| After the fall of affirmative action, liberals and conservatives want to eliminate benefits for children of alumni. Could their logic lead to reparations?  Photograph by Oleg Albinsky / Getty The practice used by selective colleges and universities of giving preference in admissions to the offspring of alumni has created unlikely political bedfellows, drawing criticism from such disparate sources as the conservative Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch and the progressive Democratic representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. Following the Court’s banning of affirmative action earlier this summer, many see the elimination of legacy admissions as a straightforward way for schools to achieve their stated goals of fostering greater diversity while following the new letter of the law. As Jeannie Suk Gersen writes in a fascinating new exploration of the issue, “Out of necessity, admissions might now be transformed to address the inequalities that make racial diversity difficult to achieve and sustain.” Could ending legacy admissions provide the blueprint for even greater reforms, including those that take into account the history of enslavement and other legal subjugation? This is a moment in which, Gersen suggests, “we could end up with a more frank and substantive discussion about equity.” Support The New Yorker’s award-winning journalism. Subscribe today » | 
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