‘We need to look past our own myopic perspectives,’ student says of discrimination
An op-ed written by an Asian student at Harvard pleads with other Asians to stop criticizing the university’s alleged discriminatory admissions policies and “back off” from fighting against such practices, claiming that a “white conservative activist” has plans to take the issue all the way to the Supreme Court, which would “likely dismantle the architecture of race-conscious admissions policies.”
“During this important political moment, I implore, from one Asian-American to another: Back off of affirmative action,” Elyse D. Pham writes in the student newspaper The Harvard Crimson.
Pham writes that though she is “tempted to join the angry throngs of my fellow peers” regarding Harvard’s reportedly racist anti-Asian admissions policies, she believes that Asian students should “withdraw our collective support” from the pushback against affirmative action.
“The sinister truth is that while the lawsuit in question only targets Harvard explicitly, its controversial nature and past behavior of its litigator means it’s likely to be appealed all the way to the Supreme Court. There, the conservative majority would likely dismantle the architecture of race-conscious admissions policies — something that any diversity- and equality-valuing community should defend at all costs,” Pham writes.
“In fact, destroying affirmative action writ-large has long been the end goal of Edward Blum, who leads Students for Fair Admissions. This white conservative activist is spearheading the lawsuit against Harvard — a fact that on its own should generate skepticism towards its merits, especially in an audience of color like ours,” Pham adds.
Pham says that opposition to hiring policies discriminatory of Asian students “can only be compelling to someone with a naively idealistic conception of the school system, and of equal opportunity in America more generally:”
While a complete meritocracy sounds like a good idea, it necessitates the equality of all other factors, especially resources. This couldn’t be further from the truth — a study of the 2011-2012 school year found that while 81 percent of Asian-American students had access to college-preparatory math and science courses, only 57 percent of black students enjoyed the same privileges. Such disparities exist throughout the educational sphere, problematizing the very idea of a world without racial considerations. If college admissions were based on merit alone, black students would have a disproportionately mammoth task ahead of them: not only ensuring that they meet Harvard’s standards, but overcoming unfair resource distribution to do so. That would undoubtedly cause their level of representation to plummet at elite universities, recalling an era of near-segregation as prestige becomes an excuse for racism.
Writing that Asians “have a responsibility to ourselves and other communities of color,” Pham declares: “Affirmative action needs our support. It’s time that we give it.”
MORE: Documents detail discrimination tactics by Harvard against Asian-Americans
IMAGE: Dean Drobot / Shutterstock.com
Like The College Fix on Facebook / Follow us on Twitter
Please join the conversation about our stories on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Reddit, MeWe, Rumble, Gab, Minds and Gettr.