Affirmative Action: Racial Preference in Black and White

Racial preference is nothing new, argues Tim J. Wise in this compelling exploration of race, privilege, and education. This book recasts the debate over today's controversial, race-based affirmative action policies. Wise deftly demonstrates that the American educational system has always been complicit in institutionalized racism and racial preference.

Affirmative Action examines the larger structure of institutional white privilege in education, and compares the magnitude of white racial preference with the policies typically envisioned when the term "racial preference" is used. In doing so, the book demonstrates that the American system of education is both a reflection of and a contributor to a structure of institutionalized racism and racial preference for the dominant majority.

Tim J. Wise is the Race and Ethnicity Editor for LIP magazine. He speaks, writes, and advocates across the country to dismantle racism.

Tim J. Wise is among the most prominent anti-racist writers and activists in the U.S., having spoken in 46 states, and on over 300 college campuses. He has trained corporate, government, law enforcement, and labor officials on methods for dismantling racism in their institutions, and has served as a consultant for plaintiff's attorneys in federal discrimination cases in New York and Washington State. Wise has provided anti-racism training to teachers across the country on how to combat racial inequities in schools. He has contributed essays to over ten books and is a regular columnist for several prominent alternative publications.