I salute Mr. Ramanavarapu for his statements about affirmative action. I am glad to see a minority student add such credibility to the affirmative action opposition. When Caucasians make such arguments they are often labeled as racist, ultra-conservative, or worse.

The Constitution states that all men are created equal, and while that may not have been true before the Civil Rights Movement, it certainly was afterwards. But now the opposite seems to have occurred. Now it appears that Caucasians are the ones at a disadvantage, not only in universities, but in the job market as well. Mr. Ramanavarapu is right to point out that this unequal treatment breeds contempt and racism towards minorities.

For those of you who are quick to write this letter off as conservative jargon, consider this example: Two students begin their first year of college. One is an American Indian, whose father owns a store. The other is a Caucasian male, whose father is a garbage man. Which of these two students is at a disadvantage?

Most people would agree that the Caucasian student is at a bigger disadvantage because his family’s income is less than the other student’s. However, affirmative action suggests that the American Indian student is the one at a disadvantage because he is a minority.

Call me crazy, but it seems like income is a much better indicator of financial need or “disadvantage” than race. Nevertheless, the American Indian student in this example would attend college with significantly reduced tuition compared to the Caucasian student.

Ramanavarapu makes a good point when he states that students from inner-city schools should receive reduced tuition. However, this should apply to not only the African-American and Mexican-American students, but to the Caucasian students as well.

Martin Luther King helped bring equality to all Americans, but affirmative action is currently undermining everything that he worked towards. It is destroying equality among the races by overcompensating for sins that you and I have never even seen in our lifetimes.

Chris Wallacesophomore in English