The Practice of Affirmative Action in College Admissions

The U.S. Department of Justice has signaled it intends to support a lawsuit against Harvard University alleging the school discriminates in admissions decisions against Asian American students.

There’s an excellent editorial in “My San Antonio” by Richard J. Reddick entitled “Leave affirmative action policies alone” that we figured we’d bring to the attention of our readers. In the piece, Reddick defends the practice of Affirmative Action, asserting that it was enacted by the executive order of three presidents — John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson, and Richard Nixon. So, yes, it’s a practice that was supported by presidents of both political parties. As Reddick makes the point, it is not as partisan an issue as some may suggest.

He also brings to our attention that the face of Affirmative Action in the mind of so many — underrepresented minorities — are not necessarily the largest benefactor of the practice. As Reddick writes, “The data on the impact of affirmative action show that white women are the population that has primarily benefited, but the popular representation of affirmative action is often a black or Latino person. Recently, opponents of affirmative action claim that Asian-Americans are harmed by race-conscious admissions policies. However, more than 160 Asian-American groups wrote amicus briefs for Supreme Court in the Fisher vs. University of Texas case, warning that affirmative action would not be used as a wedge between communities of color.