Racing white

"Race must be taken out of admissions in higher education." That's the latest rallying cry of the mostly white Anglo opponents of Affirmative Action, who have held statewide referenda to ban universities from "considering race" in their admissions process.

But since when has race not been a part of college and university admissions? Since when has the historically entrenched and long-standing privilege of Anglo whiteness not been a part of admissions into higher education?

No one held referenda to take race out of admissions when white Anglos were the only ones who could get into institutions of higher education. That changed only when African Americans and other ethnic minorities took a stand and forced the system to very slowly and painfully shift gears. Now that Affirmative Action has made it possible for more and more racial and ethnic minorities to make it into colleges and universities, race has become "a problem" in admissions.

By race, of course, they mean black, brown and almost-brown people. And by using race to apply only to those who are not white, they again naturalize and occlude the privileges that are part and parcel of Anglo whiteness in this country.

I am a proud product of Affirmative Action. I'm pretty sure that I got into Harvard and into my graduate program at Ohio State because I'm Puerto Rican. I'm pretty sure that without Affirmative Action, I wouldn't have made it into the Ivy League or into a highly competed master's and doctorate program because no one would've likely wanted to take a chance on me, what with my not being a native speaker of English, having attended a public high school, and having low standardized-test scores. I'm pretty sure that what makes me an attractive candidate as a professor is the fact that I am Latina, that I have a proven record in working with and for minorities in higher education, and that I teach Latin@ studies.

Granted, being a Puerto Rican may have helped me to get some doors opened just a crack. But the odds for my success in this country are hardly improved by the fact that I am Puerto Rican. All that I have achieved has been, as it is for most minorities in this country, at the cost of blood, sweat and tears and against some impressive odds. Still, I and so many of my minority colleagues and students, have to hear the same old crap sometimes from white Anglos:

"Of course you'll get into the program, you're [insert minority status here]. Minorities always get in."

"Of course you received an A in that class. You're the only [insert minority status here] in the class."

"As a [insert minority status here], you should be grateful for all you've received."

"As a [insert minority status here], you won't have any trouble getting hired. Minorities always get a job."

The racist message underlying such comments is that we're not good enough, and that we were never good enough to be where we are or to get where we're going on our own merit and effort. The racist message behind such comments is that if it weren't for the allowances made by the white Anglo-dominated system, we wouldn't get anywhere.

The truth, however, is that the white Anglo establishment hasn't given up anything to minorities that minorities didn't fight for with uña y diente. Thus, we as minorities do have to be grateful. But our gratefulness must go to those who, like the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., Malcolm X, Rosa Parks and thousands of other unsung heroes, black, brown and almost brown, daily stood and stand up to white Anglo privilege and force the system to change directions, one step at a time.

Critical race theorist Derrick Bell said recently that Martin Luther King's legacy is one that teaches us to root out evil wherever it might exist. The idea that race is only about the black, the brown, and the almost-brown is part of that evil that still must be vanquished. Race in this country began with white Anglos and when the privilege of whiteness is recognized as part and parcel of this country's race-based system of reward, then I'll certainly be all for taking race out of admissions to higher education.

Once white Anglo privilege is taken out of the equation, then the black, the brown and the almost-brown will finally have that often-vaunted but still elusive equal chance to succeed.