Race Roles in College Admissions

Legal entrepreneur Edward Blum has started a series of websites seeking plaintiffs to represent who feel they have been denied college admission due to race.

Edward Blum representing Abigail Fisher, left, in 2013 Fisher v. University of Texas case.

It has been almost a year since the United States Supreme Court has issued its latest decision on affirmative action in regards to race affecting college admissions. Since the updated decision last June, former stockbroker Edward Blum has wasted no time searching for new, worthy plaintiffs. Blum essentially creates public webpages, targeting certain universities at a time, where students who have been denied can visit and report their case if they feel as though they were wrongly denied due to their race or ethnicity. Then, Blum matches these plaintiffs with high-end lawyers who he feels can win their case. It is a vicious cycle that is becoming more popular as the years continue.

Over the past year, Blum’s work has become more knowledgeable by students hoping to enter the college of their dreams. With a new academic year approaching and Blum’s practices becoming more widespread, this raises some concerns about how the University of Mississippi deals with affirmative action in the application process. Freshman Shelby Howe states that upon learning about Blum and his legal work, it makes her wonder how the University of Mississippi goes about handling race in the application process. “I’ve never thought about it before, but I can see how this issue can relate to future students at Ole Miss. There are so many race related issues associated with Ole Miss already, I could see this being Blum’s next targeted school”, stated Howe.

Some students, however, do not think that Ole Miss has an affirmative action problem or should be worried about Blum’s practices affecting future UM students. Freshman forensic chemistry major Ansley Cruce states, “I think some colleges use race-based affirmative action a little too much, but I do not think Ole Miss is one of those schools. Regardless, universities should focus more on your qualifications and less on your ethnicity when making their decisions.” Nonetheless, Blum is not stopping or slowing down on his legal practices, and Ole Miss very well could be the next university to be singled out.