<p>Wow, productive response Jaddua. It is a legitimate question. We are taught that skin color should not effect how we judge someone, so why is it so important in the college process?</p>
<p>I’m guessing, mattttttttt, that you’ve never been a part of any kind of minority group (ethnic, religious, whatever). Am I right?</p>
<p>I don’t know, maybe you should read the 8 thousand page-long discussions about this very topic that already exist?</p>
<p>Sikorsky, I understand what your saying and obviously racism is still alive, but it is much less prominent. The only way to move forward as a society is to make EQUAL rights. Honestly, affirmative action and all this diversity stuff separates people and doesn’t help the racism problems in America.</p>
<p>I would say that at some of those colleges, there are students who have had no interaction with students of another race. Where I grew up in southeast Texas, I never went to school with an African American until I was 16 and we got out of that cesspool of bigotry. Colleges like to tout providing a diverse experience for all of their students, and it is educational for students to learn various cultures. Don’t assume that your neighbor’s experiences are the same as yours.</p>
<p>I am a white Christian, so no.</p>
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<p>But still nearly as prevalent.</p>
<p>Susan, I am fully for having different cultures at college. But culture is more than just skin color. The African American at my school experiences the same culture that I do. It’s not like HE is from Africa. He is from my town and honestly, there is no differences between him and any other smart student in my school, except skin color.</p>
<p>I don’t think we white guys have ever been on the wrong side of an unequal rights situation during my lifetime.</p>
<p>Racism may or may not be less prevalent than in the past. If it exists in any degree, that’s problematic. </p>
<p>Additionally, you asked a question about ethnic diversity. How did that morph into a question about who’s qualified and who’s not? Are you sure racism isn’t any longer an important issue?</p>
<p>Nearly as prevalent. Really? I don’t think there is a chance in hell that a black President would get elected 20 years ago. Racism has come a long way in America.</p>
<p>Once again, you don’t know that. Because you are white, you may be completely oblivious to the racism your African American schoolmate may experience.</p>
<p>And since you are singling out one person, it is only reasonable to assume that he achieved something that you did not, and now you are trying to use his race as a scapegoat.</p>
<p>Where on earth do you find the nerve to say how somebody else–especially somebody of a different race–experiences things?</p>
<p>There is racism on all sides. White people experience racism(obviously not much because it is the majority) just as black people do. But this is off topic.</p>
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<p>I doubt you’ll ever understand this, but RACISM OCCURS EVERY DAY, AND YOU ARE BLIND TO IT. So please, don’t go running around saying that it hardly affects minorities. It does. It doesn’t affect you, so you’re assuming it doesn’t affect the people around you. And you’re wrong.</p>
<p>And I meant to say “may experience”, not “experiences”. My mistake.</p>
<p>Are white people harmed as often and as severely by racism in America as African Americans, Latinos, Asians, Native Americans, etc., are? I sincerely doubt it.</p>
<p>Do you guys really see the benefit of having someone from your same socioeconomic background, attending the same school, receiving the same education and opportunities admitted with lower grades because of their ethnic status? In other words, students with MERIT are denied for diversity on campus, so they lose an opportunity to attend such a school because of affirmative action. </p>
<p>Obviously, we should ban affirmative action. If someone of the same socioeconomical background can achieve beyond another, why are they pulled back to allow an underachiever access to higher education for some diversity on campus?</p>
<p>This kid is my friend. I am around him to know that he is treated fine. What about the Jewish kids who go to my Catholic school, should you give them an advantage?</p>
<p>Jaddua, I am happy for this kid. Obviously though, I think its unfair that even though his financial need is not there, he will still be getting money because he is a minority. So that is basically making me think, if I were a minority, I wouldn’t have to pay full freight to go to college? Put yourself in my shoes. I work just as hard as this kid. Get the same grades, do well on my SAT’s and have good EC’s. I don’t recieve anything, yet he gets a scholarship because his skin color.</p>
<p>Sikorsky, racism is not like it was in the 60’s. There is hardly any violence due to racism. Really, you should take a look at the violent crime rates. Blacks commit racism against whites to. Racism is not a white issue only like you seem to picture it as.</p>
<p>There are jokes aimed at all races.</p>
<p>I don’t think it’s at all obvious that we should ban affirmative action. It may create occasional injustices. If it does, that doesn’t mean there would be no injustices without it. I believe there would be more and worse injustices without it.</p>
<p>But look what happened here. What began as a question about ethnic diversity morphed into an argument that assumes minorities are less qualified than whites. That’s NOT racist?</p>
<p>Matttttttttt: If you’re just as qualified as him, you should have no problems finding scholarships that don’t have to do with helping minorities. There are plenty.</p>