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23 Hastings Const. L.Q. 1115 (1995-1996)
Reverse Racism: Affirmative Action, the Family, and the Dream That Is America

handle is hein.journals/hascq23 and id is 1131 raw text is: Reverse Racism!: Affirmative Action, the Family, and the Dream That Is America By ROBERT S. CHANG* We should transform 'reverse racism' from a curse to an injunc- tion (Reverse racism!). -David Roediger' I am a product of affirmative action. Thus, to imagine a world without affirmative action would require that I imagine a world with- out me, something that I am not inclined to do. I am reminded of a cartoon which depicts the philosopher Descartes saying, I think, therefore I am. The second frame shows him musing, I think not, therefore.... . The last frame is blank. I find it ironic that so many affirmative action babies can advocate against the policy responsible for their very existence. And although I disagree with much of what Stephen Carter says, I agree with him that we must invert the negative meaning attributed to the term affirmative action baby, and in order to do so, we must embrace the term rather than reject it.2 And so, let me repeat, without shame, I am a product of affirmative action. And I refuse to imagine my own non-existence. * Associate Professor, California Western School of Law. A.B. 1988, Princeton Uni- versity; M.A., J.D. 1992, Duke University. Copyright 1996 Robert S. Chang. This is a footnoted and slightly expanded version of a talk that I delivered at the 1996 Hastings Constitutional Law Quarterly Symposium: The Meanings of Merit. I would like to thank Professor Keith Wingate of Hastings and Veronica Parkansky of the Quarterly for inviting me to participate. I would also like to thank Keith Aoki, Maggie Chon, Adrienne Davis, Neil Gotanda, Peter Halwood, Todd Hughes, Lisa Ikemoto, Cynthia Lee, Laura Padilla, and Donna Young for the conversations we had while I was writing this Essay. Thanks also to Jackie Chin, Jerry Kang, Nancy Levit, and Leti Volpp for comments on a later draft. Special thanks to Selena Dong for listening to ideas develop to fruition. Very able research assistance was provided by Melinda Aiello and David Suzuki. Work on this Essay was supported by a Publication Award from California Western School of Law. 1. DAVID ROEDIGER, TOWARDS THE ABOLITION OF WHITENESS: ESSAYS ON RACE, POLITICS, AND WORKING CLASS HISrORY 17 (1994). 2. STEPHEN L. CARTER, REFLECTIONS OF AN AFFIRMATIVE ACTION BABY 4-5 (1991). [11151

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