I fear you’re right; if anything, their bleak reality is increasingly masked with affirmative action and a refusal to have frank discussions about race. Pretending they are educated enough to give them unearned high school diplomas and college degrees, and hiring them for jobs, and awarding them promotions, for which they aren’t qualified, is not moving in the right direction in terms of “confronting reality”...Terms like a “gentleman’s C” have simply been replaced with “preferred minorities’ A” - equally devoid of meaning.
As a supervisor I find that any type of written response during the application process serves as a great screen of job candidates; it lets you know exactly what the education listed on a resume really means. Not that it is a barrier to employment; it simply determines what level of work somebody might really be qualified to do. I remember the first time I realized that “ghetto talk” wasn’t some type of accent; the actual writing is just as poor as the speaking. The incorrect grammar isn’t just an act; many really have poor English skills (despite being raised in an English-speaking country).
Yes, resume inflation is a problem for everyone. It inflates expectations for Blacks and deflates the achievements of those who really are high fliers.
Plus, of course, there is the not inconsiderable fact that it’s a form of lying.