I posit that it is impossible to fully separate race from life history in a country where race shaped neighborhoods, schools, wealth, policing, health care, and opportunity for generations.

That does not mean schools get to use race as a shortcut.

It means pretending context is race-free is its own fiction.

The hard question is not whether race boxes are legal.

They are not.

The hard question is whether colorblindness requires admissions officers to become history-blind too.

Makes sense when you consider inflation is a wealth transfer from the poor to the rich.

Same. I hope we find out more too, but I’m not pulling my skepticism out of thin air.

The president has publicly called Somali immigrants “garbage” and said Somalia is “not even a country.”

So when a Somali World Cup referee is denied entry with only “vetting concerns” offered publicly, I’m not treating that explanation as automatically credible.

That’s not media propaganda.

That’s context.

To be clear, I’m not judging the hidden facts. I’m judging the known facts:

He was selected by FIFA.
He had a visa.
He had credentials.
He was denied entry with no public explanation beyond “vetting concerns.”

Given this administration’s record, that is enough for me to draw conclusions about the credibility of the explanation.

You’re evaluating the author’s motives. I’m evaluating the administration’s credibility.
Those are two different questions.
I don’t know why this referee was denied. I do know this administration has done enough that I no longer automatically trust unexplained exercises of government power.