The complicated emotions of affirmative action
Really powerful stories, both for and against affirmative action, narrated by Emily Bazelon. I think, though, one proposed reform that Bazelon mentions solves most of the problems on both sides: take a program that advantages Colin Powell’s kids, and reform it so that it advantages all disadvantaged kids, not just ones with certain skin colors.
Affirmative action would be acceptable to me if it looked at economic circumstances. But looking only at race is a problem. I say this even as a good liberal, knowing I have to apologize a hundred times for it. … If we could get out of affirmative action based on race, and look at class/economics instead, it’d get us out of all this.
