Racist Scholarship

[Greenday]

http://losangeles.cbslocal.com/2012/...lack-students/

Kid applies for a ton of scholarships. One of the scholarships he happened to win was for African-Americans. When the people giving the scholarship found out he is white, they notified the school and told them that they really meant the scholarship was only meant for black kids. The kid actually returned the $1,000 scholarship. So he was the most qualified student for the scholarship until they found out he was the wrong skin color?

They should have just let the kid keep the scholarship then change the wording next year but nope, he's white so he doesn't need it.

[crashhelmet]

There are countless scholarships out there that specify certain requirements. Could be race, could be location, could be skills, or could be what your parents chose for their careers. With that said, I'd have no problem with them turning him down if the scholarship said it was for African Americans only.

However, this one only said that they were encouraged to apply. Given that the scholarship is named after MLK, I'd honestly think that he should've been allowed to keep it as it truly would honor the spirit of what he embodied.

[Ginger Tea]

He could have OD'd on melanoma/tanning pills (if they are real) and reinacted soul man.

Afaik it is perfectly legal to only offer scholarships to 'minority' groups regardless of who is more deserving, I originally thought nothing of it till re reading a paragraph and thought without reading the link, that he was dual nationality for example South Africa and America (obv) and thought he qualified as he was infact African.

[Greenday]

With that said, I'd have no problem with them turning him down if the scholarship said it was for African Americans only.

It was for African-Americans only. He's from African and now he's an American, that makes him an African-American.

Afaik it is perfectly legal to only offer scholarships to 'minority' groups regardless of who is more deserving

Yea, but that doesn't change the fact that it's still racist.

[Ginger Tea]

Failed to see even after a second reading of the link him being listed as being from anywhere in Africa, either I'm too tired to read (nowt new there) or this info is on another page or website, didn't see a page two.

edit: the line where it says african american students, I just assumemed they didn't see this line vs he was African born, but in general language use that phrase normally means black and I've only ever heard of "white south africans" never this guy is south african and never saying he is white, then again that might just be SA, kinda the reverse of the does race matter thread, saying someone is African automatically makes me think black, not white born somewhere there.

[Greenday]

Hm, looking at other links, it seems to be that it didn't list any prerequisites. So basically it was "Everyone can apply, but you can only win if you are black."

I saw another debate from a different forum and they seemed to have made the same mistake.

[crashhelmet]

Yea, but that doesn't change the fact that it's still racist.

That's an argument that'll be fought until the end of time. This is racist because it's specifically for African-Americans. There are scholarships that are only for women, scholarships that are only for children of United States Marines, scholarships only for Christians or Muslims and even Atheists. We can cry discrimination all we want, but it's not going to get us anywhere.

Scholarships are set up to allow people to goto college that normally might not be able to afford it. If we opened up every scholarship to every applicant, some people could potentially win them all, leaving nothing for others.

[Zod]

So basically it was "Everyone can apply, but you can only win if you are black."

But he's white, and he won. According to this article :

http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/326669 - he chose to return the money because he didn't feel right accepting it.

Warren said he returned the scholarship because he thought "it was the right thing to do." MSNBC reports that he is receiving praises for his decision and even offers of alternate financial help. School principal Darel Hanses, said: "I think it says a lot for his character and it says a lot of the character for the family. This was not something the school or school district asked him to do. He in our opinion won the award in good faith though there was a mix-up.”
Warren said the Martin Luther King Senior Citizens Club accepted the scholarship back when he returned it. He said: "They were very nice about it. They thanked me for being generous and for being a great kid."

Sounds like the school was willing to chalk it up to experience.

Where does it say he's from Africa?

[Andara Bledin]

Pretty much all scholarships are biased in some way - the reason for their very existence is to correct some sort of bias (real or perceived) in the normal process.

However, the way this kid handled it is pretty much a win for everybody involved. The scholarship wins because they didn't ask for the money back, but they still get to award it to the type of recipient they had been aiming at in the first place. And the kid wins because the publicity around his giving the money back is going to get him money in an alternate manner. And whoever offers him money wins by it being good publicity, no matter who ends up giving it to him in the end.

^-.-^

[daleduke17]

So, if a scholarship for "African-Americans" is won by a caucasian who moved from Africa to America or an Egyptian (Libyan, Moroccan, etc)...would they still qualify for it as they are technically African-Americans (just not the normal definition that has been accepted into language today)?

Also, there should not be any race related scholarships unless they give one to caucasians. White folk scholarships where you have to be white to get it. Not racist, is it?

[crashhelmet]

Also, there should not be any race related scholarships unless they give one to caucasians. White folk scholarships where you have to be white to get it. Not racist, is it?

They actually do exist.

The Former Majority Association for Equality issues a scholarship out every year to white men only.

In 1994, a federal judge ordered Alabama State University (a Historically Black University) to issue White only scholarships.

However, the opponents to these aren't crying racism, they're saying that whites don't "need" them because they already have an unfair advantage in the matter. personally, I've never seen or heard any of them provide proof of that. There may be a statistic that shows they have an advantage when it comes to getting accepted to schools, but acceptance doesn't include tuition costs.

[s_stabeler]

I *Think* the argument goes that historically, blacks have earned less than white people, so black parents could help less with college costs than white parents. the scholarships are supposed to be a substitute for a parent helping their kids with college costs, in other words. Why the scolarships couldn't simply be based on parent's wealth, I don't know. ( and yes, I know not all parents contribute to college costs, but the assumption is there in the system. It's why parent's assets are factored into the equation for financial aid.)

[Greenday]

So, if a scholarship for "African-Americans" is won by a caucasian who moved from Africa to America or an Egyptian (Libyan, Moroccan, etc)...would they still qualify for it as they are technically African-Americans (just not the normal definition that has been accepted into language today)?

Also, there should not be any race related scholarships unless they give one to caucasians. White folk scholarships where you have to be white to get it. Not racist, is it?

Just offer a scholarship and call it the European-American scholarship, but only give it to white people. It'd be basically doing the same thing.

However, the opponents to these aren't crying racism, they're saying that whites don't "need" them because they already have an unfair advantage in the matter. personally, I've never seen or heard any of them provide proof of that. There may be a statistic that shows they have an advantage when it comes to getting accepted to schools, but acceptance doesn't include tuition costs.

Make it against the law to ask what race a person is when they apply to college and boom! Race is no longer an advantage or disadvantage when applying.

[s_stabeler]

there are other reasons race can be an advantage or disadvantage than direct "no blacks need apply", Greenday. Look at my post above, historically, it's been harder for black kids to afford college, which is the purpose of the scholarships. personally, I think it should be independant of race ( as in, if you can't afford to go to college, you have a chance at a scolarship) but it's how the particular scholarship was decided on.

[crashhelmet]

But what about poor white kids? Single mom, working 2 jobs just to raise her kid(s), no support from dad, and can't afford to pay for tuition costs?