by Lance T. Izumi, Fellow in California Studies
Pacific Research Institute
September 19, 2000

Announcer lead: Time for Perspectives. Lance Izumi says that re-instituting race-based college admissions will hurt minority students.

Over the past several months, certain members of the UC Board of Regents have indicated that they want the Board to drop its race-and-gender-neutral admissions policy approved in 1995. Such a move, many believe, would constitute the first step in an effort to repeal Proposition 209. Although both prospects may hold emotional appeal for many in the Bay Area, it's important to consider the serious consequences that would result from such actions.

For example, lawmakers and education officials have been working diligently to raise academic standards and student performance in California's public schools. Yet, as officials try to raise the achievement bar, re-instituting race-and-gender preferences would only serve to undermine those efforts. How this would occur is eloquently explained by John McWhorter in his recent book Losing the Race. McWhorter, a black linguistics professor at UC Berkeley, says that maintaining affirmative action deprives black students of a basic incentive to reach for the highest achievement bar. He points to his own history as a student, knowing that under affirmative action he didn't have to strive for the highest grades because he knew above-average ones would get him into top universities. According to McWhorter, we need to give minority students incentive to do their best rather than rewarding them for doing less than their best. Affirmative action, says McWhorter, interferes with today's principal goal in achieving racial equality: the closing of the black-white scholastic gap.

Yet, what about the supposed need to recognize society's "diversity"? McWhorter bluntly responds that to make "diversity" our priority reveals a lack of interest in raising black student performance. It is time, argues McWhorter, to put excellence ahead of headcounts in order to expose black students to serious competition and thereby raise black student achievement levels

While it's true that many factors affect student achievement, McWhorter is correct to emphasize the fundamental role of incentive and competition in shaping behavior. If we are to have a truly informed debate on the future of affirmative action, California officials should read McWhorter's book.

With a perspective, I'm Lance Izumi.