Interest convergence and the maintenance of racial advantage: The case of diversity in higher education

Abstract

One of the major tenets of Critical Race Theory, the interest convergence hypothesis postulates that policies promising improvements for Black Americans are enacted only to the extent they advance White Americans’ interests. We elaborate and update Bell's argument by demonstrating that current diversity commitments in higher education are another example of interest convergence. First, we present empirical and theoretical evidence that ubiquitous approaches to diversity serve the psychological interests of White Americans more than those of Black Americans. Second, we advance a systemic framework for how social psychological processes intersect with normative ideologies in the law and in universities’ operations to facilitate the prioritization of White over Black interests. In so doing, our goal is to illuminate the primacy of White identity and power as fundamental to shaping American society's collective embrace of diversity.