Occupy Wall Street and Affirmative Action

The Root
The protests -- and Abigail Fisher's lawsuit -- remind us that inequality affects white people, too.
By: John McWhorterPosted: November 25, 2011 at 12:32 AM

The Occupy Wall Street phenomenon has a thing or two to teach us about, of all things, affirmative action.
One of those affirmative-action-all-the-time spells will most likely be on us again -- soon. Abigail Fisher has appealed to the Supreme Court in her 2008 case against the University of Texas at Austin -- denied by the 5th Court of Appeals -- for not admitting her despite an academic record that would have gained a black or Latino applicant admission.
Forecasts suggest that the Supremes will likely hear the case before June -- unless UTA succeeds with its current strategy of stonewalling in response to the high court's request for a preliminary response to the challenge of its admissions policy. However, that will work for only so long, in which case the decision would happen in late 2012 or soon thereafter.

Full Story: http://www.theroot.com/views/occupy-wall-street-and-affirmative-action

Why No One Is Right in California’s Affirmative Action Debate

The New Republic
Why No One Is Right in California’s Affirmative Action Debate

John McWhorter

John McWhorter

Contributing Editor

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• Dreaming and Not Believing
• Crimes and Punishments
• The Integration Jitters

October 7, 2011 | 12:00 am

The protests against the Berkeley College Republicans’ mock “Diversity bake sale” last week, in which minorities were charged lower prices than whites, are illustrating that history is all about taking a step backwards for every two steps forward.
Back in the day, when I started speaking out about affirmative action in 2000, to even question racial preference policies was to be tarred as a moral degenerate.

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http://www.tnr.com/article/politics/95876/berkeley-diversity-bake-sale-affirmative-action