The concern isn’t equality, it’s moreso equity. Historically, minorities have suffered systemic efforts that have limited their ability to pursue higher education for a variety of socio-economic reasons. Despite many of those systemic efforts having been thwarted with time, many minority populations’ socio-economic status as a whole still suffers when compared to those of White populations.
These minority populations unquestionably have fewer opportunities (in a multitude of ways) to pursue higher education, and so Affirmative Action helps to destroy some of those barriers and help provide an equitable way to facilitate this – to help level the playing field that’s been dominated by White populations for as long as the country has existed.
Is it a perfect solution? No. Do deserving applicants who would otherwise have been accepted maybe not get their top choice? Yes. But on a population scale, this was probably a good thing. Now we’re back to “equality” which for the past however many years didn’t exist, and the people who were lower before, continue to suffer the consequences.
Outer Wilds