@JBStillFlying First off, I wasn’t saying his twitter feed is the only thing that evidences his hard work. I’m really curious as to whether you’ve looked at his tweets- none of them seem attention seeking (he continues to post tweets encouraging support of BLM and thanking the founders), and even before he got his Stanford acceptance he was engaged with social activism (including black lives matter).
Secondly, I don’t believe talk is cheap when followed up with actions. Straight from his twitter bio, he is the founder of Redefy, a non-profit dedicated to eliminating stereotypes. Beyond that, he is one of MTV’s Top 9 Teens changing the world and one of business insider’s top 15 young prodigies. He met with Obama at an award dinner for muslim youth who are actively making the world a better place, and interned at the State Department. He writes articles about social activism for the Huffington Post. His talk isn’t cheap- he is working incredibly hard in support of social activism.
No one knows what exactly will get an applicant into a top university. But the jealousy/frustration displayed on this thread is toxic- who are all of us to say this kid didn’t deserve to get into Stanford? Stanford DIDN’T make a mistake admitting this kid, and to say so disparages his many accomplishments.
No one ever said that this guy didn’t deserve admission. He is an incredible applicant in my eyes.
Yet, good debate is never “toxic.” Name calling is silly as well. Are we not allowed to question the decisions of society, authority, and institutions now without being labeled “cowards” by people like @yonceonhismouth ?
Again, no one is trying to diminish this guy’s success. I think the parents above are debating over the legitimacy of his essay and what it more broadly represents: do privilege and wealth displace a good essay? Is ignoring the original prompt an example of brilliant non-conformity or of entitlement? Was his use of the hashtag in his essay and then sharing it on social media ethical? This is a story and debate that prompts seductive introspection and reflection into the college game.
@AshleyMisAwesome I never said good debate is toxic- I believe that what is being done on this thread is not good debate, and in my view it is toxic because it is demeaning a student’s application.
To your other point, what I said was, to quote,
Never did I say that “questioning the decisions of society, authority and institutions” is cowardly- as someone who has done a lot of social justice work, I think that is necessary for a healthy society. I was calling out the comments that read as though they were full of malice, such as “that application should have been tossed in the trash”, “just more affirmative action at play”, and “I feel bad if there were a kid who wrote blacklivesmatter only 99 times and didn’t get admitted.” It is very easy to type out these sorts of comments when you are behind a computer screen- imagine saying that face to face with this student who has worked very hard and dedicated himself to social activism and achieved great things in that regard. THAT is what I was referring to as cowardice- not the valid debate about the role of privilege and wealth in college admissions.
@JBStillFlying How about this non-profit, that he has been working on since before he even began high school? https://redefy.org/about/ If you take a look at the website, it works to counter stereotypes and promote equality.
Or his articles with Huffington Post about growing up Muslim (a person of color)?
Or his ted talk on youth activism?
Or his successful consulting company that works to help businesses understand teenage customers?
And yes, on twitter, he has promoted Black Lives Matter and engaged with their cause through that social media platform. With a following of 6K, I think a public display of support for a cause is evidence that he cares about the work.
I’m just listing a few examples of his meaningful work with social activism.
Except I didn’t use that as one of my examples. I’m confused about the point you’re making? Additionally, Ahmed referred to a movement that is meant to promote humanization of a historically marginalized race, while the slogan you referred to has been used, over this past election season, to justify racism and bigotry.
@CA94309 .I disagree with the national review.^^ If we are talking about hypothetical racial injustice, then we must assume that the outcome and purpose of college admissions is fairness. But it’s not.
@JBStillFlying and @yonceonhismouth . Let me shift the argument to another perspective. To me, Ahmed’s success was not his admission to Stanford through this unique way. It was revealing the true nature of elite college admissions and their ability to compromise fairness in more ways than one.
I’m curious (genuinely curious, as I’m not quite sure I understand your point yet) what you mean by compromising fairness? Is your argument that Ahmed’s admission was unfair? @AshleyMisAwesome
I’m rebutting that the article’s perspective that Ahmed’s admission was an example of racial injustice. I’m arguing back that the intent of colleges is never “justice” or “fairness” like the article suggests. If the author believes that Ahmed’s admission was “unfair,” then they are under a false assumption that the purpose of colleges is fairness or ethical judgment.
Then, there are a lot of comments accusing Ahmed’s admission of being unfair. I’m offering them the perspective that perhaps his true success in his essay is exposing that the nature of college admissions is not to value or to uphold decisions that seem universally “fair.” @yonceonhismouth
@JBStillFlying He is a person of color AND a muslim. I didn’t describe all Muslims as people of color. Perhaps, to make it EXPLICITLY clear I should have said (AND AS a person of color). Unfortunately the edit button has elapsed.
@AshleyMisAwesome Understood- and agreed, for the most part. I completely agree that admission decisions are not designed to be “fair” or “just”, as they are up to humans who have their own opinions and biases. But I disagree that his true success is revealing that nature of college admissions- his success is in his many talents/achievements that earned him admission to a great university (in my mind, there is a difference between fair and earned. IMO, he earned it).
“I’m arguing backthat the intent of colleges is never “justice” or “fairness” like the article suggests.”
@AshleyMIsAwesome admissions departments in the UC system were successfully sued to end racial admission quotas. How can you conclude that admissions departments don’t try to follow some internally-defined system of “racial justice”? Much evidence would suggest that they do, and your point is merely an assertion that they don’t.