On Thursday night’s The ReidOut on MSNBC, host Joy Reid attempted to frame the Supreme Court vote on affirmative action as an act of “anti-blackness” and an effort to keep people of color out of elite schools. Reid asserted that the court was “fine with it for like the well-to-do” but then declared: “What they don’t want is people who look like you and me in elite schools.” Yet, she provided no evidence to back up her claim as she simply tried to use her race to stoke outrage.
In truth, the Supreme Court ruling was a win for the principles of merit-based admissions and the best candidates had a fair chance at college acceptance. As Justice Clarence Thomas wrote in his majority opinion, “The Constitution abhors classifications based on race, and guarantees individuals the right to be treated with equal dignity and respect.” This ruling provides students the opportunity to be judged on their qualifications and grades rather than on race.
While Reid questioned how the Court could argue in favor of such a ruling, the reality was clear: Schools can now accept students without regard to race and based solely on merit, not race. This is an opportunity for every student, not just those from privileged backgrounds.
Yet Reid continued with her claims that “anti-blackness” was at play. “It is an amazing thing that anti-blackness and really open anti-blackness has become—the Republican Party doesn’t feel they have to hide it anymore. They can just do it openly,” she stated. It is a cry for attention but completely disregards the Supreme Court’s ruling which was meant to promote fairness and level the admissions playing field for everyone, regardless of race.
Ultimately, Reid’s comments only served to further create a divide between races instead of embracing the opportunity to open up access and opportunity to everyone. The Supreme Court’s decision should be celebrated as an opportunity for more schools to award admission based on ability and qualifications rather than race. As Justice Neil Gorsuch noted in the opinion: “No American should be judged by anything other than his or her ‘ability and merits.’” Affirmative action should only take into account family or economic circumstances, not skin color. It is past time to embrace that principle in our admissions process.
Relevant Transcript:
JOY REID: A really smart friend of mine said to me this morning that what this Supreme Court ruling in affirmative action proves is that they’re not against affirmative action. Because they’re fine with it for like the well-to-do. What they’re against is us. What they don’t want is people who look like you and me in elite schools.
[…]
REID: I wonder how they would make the argument. How are they gonna make the argument that we looked at your school class and there are too many blacks in it? That’s gonna be a hell of an argument to try to make. Even in front of this Supreme Court that we think you have too many—not enough white people. Now you guys are counting by– that means you’re looking by race and saying there are not enough white people.
SHERRILYN IFILL (HOWARD UNIVERSITY CIVIL RIGHTS CHAIR): That’s exactly right. And I think Ketanji Brown Jackson kind of hinted at that at the oral argument in the case when she suggested that some of these arguments might create the opportunity for an equal protection claim that black students would bring–
REID: That’s right. Yeah.
IFILL: About the way that race is used. But of course, J.D. Vance is not describing this as a legal matter. He is using this as a way of—
REID: He’s threatening people.
IFILL: Well, I don’t think he’s even thinking about how this might play out in a court.
REID: Yeah.
IFILL: What he wants is the political favor.
REID: Of course.
IFILL: That he gets from saying the most extreme and most outrageous things.
REID: It is an amazing thing that anti-blackness and really open anti-blackness has become—the Republican Party doesn’t feel they have to hide it anymore. They can just do it openly.