<p>@Sunny
I’m talking about affirmative action in general, not just strictly reserved to college admissions.</p>
<p>@Philovitist
Where are you getting your data for socioeconomic affirmative action benefiting whites? I can’t just agree to something unless you have evidence to support your claim.</p>
<p>Mismatching would not be as much of a problem. I am quite sure that a student who comes from an impoverished background and gets a 2100 on their SAT is capable of doing just as well if not better than a privileged person who earns a 2300. Both scores indicate aptitude, the second just probably with a bit of tutoring. When someone demonstrates skill despite their hardships, he/she should be given a hand, regardless of race. When someone who happens to be URM demonstrates adequate skill but comes from middle class suburban background, he/she should not be given an advantage over similar non-URMs. It just makes sense. Is it fair for a rich black kid to get admitted over a poor white when they have the same credentials? It isn’t (or at least I don’t think so), but unfortunately some colleges do end up accepting the black kid, more frequently than we’d like to believe too. But back to mismatching, I don’t think the problem would be as prevalent because the students accepted will be determined and will want to do well. A student given admission based on merit rather than race will have a different mindset that contributes to their success. For example, I know several privileged kids who believe they deserve everything they want. They’ve been spoiled rotten and have legacy connections to certain schools, so they expect things to come easily to them. I don’t know if they’ll be admitted, but their views are completely different than that of a hardworking student from the lower class. Of course, I don’t want to generalize this notion to everyone in the middle class (seeing as I belong in that group), but it is true that a good portion of suburban children have this spoiled mindset. I believe that in college, they just won’t be up to par with the students who are actually diligent and who come from a background where they understand how important it is to work hard.</p>
<p>Anyway, I’m not here to change anyone’s minds. I just wanted to assert that the belief that affirmative action combats stereotypes is just plain wrong (but clearly I’m off topic haha). I’m glad you have realized that it actually promotes sterotypes. And of course, a socioeconomic system is flawed, but I think it would definitely be better than what we have now.</p>