The Diversity Delusion: How Race and Gender Pandering Corrupt the University and Undermine Our Culture
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- Author：Heather Mac Donald
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Summary
By the New York Times bestselling author: a provocative account of the attack on the humanities， the rise of intolerance， and the erosion of serious learning
America is in crisis， from the university to the workplace。 Toxic ideas first spread by higher education have undermined humanistic values， fueled intolerance， and widened divisions in our larger culture。 Chaucer， Shakespeare and Milton？ Oppressive。 American history？ Tyranny。 Professors correcting grammar and spelling， or employers hiring by merit？ Racist and sexist。 Students emerge into the working world believing that human beings are defined by their skin color， gender， and sexual preference， and that oppression based on these characteristics is the American experience。 Speech that challenges these campus orthodoxies is silenced with brute force。
The Diversity Delusion argues that the root of this problem is the belief in America’s endemic racism and sexism， a belief that has engendered a metastasizing diversity bureaucracy in society and academia。 Diversity commissars denounce meritocratic standards as discriminatory， enforce hiring quotas， and teach students and adults alike to think of themselves as perpetual victims。 From #MeToo mania that blurs flirtations with criminal acts， to implicit bias and diversity compliance training that sees racism in every interaction， Heather Mac Donald argues that we are creating a nation of narrowed minds， primed for grievance， and that we are putting our competitive edge at risk。
But there is hope in the works of authors， composers， and artists who have long inspired the best in us。 Compiling the author’s decades of research and writing on the subject， The Diversity Delusion calls for a return to the classical liberal pursuits of open-minded inquiry and expression， by which everyone can discover a common humanity。
America is in crisis， from the university to the workplace。 Toxic ideas first spread by higher education have undermined humanistic values， fueled intolerance， and widened divisions in our larger culture。 Chaucer， Shakespeare and Milton？ Oppressive。 American history？ Tyranny。 Professors correcting grammar and spelling， or employers hiring by merit？ Racist and sexist。 Students emerge into the working world believing that human beings are defined by their skin color， gender， and sexual preference， and that oppression based on these characteristics is the American experience。 Speech that challenges these campus orthodoxies is silenced with brute force。
The Diversity Delusion argues that the root of this problem is the belief in America’s endemic racism and sexism， a belief that has engendered a metastasizing diversity bureaucracy in society and academia。 Diversity commissars denounce meritocratic standards as discriminatory， enforce hiring quotas， and teach students and adults alike to think of themselves as perpetual victims。 From #MeToo mania that blurs flirtations with criminal acts， to implicit bias and diversity compliance training that sees racism in every interaction， Heather Mac Donald argues that we are creating a nation of narrowed minds， primed for grievance， and that we are putting our competitive edge at risk。
But there is hope in the works of authors， composers， and artists who have long inspired the best in us。 Compiling the author’s decades of research and writing on the subject， The Diversity Delusion calls for a return to the classical liberal pursuits of open-minded inquiry and expression， by which everyone can discover a common humanity。
Reviews
Robert Foege
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Another great critique of leftist ideas， especially in the university。 Not as good as Douglas Murray's Madness of Crowds。 Another great critique of leftist ideas， especially in the university。 Not as good as Douglas Murray's Madness of Crowds。 。。。more
Brian
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Heather Mac Donald nailed it with this book。
John Edstrom
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Sound position， but a bit more snark and hyperbole than I'd like。 Sound position， but a bit more snark and hyperbole than I'd like。 。。。more
Brandon
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Macdonalds's book aptly shines a spotlight on several of the root issues plaguing American Universities and Higher Institues of Learning。 She acutely chronciles how modern institutional DEI phenomenon have infected the university bureaucracy to such a degree that non-white， non-male students mistakenly believe they cannot function on these campuses of higher learning without consistently feeling like their very being is under assault。 Macdonald dispels a lot of the notions surrounding the Postmo Macdonalds's book aptly shines a spotlight on several of the root issues plaguing American Universities and Higher Institues of Learning。 She acutely chronciles how modern institutional DEI phenomenon have infected the university bureaucracy to such a degree that non-white， non-male students mistakenly believe they cannot function on these campuses of higher learning without consistently feeling like their very being is under assault。 Macdonald dispels a lot of the notions surrounding the Postmodernist， anti-Western， anti-Enlightenment rhetoric espoused by these University bureaucratic machines， using apt analogies backed by sound examples。 The Diversity Delusion is a solid pick up for anyone curious as to the modern state of affairs of the humanities in many of America's top universities。 。。。more
Ray
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The sad part is that most of the people who read this book are already aware of and disgusted with what is happening。 And it’s the ones who won’t read it， that need to the most。
Jurij Fedorov
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Introduction 67，5/10It seems like Heather Mac Donald herself is reading the intro in the audiobook which adds a great energy to the chapter。Part I: Race 15"1。 The Hysterical Campus 16"7，5/10This is about the cancel culture student attacks on campus and about how many teachers are fired because of student complaints。 Even when students are just randomly complaining seemingly for no specific reason universities still apologize and fire teachers。 They just claim it's a racist attack no matter if i Introduction 67，5/10It seems like Heather Mac Donald herself is reading the intro in the audiobook which adds a great energy to the chapter。Part I: Race 15"1。 The Hysterical Campus 16"7，5/10This is about the cancel culture student attacks on campus and about how many teachers are fired because of student complaints。 Even when students are just randomly complaining seemingly for no specific reason universities still apologize and fire teachers。 They just claim it's a racist attack no matter if it's related to race or not。The chapter is good when she tells the story of how she had a lecture at a university and how she had to be escorted out of campus by the police because of a mass student protest that even blocked participants from entering the lecture hall。 It's still not top-tier storytelling as it feels like she rushes to points and misses some beats in her story。 It's not quite clear for example why the police needed to escort her to the police station and what happened next。 What can she even do there？ She often just jumps to points like that。Then she tells a bunch of stories about other similar events and firings and these feel more jarring and short。 Just a bunch of statements。"2。 Elites to Affirmative Action Voters: Drop Dead 52"7/10Another very compact chapter。 This is about affirmative action admissions in California and how it makes sure many Asian and White students can't attend the colleges they apply to。 Colleges break anti-discrimination laws by looking past grades and instead let their reviewers select based on skin color。 No reason is ever given for it… it sorta is just what most of these colleges do。 It's what most of the teachers want too。 It's what university professors fight for。 But it just sorta happens for some reason。 Mac Donald never explains why a university would ideally want 50% Black students。 Maybe because it makes them look good？She should have gone into why race differences exist。 She shows that it's not because of racism or discrimination， but then just stops her explanation here。 This stuff makes the chapter seem unfinished。 But it is a very good intro to the topic and many of these examples are new to me。"3。 Affirmative Disaster 78"8/10A chapter about a Black affirmative action student who can barely write coherent papers。 But in Black History class he at least raises his hand a lot so he gets an A- there and therefore passes his classes overall。 A clear example of a fish out of water。 Mac Donald also uses stats to show that this is very common with affirmative action students and many of them drop out。 It’s still a bit confusing as she doesn’t explain all her points。 But when she writes about single anecdotes she does a great job。"4。 The Microaggression Farce 89"7/10More stories about students who randomly complain about aggression where there is none。 Here I really wanted at least some more research on the topic。 She just tells a bunch of anecdotes， but it's never quite clear that this stuff is or how it works。 Stories are stories。 They illustrate that something is happening， but don't tell us how often it happens or how big a problem it is。Again hard to fully understand who is who and where what is happening。"5。 Are We All Unconscious Racists？ 120"8/10A lot of cases where how cops feel they can't do their job well if they are constantly questioned and have to spend their time and station resources on subliminal racism courses that have no proven effect。 The time and money could be spent on actual cop training that has proven effects。The chapter has quite a few studies and she is very fair in how she presents them as she even presents studies that do find some negative effects vs。 Blacks。 The chapter is super interesting because it relies on actual studies。 She explains why some of these studies are bad and can't be used to conclude that cops are racist。 Like a study where people had to judge what cop utterances were negative。 Apparently Black drivers experienced more of that negativity。 The issue is that it was just some seemingly very neutral words or questions。 Like a cop asking a Black driver about his expired license。 It's not an actual negativity attack， it's just judged like that。 It seems quite obvious that this supposed negativity effect could be caused by the type of cars Black people drive compared to White people。 So more cheap cars and more plain cars with extra stylish car gear to make the car look cool。 If a cop sees such a car he may talk a certain way to the driver。 But they never even controlled for the type of car people drove！ At least not as presented in the book。 That should be the very first theory they should explore and Mac Donald should ask about。 Even before any race， age， gender or hair color or whatever theory。Part II: Gender 154"6。 The Campus Rape Myth 155"8/10What I notice here is that she suddenly returns to campus。 Frankly the campus stuff is less important and interesting as it's just a small part of society and only for some years of your life。 It's not as important as work or private life。 For me a chapter about rape should be about all rape not just the fake campus rape accusations。 Otherwise it feels too narrow in scope。I do think this may be one of the best chapters I've read on the current false rape accusation issue on campuses。 You can persecute rapes on campus。 The outcome may be an expulsion。 And often they don't even demand anything besides the accuser's statement。 This is obviously not how such extremely serious accusations should ever be handled。 It's bafflingly stupid as you very easily could listen to a known liar， punish an innocent person or just overlook an actual case with clear evidence。 Yet Mac Donald shows that very few campus rape cases are ever brought to the police。 And of these very few cases， that are the most serious and clear ones， very few lead to a guilty verdict。 Apparently many of the cases defined as "rape on campus" are not even called rape by the women who experienced it。 It's often just defined as that anyhow in studies and statistics。 In campus trials the term "rape" may even be used to redefine a prior consensual relationship。It's a very fascinating topic。 I do wish we had gotten more info on how these silly campus trials even work。 The Good Wife actually had some episodes with such trials and it was amazing to see how weird the system was。 In that episode the court is a proper kangaroo court and at the end the case gets transferred to a real trial。 As the university just wants it over with， they "randomly" expel the accused after finding hash in his room。 Unfortunately the episode， and TV shows in general， avoid the false rape accusations and instead make them all real cases。 But it could be an interesting topic to explore on TV if someone dares。 Black men getting falsely accused by White women is still okay to show on TV so you could show the campus cases this way。For some it's likely also a plus that the chapter is written by a woman。 Some progressives would dismiss this chapter if written by a man。 But overall I don't see much you could disagree with。 The anecdotes she found are clearly false accusations that are hard to dismiss。 She handpicked them for a reason。"7。 Neo-Victorianism on Campus 185"8/10She points out that the liberal sex norms actually cause a ton of confusion on the issue of sex on campus。 There are no clear borders or rules anymore。 You just guess and assume from case to case。 They are also sexist in how they judge students based on sex。She has a really good case illustrating a false rape accusation。 It is consensual sex between a drunk man and a drunk woman yet the man is expelled。 Mac Donald points out that even though they were both drunk men are supposed to notice it and say no while women have no such obligations。 Not sure why that is， but it's what happened in this case where the sex was 100% consensual - overlooking the drunkenness。 It was just the fact that she was drunk that made the difference even though the guy was drunk too。 And of course such a case would never lead to a guilty verdict in a legit trial so it's curious that colleges can get away with it。 BTW。， personally I think the guy was being very stupid in this case。 Why even risk anything？ Why not get her number and wait till you are sober？ He was clearly drunk and not thinking。 But these cases are nothing new on campuses。 I do think Mac Donald should have been more critical of guys in these situations too。"8。 The Fainting Couch at Columbia 198"8/10Good but short chapter on the mattress girl and her fake rape claim。 This honestly should have been 15 pages longer。 The story itself was a huge deal in media。 It was the number 1 case for the MeToo movement for a while until the truth came out about about the shoddy journalism in the Rolling Stones article。 There is nothing wrong with the chapter though and I’m glad the case is not forgotten as there is a lot of drama here。"9。 Policing Sexual Desire: The #MeToo Movement’s Impossible Premise 207"6，5/10The MeToo movement and feminists just seem to prefer women no matter in what situation or if there is something unfair going on or not。The chapter is about academic victim culture in Silicon Valley， Hollywood and other areas。Part III: The Bureaucracy 225"10。 Multiculti U。 226"6，5/10There are a lot of examples of universities spending millions on diversity workers and instead skimming on teachers。 So you get worse classes， but a ton of hires and groups to focus on minorities， LGBT and women。 Unfortunately this chapter doesn’t center around anecdotes。 So you just see a lot of examples of universities wasting money， but there are not many specific people getting unfairly attacked or punished。 You may get mad when you hear that a big part of your tuition goes to some diversity experts who don’t show up at the university and produce no effect。 But it’s not unfairly harming you or another other single individual in a big way。"11。 How Identity Politics Is Harming the Sciences 250"6，5/10Another pure culture war chapter based on data and specific cases of industry and science prizes using affirmative action。 Not really that super interesting a chapter unless you like the culture war stuff and want to know the basics。 You don’t really need to convince me that identity politics is extremely divisive and destructive。 I know this already from having studied history on a layman level。Basically， it’s a very good chapter if you seek this info。 To me it’s just too much culture war stuff and not enough social science。 I am reading these books to explore some new social science research， not just to explore a basic convincing argument。"12。 Scandal Erupts Over the Promotion of Bourgeois Behavior 267"6，5/10Amy Wax wrote an op-ed calling for a stronger focus on upper class culture。 2 universities and many organizations then call her racist， hateful， bigotted and whatnot。 The chapter itself just presents another word fight in prestigious papers and via university statements。 It’s not “real” and no one gets punished for real。 Sure， writing a very tame op-ed and then being called racist by big shots is not fun and universities need to stop doing that。 But if you are just called names by your dean it’s not really a huge thing。 If the book had been written a few years later she could have written about how Noah Carl or Bo Winegard actually got fired from their jobs for writing about research that the universities didn’t agree with ideologically。 That would have been an amazing chapter about unfairness。Part IV: The Purpose of the University 278"13。 The Humanities and Us 279"6，5/10About universities now cancelling courses on Western history and Western culture or even courses that focus on White artists like Shakespeare and Mozart。 Not really something that is that interesting to read about， but it’s a hugely important topic nonetheless。 Mac Donald says that classic literature is crucial and a higher form of art。 For me this argument is a bit unconvincing。 I’m not really sure why Shakespeare should be considered as a better writer than any other top play writer。 His plays are actually quite outdated， slow， intellectually basic and overly complicated。 Of course he shouldn’t be cancelled just for being White。 But while cancelling Mozart is a huge issue there are White writers and philosophers who are just famous for being famous。"14。 Great Courses， Great Profits 294"7，5/10I'm running out of space in my Goodreads review。This chapter is great。 It's about The Great Courses and how they still create courses on subjects that are banned from many universities as they involve White people and European cultures。 In my opinion The Great Courses do fulfill this need to some degree。 Mac Donald says that since parents buy these courses it shows that parents don't care about the education of their kids to the same degree as their own education。I'm still critical of some of her arguments。 In my experience quite a few TGC courses are very much left-wing propaganda and not just academic topics。 There are several history lectures focused on feminism for example。 Even when it feels completely out of place。 One lecture series has a female professor refer to modern feminist students， to modern feminism and modern issues as the main analysis to Middle Age history。 That's not good or educational。 From what I see TGC for does want to aim for the critical race theory and feminism market even when they sell courses unrelated to race and gender。 But Mac Donald is right in that the private market to some degree does create good lectures universities now refuse to let their professors write about。"15。 The True Purpose of the University 314"7/10Halloween costume case at Yale where teachers were kicked out for saying that students should be able to decide what costumes to wear instead of the university creating laws against "cultural appropriation"。"16。 From Culture to Cupcakes 323"6/10More of the same。 Berkeley campus culture war stupidity。"My final opinion on the book"。。。 posted as a comment to this review as Goodreads doesn't allow long reviews。 Not my fault！ 。。。more
Courtney Elise
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Excellent analysis with data to back up the analysis。 Looking at things objectively， MacDonald uses facts to support her arguments。 Wish I had read this sooner。
Patricia Chen
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The author elaborates her own opinions on several events including race， sexuality， etc。 happened in America。 Although I’m not fully agree her point of view， it’s nice to understand how other people think so we could communicate and come to an agreement or understanding。 Nowadays with social media’s influences， people are much more biased and not willing to communicate， understand each other。 There are several different cultures in America， without understanding each other， crisis is gonna happe The author elaborates her own opinions on several events including race， sexuality， etc。 happened in America。 Although I’m not fully agree her point of view， it’s nice to understand how other people think so we could communicate and come to an agreement or understanding。 Nowadays with social media’s influences， people are much more biased and not willing to communicate， understand each other。 There are several different cultures in America， without understanding each other， crisis is gonna happen more frequently and becomes disaster。 。。。more
Greg Fournier
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I have had this book on my list for quite some time and， overall， am glad to have read it。 I agree with many of the substantive critiques Mac Donald makes in here， which made it much easier to overlook her bluntness and sometimes hyperbolic writing style。 Because I agree with many of her opinions on university culture， I deeply enjoyed Mac Donald’s indictment of the pained emphasis on diversity and inclusion that colleges often express to the detriment of traditional educational prerogatives。 Ye I have had this book on my list for quite some time and， overall， am glad to have read it。 I agree with many of the substantive critiques Mac Donald makes in here， which made it much easier to overlook her bluntness and sometimes hyperbolic writing style。 Because I agree with many of her opinions on university culture， I deeply enjoyed Mac Donald’s indictment of the pained emphasis on diversity and inclusion that colleges often express to the detriment of traditional educational prerogatives。 Yet if I were unconvinced of Mac Donald’s point of view before reading her book， my doubts about her positions would only be reinforced。 She often takes a few anecdotes about college student protests and makes them seem commonplace。 It’s certainly true that these events happen more now than they did， say， ten years ago， but having just graduated from a college that Mac Donald mentions a few times （University of Massachusetts）， I can attest that these events weren’t as pervasive as Mac Donald makes them out to be。 Rather， the attitudes and intellectual orientation that Mac Donald correctly points out—that college students generally reject any notion of objective beauty in ancient works of art or literature， that student associations often issue preposterous statements in response to minor inconveniences， and that professors and administrators alike reinforce the notion that the Western， white male patriarchy is responsible for every evil in the world—shows up more often than a student would like。 If Mac Donald is trying to convince readers to her left that the diversity apologists are overtaking the university—and， further， that that’s a bad thing—she could start by calling it something other than a “delusion。” 。。。more
Jonathan Koan
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In this short yet deep book， Heather MacDonald tackles several topics such as Affirmative Action， Campus Rape Culture， Campus Bureaucracy， and the Purpose of the University。 Some of her topics are handled well， while others are lackluster。The best part of the book， in my opinion， is the final section， "Purpose of the University"， where Mac Donald examines what the role of the University should be， what types of literature and history it should be teaching， and examples where Universities are not In this short yet deep book， Heather MacDonald tackles several topics such as Affirmative Action， Campus Rape Culture， Campus Bureaucracy， and the Purpose of the University。 Some of her topics are handled well， while others are lackluster。The best part of the book， in my opinion， is the final section， "Purpose of the University"， where Mac Donald examines what the role of the University should be， what types of literature and history it should be teaching， and examples where Universities are not following this norm。 Her chapter on the "Great Courses" is worth the price of the book alone。 I've been very frustrated with the traditional claim that we need to read the classics， but whenever I push back and ask why to english teachers， professors， and school headmasters， I never get a solid answer。 Mac Donald is finally able to answer that question， with many examples and clear arguments。The other section of the book that I thought was truly solid was the section on Gender， particularly her discussions of campus rape。 She goes through logical succession of if/when rape occurs， why it occurs， and avenues that college men and women can take to stop the problem。 Mac Donald is able to combine a biting indictment of all sides of the problem while still having a somewhat sypathetic tone at times。Her sections on the "Bureaucracy" and "Affirmative Action" were well researched and had some interesting points。 Unfortunately， I got lost in Mac Donald's argument often and had trouble following her train of thought。 There were a few times where her indictments of students and administrations were a little too close to being insults for my taste。 Nonetheless， Mac Donald makes some good points when she is essentially stating here that the problem with universities lies not with it's professors directly， but rather with a weak administration and an entitled student body。 The best part of these sections is that she provides a prescription in order to help make minority students more competitive in the college life， and that that falls in fixing high school education， not in lowering standards of colleges。This is more of a pet peeve， but there are only roughly 13 pages of notes in the back of the book， with only 137 total references。 That's less than 1 per page。 While a lot of the book is argument， there were more than 137 quotes and facts in the book， and should have been at least doubled or tripled。 Mac Donald always states within the text where she got a fact， quote， or figure， but doesn't always include that in the notes section， which really bothers me。Overall， I thought this was a very good and well argued book。 I have some problems with the layout and think certain sections should have been longer where other sections could have been shorter。 But this was a good read and is very eye opening。 8。8 out of 10。 。。。more
Bob Manning
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Another well-researched and informative book from Heather McDonald。 It highlights how woke our university campuses have become， how many universities have totally changed their priorities away from learning， and how this is impacting the students。 I highly recommend this book to anyone who has children going to college in the next few years。
Steve
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MacDonald takes the devil's advocate position on nearly all aspects of diversity and gender in higher education。 She follows the older argument between access and equity that appeared in higher education until recently。 She does raise concerns that to be globally competitive the US needs to focus more on academic production and research and less of equity issues。 MacDonald takes the devil's advocate position on nearly all aspects of diversity and gender in higher education。 She follows the older argument between access and equity that appeared in higher education until recently。 She does raise concerns that to be globally competitive the US needs to focus more on academic production and research and less of equity issues。 。。。more
Jake C
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I am in two minds about this book。 On the one hand， I agree with its core tenants and I think the author delivers some very articulate and fact-driven insight; on the other， I think she drifts at too many points from measured argument into 'rant'。 There are a few too many vitriolic adjectives （so-and-so "disgorged" an opinion）。 Whilst this adversarial style of writing makes the book fun to read， it brings with it an edge of partisanship。 Worse， the writing style left me suspicious that she might I am in two minds about this book。 On the one hand， I agree with its core tenants and I think the author delivers some very articulate and fact-driven insight; on the other， I think she drifts at too many points from measured argument into 'rant'。 There are a few too many vitriolic adjectives （so-and-so "disgorged" an opinion）。 Whilst this adversarial style of writing makes the book fun to read， it brings with it an edge of partisanship。 Worse， the writing style left me suspicious that she might be cherry picking some of her supporting facts， although I was unable to put my finger on exactly which cherries were being picked。If the book had been written with a little more equanimity， and if it had at least gestured towards a solution， I think it would be much more potent。 As it stands， I think the tone of the book caters for an audience that is already well subscribed to the central message。 It is therefore less persuasive than its eloquent rhetoric would make it seem。 That is a crying shame， because I think the topic is demonstrably important and the author absolutely on to something。 。。。more
Leann Bergan
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Mac Donald writing is very entertaining， as she is a good writer。 Unfortunately， as I expected， Mac Donald is extremely one sided in her own biases but does contribute good information backed by statistics and evidence。 It’s always good to look at both sides of things。 When Mac Donald speaks about Rape Culture， I couldn’t agree with most of what she spoke of。 She really dismissed rape victims and took a one sided view at the rape crisis， not acknowledging that rape actually happens on campus。 Th Mac Donald writing is very entertaining， as she is a good writer。 Unfortunately， as I expected， Mac Donald is extremely one sided in her own biases but does contribute good information backed by statistics and evidence。 It’s always good to look at both sides of things。 When Mac Donald speaks about Rape Culture， I couldn’t agree with most of what she spoke of。 She really dismissed rape victims and took a one sided view at the rape crisis， not acknowledging that rape actually happens on campus。 This section could be triggering to those who have actually experienced such assault。 。。。more
Julie
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Heather MacDonald has a lot of good ideas， and this book is worth reading。The first part， about affirmative action， makes a lot of good points but is a bit of a slog （only a bit）。 she hammers the points home a little too much， and it could be slightly shorter。 The second part， however， was my favorite。 She tackles campus rape in a really interesting way and I think makes a lot of compelling points。 That was the best part of the book by far for me。She lost me a bit on the last part （the great cou Heather MacDonald has a lot of good ideas， and this book is worth reading。The first part， about affirmative action， makes a lot of good points but is a bit of a slog （only a bit）。 she hammers the points home a little too much， and it could be slightly shorter。 The second part， however， was my favorite。 She tackles campus rape in a really interesting way and I think makes a lot of compelling points。 That was the best part of the book by far for me。She lost me a bit on the last part （the great courses）， and I think it probably could have ended sooner。 I take the point about classical humanities and learning but I don't know that it needed that much on it。 Overall a really thought provoking and idea-challenging book that I'd recommend。 。。。more
Leib Mitchell
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Book Review3/5 starsRacism=Phlogiston of the Modern LeftOf the book: ~240 pages of prose16 chaptersAverage= 15 pps/ chapter; Range: 6-26Part I （Race）= 106pps （44%）Part II （Gender）= 54pps （23%）Part III（Bureaucracy）= 40pps （20%）Part IV（Purpose of University）= 38pps （16%） ***First problem is that it was written 3 years ago mainly about events that happened 5 years before that。 And， it was cobbled together from a lot of previously written articles for national Review / the New York Times / City Jour Book Review3/5 starsRacism=Phlogiston of the Modern LeftOf the book: ~240 pages of prose16 chaptersAverage= 15 pps/ chapter; Range: 6-26Part I （Race）= 106pps （44%）Part II （Gender）= 54pps （23%）Part III（Bureaucracy）= 40pps （20%）Part IV（Purpose of University）= 38pps （16%） ***First problem is that it was written 3 years ago mainly about events that happened 5 years before that。 And， it was cobbled together from a lot of previously written articles for national Review / the New York Times / City Journal。 You can get away with remaking jazz standards over and over again， but that's probably not the best choice with current events。 As a compilation of specific incidents that have happened （with little to no mechanism of action）， the book has the feeling of reading a table of boiling points or mean activity coefficients。 ***Second problem is that the book doesn't appear to provide any systemic explanation of why this is what it is。 For that， I could recommend at least three better books: 1。 "The Coddling of the American Mind。" Haidt/Lukianoff。 The upshot is that when you live in an environment that is comfortable and easy， what is bad keeps getting defined down to smaller and smaller things。 （The "princess with the pea under her nine mattresses" story。） 2。 "The True Believer。" Eric Hoffer。 Mass movements are interchangeable， and there's always somebody somewhere looking for a bunch of losers to use as a cudgel with which to express their grievance--which may not even have anything to do with the losers that they are using。 And in this case， the old is the new。 （Freud has said somewhere or the other that sexual strategizing by reproductive losers is the fodder for Mass movements。 Fine looking white ladies at Black Lives Matter movements have never even had a black boyfriend/girlfriend。 Have no fear， though， if you're a black guy using said rallies as hunting grounds for a White Baby Elephants。） 3。 "Human Diversity" by Charles Murray。 He details the way that intelligence varies along racial / gender / other axes。******* I think I'm going to have to give these types of books a rest， because even if we take the author at her word （and it is safe to do this， because many other books have independently established the inanity of United States academia）。。。 My ultimate question is: "What does any of this mean？" I'm just finishing a very long history book about the carnage and slaughter in the last century， and I already know the answer: Not much。 Communism was something that was invented and developed in Western universities， and the end result is that many tens of millions of people ended up slaughtered and losing their lives for something that was demonstrably extremely stupid。 And really， there was no rhyme or any reason。 And life went on。 And people are setting themselves up to make the same mistakes all over again。 （Turning former neighbors into bitter enemies with all of the fallout that ensues。） So， now what？ All of the Sri Lankan Civil War was some people somewhere being set up to hate each other and encouraged/provoked/impelled by their Chattering Classes。 And the decades-long war happened。 And 150K people died （out of a population of 21。8m）。 And life went on。 So， the country （the United States） takes its place on the Stage of The Farce。。。。。 slowly tears itself apart。。。。。and then something else gets the chance to come along and repeat the same mistakes。 It is not unknown that some country somewhere is affluent， and that affluence generates self-indulgence and a "fat and kicked" country。 It's the answer to Benjamin Franklin's observation "A republic， if you can keep it。" Such is the Flux Of History。 （I'm working on sending my kids over to Israel。 Jews have an excellent track record of fending off this type of stupidity， and are a very long lived civilization。） All of what MacDonald talks about has been known for a very long time， and that has been stated by Eric Hoffer。 （"The authorities either ignore him or use mild methods to muzzle him。 Thus imperceptibly the man of words undermines established institutions， discredits those in power， weakens prevailing beliefs and loyalties， and sets the stage for the rise of a mass movement。"）Maybe my philosophical questions are something like: 1。 Do societies have a natural lifetime？ Maybe trying to look at case-by-case problems / symptoms of problems （it doesn't really matter which） is an exercise in futility for the same reason that a person who eats the healthiest food known to man is still ultimately going to die。 Fixing every one of his symptoms and possibly even extending his natural life a little bit doesn't change the fact that ultimately he's going to die。 So。。。。。 for a person watching a dying society， the events are both simultaneously remarkable and unremarkable （if that makes sense）。 2。 Is what MacDonald describes typical？ Claremont college/ nearly all of these settings are in California。 （First red flag。） The second red flag is that most of these places are liberal arts institutions， which are nowhere on this planet。 There are 1350 students at Claremont。 （The same number as were in my high school， 25 years ago in a town of 23，000 people。） 3。 It has been known for a long time about self-generated/codependent opposites。 Chinese philosophers have talked about yin and yang for thousands of years。 Moses Mendelssohn （Liberal） and The Vilna Gaon（Ultra-orthodox） Jews were born at the exact same moment-- and the existence of one makes no sense without the other。 So， for all of these narcissistic left-wing psychopaths that are the far left on University campuses， I wonder what counter movement are they giving birth to？ 4。 "People who bite the hand that feeds them usually lick the boot that kicks them。" I REALLY hate left-wing academics， and in some way watching them grovel/meekly accept other abuse in front of/ from a bunch of people who have never filled out a job application and have absolutely no life experience （i。e。， their student body） makes me feel something that's a little bit more than schadenfreude。 The only thing that would be better would be watching Qinshihuang come back to life and boil half of them in oil and draw and quarter the other half。 （That was the way he did with mouthy/unproductive academics。 And China is still with us 23 centuries later。） 5。 It's only White/American/Western European people that love ethnic masochism so much that they create and finance the instruments of their torture （i。e。， the academy）。 No conversation that has anything even close to a passing resemblance of this has ever been had in China / Japan / Korea。 Am I witnessing some type of natural selection/Darwin Award in effect？ ******* Heather MacDonald pulls no punches when she makes factual observations on her disfavorite topic （lower black IQ/ other pathologies）。 -75% of apprehended shoplifters in Chesterfield Mall with black， even though they are 2。6% of the population。 -Black males are 42% of all cop killers but 6% of the national population。 -The diversity infrastructure of a lot of these Fortune 500 companies is putting lipstick on a pig。 It wouldn't matter how much recruitment effort they made: There just are not enough competitively qualified black candidates to fill these jobs。 （p。96）。******* Chapter summaries （along with better/other discussions of the central topic of the chapter）: 1。 Academic Insanity。 （Pick any day from Breitbart， New York Post or National Review。） 2 AND 3。 Affirmative Action MismatchRichard Sanders/Taylor。 "Mismatch" Sowell。 "Affirmative Action Around the World。" 4。 Microaggressions。 （No references， because that topic is too stupid for me to even waste time reading a New York Times article about it。 "Higher Superstition" by Levitt / Gross is an example about academic concerted efforts at developing the newest stupid idea， although it was published earlier than the birth of "microaggressions。"） 5。 Implicit Bias。 Behavioral Realism。 George Soros。 （Malcolm Gladwell。 "Blink。"） The aforementioned are specific cases of stupid ideas from academia spelling over into the real world， with deleterious consequences。 （Heather MacDonald。 "The Burden of Bad Ideas。"） A more general case of the same。 6。 Campus rape （aka。。。。"post-coital second thoughts"） is one among any other of a number of crises that could be manufactured with excessively broad / meaningless statistical categories。 The impetus is political and not empirical。 There are also unanswered questions about the wisdom of: a。 Going to a frat house; b。 Shaking your cooter in the face of everyone there; c。 Drinking until you pass out; d。 Being mystified that you woke up with an itchy bottom and a funny taste in your mouth。 7。 Campus rape tribunals are the new kangaroo courts。 （79 judges have ruled against the rape tribunal courts。） 8。 Exploration of obstructive bureaucracy generated as a result of the manufactured Campus Rape Hysteria。 （This was written before the manufacturing of Transgender and-or Covid Hysteria， and it seems likely that Crisis Manufacturing possibly may not have been known to every human being in the world by that point。） Psychotic Emma Sulkowicz makes a cameo。 9。 Asks those on the MeToo hashtag reason to pick one logically inconsistent position or another。 EITHER gender is socially constructed， and therefore it doesn't make any sense to account for the male libido。 OR You do take into account the male libido， in which case there really are two separate genders。 10。 There is no way that One Somebody can spend Another Somebody's money that will turn out right。 And that explains the ballooning of University Diversity Bureaucracy at the expense of traditional research functions of university--and even within the context of state budget cuts。 11。 The Diversity Bureaucracy is starting to degenerate STEM quality。 12。 Suggesting that there is any objective truth must be racist， and therefore √16=4 is an expression of white supremacy。 Details of the Amy Wax controversy。 13。 Shakespeare and Chaucer can't be included in English degrees at the UCLA because they are obvious manifestations of white supremacy。 Mozart， too。 14。 Things that people from Humanities Departments are interested in are not of interest to people who live in the real world。 （Big surprise there！） On the other hand， people have found ways to monetize interest in the classics and history in the real world--the exact same things that a lot of California Universities won't teach because they are "racist。" 15。/16。 1，001st and 1，002 iteration of the University as the number one state subsidized employer of Professional Victimologists/Race Grievance Hustlers。 *******New vocabulary: SolecismBentham's PanopticonIn loco parentisPace= "contrary to the opinion of。。。。" *******Verdict， not recommended at much more than the price of $1。 。。。more
Catherine Miele
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This book should be required reading for ALL faculty and administrators on US campuses。 I literally read it in one sitting - a rarity for me to do with a non-fiction book。MacDonald points out that Universities such as Yale and UCLA are the safest spot for minority students and women in the world， yet they are often accused of permitting horrible crimes against each group。 Mac Donald skewers the left’s arguments for more racial and gender-based diversity on campuses。 Liberal agendas and viewpoint This book should be required reading for ALL faculty and administrators on US campuses。 I literally read it in one sitting - a rarity for me to do with a non-fiction book。MacDonald points out that Universities such as Yale and UCLA are the safest spot for minority students and women in the world， yet they are often accused of permitting horrible crimes against each group。 Mac Donald skewers the left’s arguments for more racial and gender-based diversity on campuses。 Liberal agendas and viewpoints are shoved down the throats of young impressionable kids。 Most of the kids I talk to about such forced indoctrination just "get through it。" That said， too many kids believe this type of "training" is the real truth。 Heather points out the absurdity of the overwhelming numbers of liberal professors and their sanctioning of the victim mentality such as "safe spaces。" Everyone should read this book， especially those with kids ready for college。 。。。more
Jill
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3。5 stars。 My conservative brother asked me to read this book in what I assume was an attempt to provide a course correction to my liberalness—that is， liberalness in his point of view， since I consider myself a moderate。 But then again， from Team Conservative， everyone looks like a liberal。 （I agreed to read this if he would read one of Steven Pinker’s latest books， because they offer a counterbalance to my brother’s view that the world is on an unstoppable slide toward chaos， hedonism， and vio 3。5 stars。 My conservative brother asked me to read this book in what I assume was an attempt to provide a course correction to my liberalness—that is， liberalness in his point of view， since I consider myself a moderate。 But then again， from Team Conservative， everyone looks like a liberal。 （I agreed to read this if he would read one of Steven Pinker’s latest books， because they offer a counterbalance to my brother’s view that the world is on an unstoppable slide toward chaos， hedonism， and violence， a view I find endemic among many conservatives。） It took me a while to get through this book。 I would pick it up， read a few pages， then move on to other reading。 It wasn’t because I disliked the book or the topic necessarily， but sometimes I wearied of the outrage and criticism on every page。I thought Mac Donald had a lot of good points to make。 One comment early in the book stuck with me—something’s wrong if a conservative speaker needs a police escort just to make an appearance on a college campus。 U。S。 colleges served up plenty of fodder for Mac Donald to make her case that there has been a decline in serious studies to make way for courses in obscure gender and race topics。 She also blasted quotas and policies that lower standards in an effort to put more Black and Brown students in seats alongside their White and Asian counterparts。 This diversity push extends toward faculty positions as well。 I agreed with her belief that the purpose of college is to expose students to the best that human history has to offer， and we shouldn’t get hung up on the gender， sexuality， or skin color of who created a piece of music or literature。 In addition， she made good points about a hookup culture on campus and university faculty’s inane attitudes toward sex for creating a lot of confusion around the issue of rape。 However， I had a nagging feeling the whole time I was reading the book—like I was only getting part of the story。 And it started to sound like a lot of hysteria about hysteria—in other words， conservative hysteria about university diversity hysteria。 It seems reasonable to suggest that the size of university diversity departments should be reduced， maybe even drastically。 But eliminated all together？ Surely， there is some value in such departments since， after all， college populations are pretty diverse， especially when you include foreign students。 Mac Donald groused that such departments must keep diversity statistics for the government—is it really so bad to know the racial makeup of the college population and how those numbers are changing？ Surely， Mac Donald herself relied on such statistics to write her book。 And if these departments recruit Black and Hispanic students or sponsor clubs for minority students， where they might find some comfort in being with others like themselves， I don’t think that’s terrible。 Although I don’t believe Mac Donald is a racist， her attitude toward Black and Hispanic students was harsh。 She seems to believe the vast majority of these students are unmotivated laggards who will can’t compete in the real world without affirmative action。 This seemed like an overly broad and unfair depiction。 Just from my own view and experience， I have dealt with minority professionals of all kinds and have generally found no difference in performance and knowledge between them and their White counterparts。 And although I agree that there is way too much attention， especially lately， on racism as a cause of Blacks’ lagging progress in many areas， I think Mac Donald downplayed racism too much， almost to the point of nonexistence。 While Mac Donald accuses the left of wanting to portray Blacks as beaten-down victims of racism， it seems odd that she made almost no mention of Black progress over the past few decades。 While certainly affirmative action has helped in these areas， it has its limits and is no guarantee of any successful outcome。 No student， no matter what their color， can graduate from college without putting in some work。I didn’t have any personal experience with any of the universities， their departments， or specific instances that Mac Donald describes in her book。 But I was a bit familiar with Girls Who Code， because I was looking into it for my daughter。 It seemed like a worthwhile organization， but Mac Donald dismissed it as overhyped （according to who？） and having little effect。Girls Who Code was mentioned just in passing， but it made me think。 Sure， maybe Girls Who Code hasn’t had a noticeable effect in the whole big world of coding， but organizations like this—and， indeed， most nonprofits focused on promoting diversity--are not made for big results。 Each of them is like one person chipping at an iceberg with an ice pick。 At first， you can’t notice anything different about the iceberg， but day after day， if the person kept chipping， you start to see a dent growing bigger and bigger。 It’s thousands of organizations like this that， over decades， have made a difference and brought about progress for minority groups， little by little。 They may not be perfect， but they deserve some respect。 They deserve credit for caring， for trying。Efforts to get more Black and Hispanic kids to college can be taken too far， and we don’t want to lower college standards。 But the goal is not a bad one。 Mac Donald was right to point out that some minority students need to change their attitudes and adopt a better work ethic if they want to succeed at college。 But she offered no solutions on how we as a society could encourage greater scholarship among Blacks and Hispanics。 The assumption is that there is nothing as a society that we should do—it is up to a minority student to find the money， put in the work， and overcome obstacles that their richer White counterparts often don’t face （yes， racism， but more importantly， financial， educational， cultural， and familial）。 Perhaps there is a middle ground between idealized rugged American individualism and handholding affirmative action。And here’s a thought—maybe the majority of minority students on college campuses aren’t sitting around obsessing about the latest classroom microaggression。 The picture that Mac Donald paints of a student population who cares more about a Black Lives Matter protest than a Shakespeare class certainly applies to some， but not to all。 Maybe most minority students are simply trying to get through the day and just want to enjoy college， study a subject that interests them， and get a decent job， like the White kids sitting next to them。Despite her brilliance， Mac Donald cannot quite escape the tired pitfalls of conservative intellectual thought in this country， which have only worsened under the infantilism of Donald Trump and his aggrieved devotees。 The liberals-are-ruining-everything mantra gets old， and sounds like the conservative version of whiny victimhood。 In the end， I felt like Mac Donald pointed out some very crucial issues， and she is an excellent writer—but the whole book felt too simplistic。 I would have enjoyed the topic better in the hands of an investigative journalist who could have presented a more well-rounded picture。 。。。more
Sara
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If you appreciate critical thinking and enjoy knowing the true facts beyond the narratives， then this book is for you。 It is enlightening and is a must-read for parents sending their children off to college。
Paul
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This was a very informative book about the current trends at many prominent American universities。 I do wish there was more on what can be done to correct those trends。
Katie Reader Bear
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Excellent well researched book。 Recommend for anyone interested in the nuances of the vey complex issues of race and gender。
Daniëlle Van den Brink
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“If confronting the need to change behavior is punishable “hate speech，” it is hard to see how the country can resolve its social problems。”Mac Donald discusses how universities in America have changed under newly upheld values。 Universities are eager to prove themselves to be diverse and "safe"。 Though these values themselves are quite important， what is done to strive for them is anything but progressive in terms of their function as a university and what they seek to achieve。 Positive discrim “If confronting the need to change behavior is punishable “hate speech，” it is hard to see how the country can resolve its social problems。”Mac Donald discusses how universities in America have changed under newly upheld values。 Universities are eager to prove themselves to be diverse and "safe"。 Though these values themselves are quite important， what is done to strive for them is anything but progressive in terms of their function as a university and what they seek to achieve。 Positive discrimination is applied at the door when selecting candidates and pops up again when women make unfounded claims of men abusing them。 Curriculums also suffer， as teachers are forced to gloss their material to minimize students getting triggered or having to deal with not being up to the level of a course。 Diversity and racial bias trainings are becoming mandatory for staff， just as students have to follow a first-year course on diversity。 Mac Donald explores what they measures do， whether they are at all desirable and bring about what they are made to do and what this means for the future of academia。 A very insightful read that shows we can have such good intentions but acting on them to an extreme often pulls us back rather than forward。 Postive discrimination is an excellent example。 I have long disagreed with its use in any context but do understand that there are inequalities we need to bridge。 Heather Mac Donald makes an excellent case for why it does more harm than good。 Black students are admitted to universities with a lower SAT score and very often fail to stay in the program because the level is too high。 Some students suffer immensely from the blow of not being able to got through a university course that they were admitted to and do not recover in the sense that they live up to their potential at a lower level。 According to Mac Donald， the lack of diversity in universities should not correct by lower academic standards。 Instead， we should look at reports of academic achievements of minority group students。 For example， do they have access to the same level of secondary education as whites？As a teacher in the Arts， Mac Donald pleads for people to stop glossing literature reading list and materials。 Some faculties are taking works by Chaucer， Shakespeare and Milton off of their reading list because of their outdated views that offend students and should no longer hold a place in the Arts curriculum。 I find this outragious。 University is the playground of thought。 It should be the one place where anything and everything is up for discussion。 Do I agree with everything written？ Certainly not， but Mac Donald makes a very convincing case for her view on how things are progressing。 Or， not progressing。 I would recommend this to anyone who is interested in keeping our minds open， our opportunities fair and our universities competitive and functioning as they should。 。。。more
Kris
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Here Mac Donald mostly complains about the problem。 There's lots of examples of the absurdity of intersectionality and how it plays out in academia today。 I enjoyed her biting humor and sarcasm。 But there's no solutions to the problem。 This book could have been so much more。 Quote: “The need to plumb the unconscious to explain ongoing racial gaps arises for one reason: It is taboo in universities and mainstream society to acknowledge intergroup differences in interests， abilities， cultural value Here Mac Donald mostly complains about the problem。 There's lots of examples of the absurdity of intersectionality and how it plays out in academia today。 I enjoyed her biting humor and sarcasm。 But there's no solutions to the problem。 This book could have been so much more。 Quote: “The need to plumb the unconscious to explain ongoing racial gaps arises for one reason: It is taboo in universities and mainstream society to acknowledge intergroup differences in interests， abilities， cultural values， or family structure that might produce socioeconomic disparities。”Her other book is: The War on Cops: How the New Attack on Law and Order Makes Everyone Less Safe。Related books about intersectionality and college campuses:--The Madness of Crowds: Gender， Race and Identity--Cynical Theories: How Activist Scholarship Made Everything about Race， Gender， and Identity—and Why This Harms Everybody--Suicide of the West: How the Rebirth of Tribalism， Populism， Nationalism， and Identity Politics Is Destroying American Democracy--The Coddling of the American Mind: How Good Intentions and Bad Ideas Are Setting Up a Generation for FailureRelated books on similar trends:--The Decadent Society: How We Became the Victims of Our Own Success--Against Empathy: The Case for Rational Compassion--Sex Matters: How Modern Feminism Lost Touch with Science， Love， and Common Sense--Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business 。。。more
Gabriel Kaufman
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Heather Mac Donald has masterfully exposed the lunacy at our Institutions of higher learning。 What used to be a bastion for the worlds greatest treasures， have become a camp for indoctrination and licentious behavior。 Although Mac Donald may come across as harsh at some points throughout her book， she makes one thing perfectly clear: she loves Western Civilization， and she will not let it die without a fight。If nothing else， this book will make you thirst for true knowledge。
Renee
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This was an excellent overview of the application of postmodernism and the philosophy of deconstruction and how it has shapes the culture， education and work environment and how it is now changing the politics。 Very insightful。I did listen to the audiobook version and my ears wasn't prepared for the numbers of F bomb in the first few chapter （ they were not the authors words but her writing others peoples words）。 Don't let that stop you from reading this book， the facts shared here are well pres This was an excellent overview of the application of postmodernism and the philosophy of deconstruction and how it has shapes the culture， education and work environment and how it is now changing the politics。 Very insightful。I did listen to the audiobook version and my ears wasn't prepared for the numbers of F bomb in the first few chapter （ they were not the authors words but her writing others peoples words）。 Don't let that stop you from reading this book， the facts shared here are well presented 。。。more
Richard Bicknase
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There is some helpful information in this book。 However， I found the book to be uneven in tone and in its quality in presenting its arguments。 I also do not think the book in its current presentation will change many minds regarding the topic。
Isabelle Delisle
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There are questions worth asking。 Some of them should be asked if we even are to find evidence-based solutions to inclusion issues。 Some are questions that one would hope to ask and get data on without being assumed a racist or a sexist。 Unfortunately， Mac Donald sets out to answer those questions with much anger， anecdotal evidence， unpublished papers and appeals to some sort of “common” sense that is far from obvious。 One leaves this book hungry for cool heads and proper science。
Joey Lee
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Macdonald raising interesting points， but in my opinion does not present the information in way that is particularly persuasive way。 A much better read on this topic is Coddling of the American Mind by Jonathan Haidt。
Maria
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Thought provoking。
Varapanyo Bhikkhu
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