline. They wanted the administration to apologize for 'our institutional legacy of white supremacy,' among many other forms of discrimination, like 'heterosexism, cis-sexism, xenophobia, anti-Semitism, ableism, mental health stigma and classism.'"

[GOPJ]

"The trouble is that diversity in and of itself doesn't really do anybody much good if separate little groups come to Amherst to study their own particular points of interest and they don't talk to each other,- Mr. Ruxin said. 'As alumni, many of us have tried to encourage the college to try to bring common intellectual ground, so when you leave college, you leave not just with nostalgia and friendship, but with a sense of common intellectual interest.'

If my parents had put me in MIT (years and years ago) - a place I'm uniquely unqualified for - it would have been painful. Then if MIT had patronized me for my 'great effort', while I was struggling and losing - I'd have a hard time waking up in the morning too.

It's not fair to black kids - kids probably at the top of their high school classes and proud of their accomplishments - ready to conquer the world, filled with joy... Then sent off to 'compete' with elite kids who had every advantage in the world from the day they were born. It's not kind or fair or good... it's dreadful.

This is the type of 'do-gooder stuff' liberal elites are known for - stuff that makes them feel 'oh so good' about themselves while inflicting pain and damage on those around them.

[stephenjohnbanker]

For those of you who don’t know, Amherst is on a par with any Ivy League school. Most of the students come from A rated private schools like Phillips Exeter,Boston Latin, or Choate. When college recruiters from Amherst or Johns Hopkins come to your high school, they flat out tell you “ this is NOT a party school. We seek scholars, period! “

[lowbuck]

You posted: It's not fair to black kids - kids probably at the top of their high school classes and proud of their accomplishments - ready to conquer the world, filled with joy... Then sent off to ‘compete’ with elite kids who had every advantage in the world from the day they were born. It's not kind or fair or good... it's dreadful.

Spot on!

Years ago I served as an officer recruiter. I learned a couple of hard lessons during that time.

Key was that if I had a very marginal black or Hispanic candidate I could probably have success in getting them selected.

However, when they hit the “fleet” they were up against the kids you refer too. Really top quality across the board and how the heck do you compete with that? It was tough enough for me and I think I am rather smart.

Bottom line, who =does the skipper give the keys to the (chose one) (1) airplane; (2) boat or (3) any other key position. Right the highly qualified dude and if you are the token then you lose cadet!

So our candidate goes back to their community after four or five years and can only talk about how you can't get a break in the service.

My point is that there are a lot of terrific non-white folks in the military. Just don't force the issue. Let them bubble up from the ranks and the quality will always float to the top.

Then you skim the cream and this is the cadre that will go back to their community and tell a very positive story about serving in the military.

Sorry to rant, but, this article and your comment just hit an emotional nerve.

[GOPJ]

Thanks for sharing - we’re on the same page.