It is commonly accepted that one of the major ways to fight systematic injustice is through education which raises awareness of many injustices and guides to the solution. Education is keystone in helping communities struck by inequality to overcome that inequality, however, the educational system is riddled with injustices. In a recent college application scandal, the actresses Lori Laughlin and Felicity Huffman were caught trying to bribe their children into prestigious colleges, blindsiding students that compete for the same position with merit, many of them often coming from communities’ victims to systematic injustice.
While using the fame and influence to get already privileged kids to schools that provide them with opportunities that they did not deserve the other extreme is affirmative action that tend to alienate the large groups in the middle who have their own intersectional struggles to be even recognized by the various efforts of affirmative action. Many poor black and Hispanic communities are on a constant lookout to get into education and have the greater opportunities having a decent education provides, however, the many practices that are set in place that make it easier for already established communities to stay established and to help only a marginalized group that need help leave the groups that often need the help the most. College practices of generational schooling where a kid’s chances of getting into the college are increased by their
parents’ alum status or by just their parents going to that college hurts the people who have worked hard to earn the merit to be qualified for the college. The practices of buying a kid’s spot not only hurts the kid’s prospects but also hurts an even larger crowd.
Furthermore, the measly efforts of affirmative action often tend to miss out on communities that struggle to even get into the spotlight of needing affirmative action, and it also alienates many middle-class groups. The idea of affirmative action also can be related to Ahmed’s theory of injustice where the authority, which can be seen as the oppressors, makes the decision about the expression of other groups. Affirmative action like many other authoritative practices to instill equality is also vulnerable to influence of interests and shortcomings in recognizing who needs affirmative action in the first place. The issue thus is not is the idea of affirmative action, but its execution as affirmative action in the ways it is executed sometimes can actually end up hurting the population it is intended to help as analyzed in a blog on the National Affairs.
https://www.nationalaffairs.com/publications/detail/the-sad-irony-of-affirmative-action
This video does a great job of clearing a lot of misunderstanding and explaining how Affirmative Action is actually used in schools today.
I think this is a great example of systemic injustice. College admissions is a very odd system. It is sad to think race is a factor when it comes to college admissions and that it is so highly debated. One thing that really stood out to me was that in the video it said “creating a more inclusive system requires us to recognize the role of race in America”. I think that is such a good point because we can not be colorblind when it comes to these issues because not all races are treated equally and not all receive the same opportunities in life.
This topic is super interesting because I think college admissions are so tricky to figure out. May schools want to be diverse but also can be race based and money driven. With celebrity parents bribing schools and even high donating parents or family members in any school, allows them to get ahead and get an upper hand without putting in work through grades, fighting for scholarships or putting in much work for extracurriculars.
I find this topic very interesting and I even watched the documentary that is on Netflix about it. I think you chose a great topic to do your showcase on since it is very relevant. People with money have had it easier to get their kids into the schools they want to go to since the schools want their money. This takes away the opportunity for kids who have tried really hard in school to get into any specific university just because another family had money. Overall, I found your post very interesting and relevant!
I took an African American theatre course last year and the very first assignment involved listening to a podcast about the college admission scandal of Lori Laughlin and her daughter. It’s a really bad look and disgusting that someone would use their power and money to create a fake identity that would allow her daughter to be admitted into USC. It truly highlights the systematic bias towards white families with power. Affirmative action can only do so much to create a fair playing field when the influence of money is involved.
Good post and I agree that college admissions often do reinforce systemic injustices. I think that a technique that can somewhat improve this injustice is programs to support first generation college students. It would be beneficial for colleges to admit a more diverse array of students but it is also important to support students of any background once they attend the school and encourage them to apply.
Your post was a great representation of systematic injustice in institutions. I remember hearing this news and scandal couple years ago. Is terrible how people with money think their more privileged to cheat the system and get what they want. The other kids that tried their all and put effort just to get the opportunity to go to these schools and change their lives and accomplish goals were stripped from them. This is a true example of power and how the One and Other theory place in it.
I’ve been interested in finding out more about this topic after reading briefly about it in earlier diaries and hearing about this specific case on the news. You did a great job at explaining how this represents a systemic injustice and it’s sad to think that some colleges are basing their admissions on race and ethnicity. The video you included helped clarify so much about this topic and overall I think you did a great job!
Thank you for sharing this example of systemic injustice. I almost laughed when I originally heard the news about the famous and wealthy people engaging in the college admissions scandal… as you mentioned… as if they weren’t already privileged to begin with. How that situation was handled in itself is another example of systemic injustice related to cash bail system and the minimal charges faced compared to others who have served years for using false addresses for poor elementary and middle school kids. You pointed out that affirmative action can end up hurting the population it is intended to help rather than helping it and I agree. I think we need to re-evaluated a lot in this system
I’m coming from another country with complete different system of education. It was interesting to read about that and you have done a great job of explaining the injustices. It is not nice to think race is a factor when it comes to college.
This is a fantastic and impeccable benchmark example of systemic injustice. We see this type of behavior everywhere in this country; in the workplace, in sports, and especially in college admissions. It’s very important to emphasize that universities like to self-promote themselves as highly diverse, but they are very flawed when it comes to several things. Affirmative action is can work and universities definitely claim to implement it in a high rate, but as you mention, there are multiple flaws that consistently bring to light systemic injustices.