[JeremyYoder]

As far as my research can tell (which is far from exhaustive), it varies quite a bit from school to school. Some highschool transcripts reveal race (but students are legally entitled to see their transcripts). Federal Student aid applications ask for race, and schools ask to see those. In the FAQ section, I recommend leaving race blank on the FAFSA, so as not to be getting into federal trouble, but it's up to the student.

Also, there are probably quite a few other things that could reveal race about which a student must be careful.

The hope is that they'll get admitted, then cause a stir when they get there that will hopefully lead to some publicity of the issue if they handle it right.

BTW, I've had inquiries from several people who are minorities about signing on. They support the idea, but are worried about marking themselves as "white" or "asian" because their chances then won't be as good. In the FAQ, I mention this. It's all up to one's conscience.

[moneyrunner]

Dear Javelina,

I can understand how you will go to great lengths to support affirmative action since you admit to being a member of a group that benefits from affirmative action. Some people would be ashamed of winning a race in which they received a head start; others will accept the prize and think nothing of its ultimate unfairness.

You have made several misstatements. You claim that “lying about race doesn’t garner you any advantage…” That is a misleading statement since claiming to be of a certain race DOES garner you an advantage at certain schools, including U of M. Otherwise there would be absolutely no reason why the admissions process at U of M would take race into consideration.

Second, how is it possible to prove a person’s race? Are we to use skin color as a determining factor? Eye color? Hair texture? DNA testing? If I appear white but claim that I have a black, Asian or Spanish ancestor can you prove me wrong? Perhaps we should take lessons from the South Africans and hand out racial identity cards.

When I arrived in this country many years ago, many minorities – of all kinds and various colors – were discriminated against. Their objective at that time was to be viewed as individuals and allowed to compete on an equal footing with their fellow countrymen. Once they achieved “protected” status, however, they found that the benefits of preferences are hard to forgo. So today, they are fighting as hard as any Georgia cracker of the 1950s to maintain their racial preferences.

So today, it may be necessary for the JeremyJoders of this world to throw the kind of sand in the gears of modern racism that the freedom riders of the 1960s threw into Jim Crow. You should remember that they, too, were breaking the law. They were often taken to jail, not just thrown out of school. There are worse things than suffering for your principles, such as giving them up for racial preferences. So I, for one, applaud JeremyJoder.