Programs to give preference...

Programs to give preference to certain disadvantaged groups sound good and moral. But more often programs to give preference in the past have been designed to block the admission of certain groups: in America at the best schools for many years prior to the 1960's, Jews and blacks were put on a numerus clausus. Poland before WWII even made Jews at universities sit on special benches during lectures. Most countries had numeral limits on Jewish admissions. Positive affirmative action is designed to do good, not evil. But good for some can be resented as evil by others. And hypocrisy can often be found in the finest of places. The only answer is preference for excellence, and excellence properly defined.
The noted writer and publisher Clifton Fadiman was told at Columbia University many years ago that they could not give him a faculty position because they had already given the "position for Jews" to Lawrence Trilling! This was common enough at one time in our past. I personally during 38 years of university teaching have encountered many unqualified people given faculty position for racial and other identity reasons. I remember, for example, one colleague in Russian history saying that a person of Polish ancestry could not teach Russian history objectively. The Polish applicant as a result was dropped from consideration. The colleague who made this claim had various political positions I would have found objectionable for a faculty member,but his background was not viewed as negatively by others as by me. Sauce for the goose ... etc.