Abigal Fisher, a white student, says she was denied admission to the University of Texas because of her race. Texas, like several other states, grants automatic admission to its public universities for students who place in the top ten percent of their class. For students outside of that group, UT is permitted to consider race (along with other factors) in determining admission. Fisher failed to qualify for automatic admission, and instead, competed with other students outside of the top ten percent. She was denied a spot at UT and sued the university, arguing that the decision was based on the color of her skin.

Of course, the fact is that any number of factors could have led to her rejection, from her grades, to her skill set as a student, to the kind of activities she did while in high school. The point is that it’s a little silly to immediately jump to race, as if minority students are—by definition—only in school because they are minorities. Indeed, at selective schools like the University of Texas, the odds are good that you won’t get in at all, given the large pool of applications and lower acceptance rates.

Which is to say that in a world without affirmative action, it’s likely that Fisher wouldn’t have earned admission to the school anyway. It’s a little like complaining that you would have gotten a place in a crowded parking lot, if not for those spots reserved for the handicapped. The problem is that hundreds of other people are also looking for a parking spot, and if that space wasn’t reserved, chances are that someone else would have gotten it.

(Source: abbyjean)