--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Who knows what Yale thought it was…" description: "\"Who knows what Yale thought it was getting when it hired Richard Rodriguez? The people who offered me the job thought there was nothing wrong with that..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bdd/richard-rodriguez-6515_action_who-knows-what-yale-thought-it-was-getti_127687.jpg" --- # Who knows what Yale thought it was getting when it hired… ![“Who knows what Yale thought it was getting when it hired Richard Rodriguez? The people who offered me the job thought there was nothing wrong with that. I thought there was something very wrong. I still do. I think race-based affirmative action is crude and absolutely mistaken.” quote by Richard Rodriguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bdd/richard-rodriguez-6515_action_who-knows-what-yale-thought-it-was-getti_127687.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bdd/richard-rodriguez-6515_action_who-knows-what-yale-thought-it-was-getti_127687.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bdd/richard-rodriguez-6515_action_who-knows-what-yale-thought-it-was-getti_127687.jpg) > “Who knows what Yale thought it was getting when it hired Richard Rodriguez? The people who offered me the job thought there was nothing wrong with that. I thought there was something very wrong. I still do. I think race-based affirmative action is crude and absolutely mistaken.” [Richard Rodriguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rodriguez/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Affirmative action based on race is fundamentally flawed and mistaken. **In simple terms:** Race‑based affirmative action is wrong. Key Takeaway Critique race‑based policies. Themes race affirmative action critique policy Mood critical thoughtful Type political controversial When to use this quote - policy reform debates - educational equity initiatives Key Concepts social justice education policy Practical Applications - advocate race‑neutral solutions Questions to Reflect On - What alternatives improve equity? - How to balance fairness and merit? A Different Perspective Affirmative action can address systemic inequities. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Action](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/action/) [Affirmative](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/affirmative/) [Affirmative action](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/affirmative-action/) [Crude](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/crude/) [Hired Richard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hired-richard-1473539/) [Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jobs/) [Knows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knows/) [Mistaken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mistaken/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Race](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/race/) [Race Based](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/race-based-1030062/) [Stills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stills/) [Think Race](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/think-race-539549/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Yale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/yale/) [Yale Thought](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/yale-thought-1100095/) ## Related quotes > [Affirmative action ignores our society's real minorities - members of the disadvantaged classes, no matter what their race. We have this ludicrous bureaucratic sense…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rodriguez/affirmative-action-ignores-our-society-s-real-minorities-members-of/) [Richard Rodriguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rodriguez/) > [My decision was sparked by affirmative action. There was a point in my life when affirmative action would have meant something to me -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rodriguez/my-decision-was-sparked-by-affirmative-action-there-was-a-point-in-my/) [Richard Rodriguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rodriguez/) > [White supremacy is not just a social arrangement: it is a race-based faith.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-a-forbes/white-supremacy-is-not-just-a-social-arrangement-it-is-a-race-based/) [James A. Forbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-a-forbes/) > [ That's why I tried to kill myself when I was a student \[in Yale\]. I thought I was the only one there. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-sessums/that-s-why-i-tried-to-kill-myself-when-i-was-a-student-in-yale-i/) [Kevin Sessums](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-sessums/) > [I think it is difficult to achieve a meaningful political coalition if you have race-based programs that divide members of the coalition. The problem…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-julius-wilson/i-think-it-is-difficult-to-achieve-a-meaningful-political-coalition/) [William Julius Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-julius-wilson/) > [I grew up in Brownsville; most of the kids I grew up with went to jail, not Yale. If they had heard of Yale,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-leigh/i-grew-up-in-brownsville-most-of-the-kids-i-grew-up-with-went-to-jail/) [Mitch Leigh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-leigh/) > [“If non-white groups continue to advance race-based interests, is it wise for whites to continue to act as if they have none?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jared-taylor/if-non-white-groups-continue-to-advance-race-based-interests-is-it/) [Jared Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jared-taylor/) > [ Before I was born \[my father\] wanted me to go specifically to Yale, which he thought would help. It was easy for him to… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/calvin-trillin/before-i-was-born-my-father-wanted-me-to-go-specifically-to-yale/) [Calvin Trillin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/calvin-trillin/) > [“Although it is common to think of Jim Crow as an explicitly race-based system, in fact a number of the key policies were officially…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-alexander/although-it-is-common-to-think-of-jim-crow-as-an-explicitly-race/) [Michelle Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-alexander/) > [When I went to Yale, I thought it would be like in Stenford 24 hours a day. Robert Brustein, former dean of the Yale…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigourney-weaver/when-i-went-to-yale-i-thought-it-would-be-like-in-stenford-24-hours-a/) [Sigourney Weaver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigourney-weaver/) > [The need of black conservatives to gain the respect of their white peers deeply shapes certain elements of their conservatism. In this regard, they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornel-west/the-need-of-black-conservatives-to-gain-the-respect-of-their-white/) [Cornel West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornel-west/) > [I read American sagas (of the west) and I do not see people who went in search of material things. I see people who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-keyes/i-read-american-sagas-of-the-west-and-i-do-not-see-people-who-went-in/) [Alan Keyes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-keyes/) > [Affirmative action was designed to recognize the uniquely difficult journey of African-Americans. This policy was justifiable and understandable, even to those who came from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-webb/affirmative-action-was-designed-to-recognize-the-uniquely-difficult/) [Jim Webb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-webb/) > [Without application of the mind; there is no drive for taking affirmative action.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-mercado/without-application-of-the-mind-there-is-no-drive-for-taking/) [Joseph Mercado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-mercado/) > [The fact is that in too many parts of our country, we still have discrimination. And affirmative action is not just something that applies…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-f-kerry/the-fact-is-that-in-too-many-parts-of-our-country-we-still-have/) [John F. Kerry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-f-kerry/) ## More by Richard Rodriguez > [“Human unhappiness is evidence of our immortality.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rodriguez/human-unhappiness-is-evidence-of-our-immortality/) [Richard Rodriguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rodriguez/) > [In the Sacramento of the 1950s, it was as though White simply hadn't had time enough to figure Brown out. It was a busy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rodriguez/in-the-sacramento-of-the-1950s-it-was-as-though-white-simply-hadn-t/) [Richard Rodriguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rodriguez/) > [Books should confuse. Literature abhors the typical. Literature flows to the particular, the mundane, the greasiness of paper, the taste of warm beer, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rodriguez/books-should-confuse-literature-abhors-the-typical-literature-flows/) [Richard Rodriguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rodriguez/) > [Mexico is sex and Canada is mind. There is much about Canada that I find admirable - the treatment of immigrants, for example, particularly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rodriguez/mexico-is-sex-and-canada-is-mind-there-is-much-about-canada-that-i/) [Richard Rodriguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rodriguez/) > [My decision was sparked by affirmative action. There was a point in my life when affirmative action would have meant something to me -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rodriguez/my-decision-was-sparked-by-affirmative-action-there-was-a-point-in-my/) [Richard Rodriguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rodriguez/) > [I have a good black friend who is a doctor, but he didn't become a doctor because he saw other black men who were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rodriguez/i-have-a-good-black-friend-who-is-a-doctor-but-he-didn-t-become-a/) [Richard Rodriguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rodriguez/) > [In some ways I consider myself more Chinese, because I live in San Francisco, which is becoming a predominantly Asian city. I avoid falling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rodriguez/in-some-ways-i-consider-myself-more-chinese-because-i-live-in-san/) [Richard Rodriguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rodriguez/) > [I think the universities have co-opted the intellectual, by and large. But there is an emerging intellectual set coming out of Washington think tanks…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rodriguez/i-think-the-universities-have-co-opted-the-intellectual-by-and-large/) [Richard Rodriguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rodriguez/) > [You don't know Mexico, man. You have trivialized Mexico. You are a fool about Mexico if you think that Mexico is five blocks. That…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rodriguez/you-don-t-know-mexico-man-you-have-trivialized-mexico-you-are-a-fool/) [Richard Rodriguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rodriguez/) > [After the second chapter of Days of Obligation, which is about the death of a friend of mine from AIDS, was published in Harper's,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rodriguez/after-the-second-chapter-of-days-of-obligation-which-is-about-the/) [Richard Rodriguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rodriguez/) > [What has happened in the last generation is that Tijuana has become a new Third World capital - much to the chagrin of Mexico…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rodriguez/what-has-happened-in-the-last-generation-is-that-tijuana-has-become-a/) [Richard Rodriguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rodriguez/) > [We're looking at complexity. We're looking at blond kids in Beverley Hills who can speak Spanish because they have been raised by Guatemalan nannies.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rodriguez/we-re-looking-at-complexity-we-re-looking-at-blond-kids-in-beverley/) [Richard Rodriguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rodriguez/) > [Intimacy is not trapped within words. It passes through words. It passes. The truth is that intimates leave the room. Doors close. Faces move…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rodriguez/intimacy-is-not-trapped-within-words-it-passes-through-words-it/) [Richard Rodriguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rodriguez/) > [For me, diversity is not a value. Diversity is what you find in Northern Ireland. Diversity is Beirut. Diversity is brother killing brother. Where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rodriguez/for-me-diversity-is-not-a-value-diversity-is-what-you-find-in/) [Richard Rodriguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rodriguez/) > [The drama of the essay is the way the public life intersects with my personal and private life. It's in that intersection that I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rodriguez/the-drama-of-the-essay-is-the-way-the-public-life-intersects-with-my/) [Richard Rodriguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rodriguez/) [Explore all 99 Richard Rodriguez quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rodriguez/) ## More Action quotes > [I always say there are two things to be successful. The first is decide exactly what you want - set your goals - and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-tracy/i-always-say-there-are-two-things-to-be-successful-the-first-is/) [Brian Tracy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-tracy/) > [You'd be surprised how hard it can often be to translate an action into an idea.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-kraus/you-d-be-surprised-how-hard-it-can-often-be-to-translate-an-action/) [Karl Kraus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-kraus/) > [Gratitude isn't just a feeling, it's an action. Expressing gratitude by writing in a journal, taking a photo, or shooting a video creates a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janice-kaplan/gratitude-isn-t-just-a-feeling-it-s-an-action-expressing-gratitude-by/) [Janice Kaplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janice-kaplan/) > [Nothing is so powerful as an insight into human nature... what compulsions drive a man, what instincts dominate his action. If you know these…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-bernbach/nothing-is-so-powerful-as-an-insight-into-human-nature-what/) [William Bernbach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-bernbach/) > [Every thought I have imprisioned in expression I must free by my deeds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kahlil-gibran/every-thought-i-have-imprisioned-in-expression-i-must-free-by-my-deeds/) [Kahlil Gibran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kahlil-gibran/) > [It took me 20 years to buy an electric typewriter, because I was afraid it would be too sensitive. 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