Kilson Is 'Deliberately Lying' About Blacks, Guinier Claims

An article that appeared yesterday in the Boston Globe magazine sparked another in the series of debates between Martin L. Kilson, professor of Government, and Ewart Guinier '33, chairman of the Afro-American Studies Department.

Guinier said yesterday that Kilson is "deliberately lying" to promote the acceptance of fewer freshman blacks into American colleges.

Kilson said yesterday that because blacks admitted to Harvard have SAT scores that average 80 to 100 points lower than the Harvard median and their Harvard academic performance is sub-par compared to whites, black admissions standards should be tightened and fewer freshman blacks admitted.

No Substantive Difference

Guinier said data provided by the Harvard and Radcliffe admissions departments that appeared in the June 1973 issue of the Harvard Bulletin showed no substantive differences between black and white students on board scores and grade point averages.

"Anyone who in the face of those facts makes statements about the low qualification or achievement of blacks is deliberately lying for the purpose of facilitating the policy of a lower number of blacks being admitted to colleges," Guinier said.

Kilson replied, "I don't know what remark. My figures [that appeared in the Bulletin] are the official figures. It's not a lie to interpret those figures."

"I'm certain Dr. Guinier is closer to the heartbeat of blacks. My aim is to redefine the education of the black heartbeat towards success in American society," Kilson added.

"Education is the key to manipulation of the power structure in America. There is no other answer to the happiness and satisfaction of blacks," he said.

Kilson said the Afro Department, along with the Harvard-Radcliffe Afro-American Cultural Center, "separates blacks from the ebb and flow of Harvard life and from tendencies that result in an ability to manipulate the power system of America."

However, Guinier said yesterday the Afro department constantly urges concentrators to involve themselves with the rest of Harvard and take advantage of every benefit Harvard offers.

"I'm an old-fashioned integrationist. Any efforts to solve the problems of modern America by establishing a separate culture will fail," Kilson said.

"My views are gaining currency and slowly becoming dominant," Kilson said. A March Ebony magazine article on campus racism is "nothing but a summary of my views," he said.

Kilson ignited the debate with Guinier in two 1973 Harvard Bulletin articles critical of University blacks