January 8, 2007
When "looking at race" Is Surely Discrimination
At last an Asian American student has protested anti-Asian admission policies in private institutions. Jian. Li, a Yale student, sued Princeton in a case which could cost Princeton federal funds. He makes a compelling case that the racial admission policies of Princeton are designed to create a veneer of diversity while protecting the institution's white elite.
a freshman at Yale filed a complaint in the fall with the Department of Education's Office of Civil Rights, contending he was denied admission to Princeton because he is Asian. The student, Jian Li, the son of Chinese immigrants in Livingston, New Jersey, had a perfect SAT score and near-perfect grades, including numerous Advanced Placement courses."This is just a very, very egregious system," Li said."Asians are held to different standards simply because of their race."To back his claim, he cites a 2005 study by Thomas Espenshade and Chang Chung, both of Princeton, which concludes that if elite universities were to disregard race, Asians would fill nearly four of five spots that now go to blacks or Hispanics. Affirmative action has a neutral effect on the number of whites admitted, Li is arguing, but it raises the bar for Asians. The way Princeton selects its entering class, Li wrote in his complaint, "seems to be a calculated move by a historically white institution to protect its racial identity while at the same time maintaining a façade of progressivism."
In public institutions where--like California--racial considerations have been barred, the Asian component has dramatically increased as the Black and Hispanic student numbers have fallen.A bad result only to those who want college admissions to be part of some racial spoils system in which admittedly far more qualified and hard working students are shut out.