The majority of my colleagues are highly educated individuals who have limited exposure to individuals like me – someone who grew up in foster care, with parents who were felons and addicts. The only time they encounter someone with a similar background is when they volunteer at homeless shelters or group homes. Whenever the topic of affirmative action in higher education comes up, they offer their sympathies, believing that as a child of a Black father and white mother who grew up in poverty and instability, I am more impacted by attacks on affirmative action. Most Americans view affirmative action as a crucial policy that benefits poor Black children, and believe its elimination would have significant consequences. However, for the Black poor, a world without affirmative action would simply be the same world they have always known.
In 2012, just 6 percent of Harvard’s freshmen identified as Black, despite Black Americans making up 14 percent of the population and 15 percent of the country’s young adults. But within three years, the university managed to increase the number of Black freshmen by 50 percent, achieving perfect representation by 2020. However, with the potential loss of affirmative action due to upcoming Supreme Court decisions, this progress may be reversed. It is important to recognize that the diversity at Harvard was not a result of a comprehensive system that sourced talent from all of Black America. Instead, Harvard used race-conscious admissions to admit students from the highest-earning segments of Black America.
A study conducted by economists in the same year that Harvard achieved perfect representation examined income segregation in American colleges. The study found that during the years 1999 to 2004, when around 16 to 18 percent of American children were living below the federal poverty line, only 3 percent of Harvard students came from families in the bottom 20 percent. Even though Harvard reported 154 Black first-year students in 2020, considering the high child poverty rate in Black America, a more equitable representation would have included around 40 Black freshmen from poor families. However, it is likely that the majority of the Black students at Harvard come from families that are not impoverished.
It is worth noting that a significant proportion of Black students in Ivy League schools are first- or second-generation immigrants. These Black immigrants represent the highest-earning and best-educated segment of Black America. In fact, it has been estimated that as many as two-thirds of Harvard’s Black students in the early 2000s were either the children of Black immigrants or biracial couples. This paints a different picture of the demographics of Black students at prestigious universities.
Affirmative action has been deemed an acceptable criterion for holistic admissions since 1978. However, for 45 years, it has shown no substantial progress in improving the representation of the Black poor. It is difficult to believe that progress was suddenly on its way in year 46. Therefore, when affirming the end of affirmative action, it is crucial to acknowledge this history. A policy that hesitates to address the issue of class prioritizes the affluent and neglects those who require assistance.
In my personal experience, when I was in elementary school, my grandmother falsely told me that I would get to go to college for free because I was Native American, despite having no Native ancestry. This misconception stemmed from a belief, prevalent among poor white individuals, that the government provided benefits to everyone except poor whites. Similar fictions have been absorbed even by wealthier and more knowledgeable Americans. These misunderstandings are often shaped by hearsay and popular culture, creating an inaccurate view of how college admissions work for Black Americans.
A study published in The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education found that out of 153,000 Black test-takers in 2005, only about 1,200 scored a 700 or above on either section of the SAT. I was among the few who achieved such scores. Contrary to the stories I was told, I did not receive any special treatment or preferential treatment. My high school guidance counselor showed no interest in my test scores and did not encourage me to apply to college. It was only after my father threatened to kick me out that I reluctantly decided to apply. Instead of receiving aid from affirmative action, I was provided with information about the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).
As a former foster youth with a missing mother and a recently released father, I was legally eligible for significant financial aid through the FAFSA. However, due to a lack of documentation about my situation, which none of the adults around me had kept, I struggled to acquire the aid I was entitled to. The federal requirements demanded signed statements from community members, attesting to my difficult living conditions, but as a transient youth with little community support, I could not meet these requirements. Consequently, I accumulated substantial loans throughout my education, despite being eligible for grants that could have covered my entire undergraduate education.
Since 2018, I have used my own experiences, although learned too late, to assist other foster youth in navigating the college admissions process.
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