AP: In black and white

I found Sunday’s AP article “Blacks largely left out among high-paying jobs” deceptive.

The title states blacks are “left out” as if they are at the door knocking and that door is bared to them. The AP then opted to focus on one man’s perspective as an architect. Mr. Garland stated that he looked around at the architectural college he was attending and “didn’t see many” who looked like him. How many black males did he expect to see in an architectural college? Out of curiosity, I went online to find some statistics which I believe explains why Mr. Garland “didn’t see many” who looked like him: blacks are approximately 13 percent of the American population; of those approximately 75 percent graduate high school; of those approximately 58 percent enroll in college.

What percent of black male college students opt to be an architect vs. some other degreed program? Heck if I know, but we all know Mr. Garland ought not to have been surprised that he “didn’t see many” who looked like him in an architectural college. It appears that 74 percent of all architects are male. Why did the AP not focus on that statistic? I guess it did not fit the narrative they wanted to push.

BEVERLY CAIN

Post Falls