Heather MacDonald on the real results of affirmative action in university admissions

I really, really do understand why Dems and liberals were so eager to drink the Kool-aid of affirmative action.  It seemed like such a compelling solution to the under-representation of blacks in most academic fields.  So to Dems, all that was needed to fix the problem was to admit bright black people to top universities.

Voila, problem solved.

But as noted by Heather Mac Donald, using significantly lower standards for favoured groups often leaves the supposed beneficiaries of this system in a tough situation they’re ill-equipped to handle.

Now, I'm a firm believer that brilliance is anywhere.  I suspect Condi Rice could go toe-to-toe with anyone on the planet in terms of IQ.  But when university admissions systems give what amounts to 15+ fictitious IQ points to black university applicants, based solely on their race, other students may tend to be skeptical of the beneficiaries.  Moreover, many of the students who get an AA admission will tend to be toward the bottom of their class academically.

Many of the recipients of such favouritism then either drop out or change majors to less demanding subjects – often Angry Studies -- and may still find themselves struggling, frustrated and resentful. It’s like expecting ‘C’ high school grads to master ‘A’-level college work--and then claiming to be utterly mystified when the inevitable happens.

This seems to be example number 395,985,243 of the "law of unintended consequences."