People on both sides of affirmative action blur self-interest with principled ideology

Evidence

Just as principled opposition to affirmative action may reinforce or be a cover for a desire to retain white racial domination, principled support for affirmative action may similarly reinforce a desire to use public policies to benefit oneself or one’s group. After all, Americans (like most other humans, probably) have historically shown themselves adept at making normative arguments that coincide with their self-interest. There is no reason to suppose that middle-class African Americans are any different from anyone else in this regard. — David Theo Goldberg, John Solomos, A Companion to Racial and Ethnic Studies, 2013

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to the mirror-image-critique problem in political argument, e.g. charges of bad faith aimed both ways over diversity and reparations debates. — connects to: Activists came to believe they themselves were self-interested despite contrary evidence — Nina Eliasoph, Avoiding politics: how Americans…, 1361; Affirmative action controversies expose anxieties about the American dream more than policy mechanics — David Theo Goldberg, John Solomos, A Companion to Racial and Ethnic Studies, 1642