Discrimination at UC Berkeley
UC Berkeley Chancellor Chang-Lin Tien’s column (“A Diverse Student Body Serves a Diverse Society,” Commentary, July 7) is a thinly veiled excuse for racial discrimination.
It is disconcerting to discover only 55% of admissions decisions at UC Berkeley “are based on academic criteria.” This travesty according to the chancellor is “educationally” sound, “culturally” sound and is consistent with a democratic society.
Nonsense! The chancellor left out “politically” sound, which is really the driving force behind his admissions policy. This is an example of racial politics, pure and simple, on the part of America’s most prestigious academic institutions.
The chancellor is doing nothing less than bowing to the forces of political correctness, which insist on racial based decisions and admission quotas. Applications for admission to our universities should not include the name, age, sex or race of the applicant. The merit system and protecting individual rights are complementary to democracy, not juxtaposed goals. Everyone has an equal opportunity to compete and not to be discriminated against. That’s what equality is all about. Unfortunately, Asian-American children are hurt the most by this racist imperative insisted upon by the liberal elite.
Chancellor Tien may serve as a good role model for young Asian-Americans, but he justifies discrimination that will keep those very same Asian-American children out of UC Berkeley only because of their race.
REP. DANA ROHRABACHER
R-Long Beach
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
