>all people from all ethnicities are equal

All people from all ethnicities are equal in the sense that they deserve an equal oppertunity to succeed. However, that has not happened. Certain ethnic groups (black people) have been systematically disadvantaged. They continue to be under-represented in higher education and over-represented in the prison system. Affirmative action does a good job at getting black people into college, which generally helps a person later in life when they want to get a good job.