Philadelphia Inquirer senior writer Will Bunch opened a column published on Feb. 3 with a graph which he claims underscores an attack on minority college enrollees. The premise of the column is, I guess, that because 2012 black college enrollment nationwide has dropped from 14.9 percent to 13.3 percent, white racism must be at play. However, the same graph shows that white college enrollees over the same period have decreased from 60 percent to 54.3 percent, which is significantly larger than the black decrease. 

If Bunch had bothered to actually read the graph, he would have seen that Hispanic enrollees increased from 15 percent to 20.3 percent. Also, Asian enrollees increased approximately one percent. 

How does the fact that white enrollees decreased five percent in that time period while minority enrollees increased by a similar number fit his narrative?

Will Bunch is so blindly driven by ideology that facts have no meaning to him. He needs to look at his graph a little closer. One of his favorite rants, and of the Inquirer in general, is “equity.” His graph tells us quite a bit about equity in college enrollment. For instance, Hispanics, which according to the graph constitute 20.3 percent of enrollees, are, according to the 2020 census, 18.7 percent of the population. Asians constitute 7.4 percent of enrollees and 5.9 percent of the population. Blacks are 13.3 percent of enrollees and 12.1 percent of the population. Whites, who according to Critical Race Theory are the oppressors, are 54.3 percent of the enrollees and 57.6 percent of the population. 

Bunch’s equity problem, as far as college enrollees go, has no clothes.

Where is your narrative, Bunch? You are not interested in facts. You are not interested in bringing us together. You are interested in stirring up resentment. Most sentient beings would look at your graph and applaud it. Since 1976, minority enrollment has skyrocketed, while white college participation has significantly decreased. 

It’s right there in front of you, Mr. Bunch: your own numbers undermine your premise. What you care about is tearing us apart.

Wally Nunn is the former Chairman of Delaware County Council and Delaware County Jail Oversight Board Member.