I chose the article, “Moving Beyond Affirmative Action,” from the October 4, 2012 edition of the New York Times. Author Thomas J. Espenshade is clearly biased against conservative views of affirmative action and the role it plays it the admission process for higher education. In, “Moving Beyond Affirmative Action,” Espenshade chronicles the court case regarding Abigail Fisher v. University of Texas and shares his views on affirmative action and whether affirmative action is effective in the admissions process. The court case, Fisher v. University of Texas, regards a white girl (Fisher) who was a highly qualified applicant for University of Texas’s undergraduate program. When she was denied admission after an evaluation that considered an applicant’s race, she decided to sue the university. Considering an applicant’s race in the application process is an example of affirmative action; policies taken on by many companies and institutes of higher education that emphasize hiring, or accepting, minority applicants in an attempt to promote diversity as well as to prevent discrimination. Espenshade shows a liberal slant in his writing and opinions on affirmative action but also realizes affirmative action is not an effective remedy to the problem.
A man of Princeton, Espenshade received his PhD from Princeton in 1972 and joined the Princeton faculty in 1988. (princeton.edu) Princeton is widely known as a liberal school and as a Professor of Sociology, Espenshade has the opportunity to not only influence young minds but to conduct research of his own. His current research relates to the issue of the achievement gap and the roles of family circumstances and parenting behaviors as they relate to school readiness. (source) He received the Bourdieu Award in 2011 from the American Sociological Association for the best book in the sociology of education for his book, No Longer Separate, Not Yet Equal: Race and Class in Elite College Admission and Campus Life. (princeton.edu) Being a member of the Princeton community gives Espenshade credibility when he gives his opinion on a matter, such as the case with Fisher v. University of Texas
The article, “Moving Beyond Affirmative Action,” starts out with the explanation of how the case came to be in front of the Supreme Court. Fisher had sued the university after finding out she was denied admission following an evaluation that considered the applicants' race. The article then steers away from the matters of the case and in the direction of whether affirmative action is an effective method of preventing discrimination and promoting diversity in colleges and universities. Espenshade goes on to discuss the effectiveness of affirmative action in the admissions process and what the alternatives are; noting that the issue of diversity in institutes of higher education is rooted in the performance gap between whites and minorities that goes back to birth. He also notes how institutes of higher education have a responsibility to see over all education and to make sure the learning gap between whites and minorities does not continue to grow.
In the writing of this article, Espenshade often has a liberal slant, which is unsurprising, considering his Princeton background. Being a Sociology Professor at a Liberal school would suggest Espenshade is liberal and his research regarding the achievement gap and the role of family circumstances and parenting behaviors as they relate to school readiness show his interest in understanding why inequality exists, which is key to reversing the problem. His past research in contemporary US immigration and diversity in higher institutions are also liberal stances. (princeton.edu) There are obvious moments in the article that indicate a liberal slant, starting in the first paragraph. Espenshade calls Fisher v. University of Texas, 'the latest in a long line of conservative assaults on affirmative actions that dates to late 1970s.' (Espenshade, 2012) He then talks about how the emphasis on diversifying the student body has helped provide opportunities to minorities who wouldn't have had the opportunity to get into college otherwise. Affirmative action in the admission process is something a liberal would support, but in this case, while showing he is liberal, Espenshade discusses how affirmative action is an inadequate way to promote diversity, stating 'It treats the symptoms but not the root causes of an underlying social problem.” (Espenshade, 2012)
Further evidence that Espenshade is liberal and would therefore write with a liberal slant can be found in articles in by Roger Clegg and Kathleen Geier in the National Review and the Washington Monthly, respectively. Clegg discusses Espenshade's article, calling him a liberal, and saying how it is nice that there are some liberals that understand that affirmative action is the not the answer to dealing with racial disparity in the admissions process. He goes on to discuss how Espenshade's real focus is on how to address racial disparities in education without using racial preferences, which further the notion that Espenshade wrote his article with a liberal slant. Geier's article, “Discrimination against Asian American students in Ivy League Admissions,” doesn't so much discuss Espenshade's article but refers to his view on the matter, stating how Asian-Americans have to score higher on the SAT than their white counterparts. Looking to avoid making racial preferences in an effort to promote equality is a liberal stances that Espenshade is passionate about.
While I agree with Espenshade that affirmative action is not the answer to promoting diversity, I also don't see a feasible alternative. Espenshade states how the issue needs to be dealt with at the root but it is no easy matter to change the way of life for many minorities. The real issue is the learning gap; Espenshade states how, by the time minorities enter preschool, on average, they are a year beyond their white counterparts in learning and by the end of high school, they are four years behind. (Espenshade, 2012) Understanding the fact that many minorities have to struggle against different types of adversity is one thing but to give them preference based on race isn't fair to equal, if not more impressive, white applicants. Espenshade is liberal in “Moving Beyond Affirmative Action” but he doesn't blindly support it like many other liberals would; he offers alternatives to how the matter should be dealt with. Still, it is good to have a bias sometimes because it shows that the writer is passionate enough about the subject to not be able to be objective and sometimes, we can learn more about certain subjects if the author is passionate about what he or she is writing about.