Should Race Be Considered For College Admissions?

There was a time when “minorities” were discriminated against based on their colour, sex, religion, or anything else the majority didn't like about them. There was a time when they had separate schools for black and white people. By and large, that time has passed. At this stage in history, discrimination is largely a thing of the past. Everywhere you look, people of different races are working, socializing, and even marrying. We've come a long way, baby!

While racisim will never be completely gone, the measures that were put in place to stop discrimination, such as Affirmative Action, and the “voluntary statistical questions” on applications now create discrimination. If there is one spot left in a college program, the decision makers will likely look to see if their quota of minorities has been met. If it hasn't be met, a minority will more likely be chosen whether they are the best candidate or not. This creates a breeding ground for resentment because more often then not the truth eventually comes out. College admissions need to look at the quality of the applicant, not the appearance of the applicant.

The past couple of years, I have decided to exercise my right not to answer the “optional” questions and have found that I do not get called for interviews on jobs and the local college “encouraged” me to answer them. I do not like being pressured to label myself so I can be judged with out ever having a chance to represent myself. To my knowledge, no other country has such questions. I have never heard someone refer to themselves as an "African Englishman". These questions do not allow for white people who come from South Africa. After all, they're families are "African American" too. What about the black families who originated in Hati and have no ties to Africa? What do they call themselves?

This is the time when we need to join together as AMERICANS and put racism in ALL it’s forms to bed once and for all. We shouldn't be divided into groups of African American, White, Hispanic, Asian, Samoan, Native American, etc. Multi race individuals often have to chose one race over another because a lot of applications don't All they need to know is whether we were born here, have a visa, or a green card and THAT’S IT. The existing system is obsolete and needs to be retired.

College is the place where we should start a new movement. A lot of great movements came from college campuses and we have a chance to make a difference starting with the college application. No more “optional questions”. They are discriminatory and nobody's business.

Let’s stop being “ethnic groups” and start being AMERICAN.