This Fall, it seems, only 96 African Americans will join the entering class at UCLA, just 2% of the freshmen. That’s the lowest number since 1973, and black alumni, community leaders, faculty members, and some legislators have called for a change in admissions policies. Not for an examination of the problems at high schools with high African American numbers, or review of their curricula, but for an “overhaul of UCLA’s admissions practices.” That’s how an LA Times piece on the issue puts it.

A predictable response, yes, but what is remarkable is just how mendacious is the justification offered. The people pushing the overhaul actually deny that altering the race of the entering class is the aim:

“They also emphasized that although UCLA’s low numbers this year for both African American and Latino freshmen helped spark the changes, it was not clear what effect they would have on those figures. And they said the reforms were not geared specifically at raising those levels. ’In my view, this should not be done — and under California law, cannot be done — to improve our African American admissions numbers, but because it’s desirable to improve our processes overall,’ Abrams said.”

Abrams is the law professor who is now acting Chancellor at UCLA. The best response to his explanation comes from Ward Connerly. It “doesn’t pass the giggle test.”