#BlackLivesMatter essay helps student get accepted to Stanford
A student wrote #BlackLivesMatter on an application essay to Stanford- and was admitted.
STANFORD, Calif. (KTVU) - One high school senior has been accepted to Stanford with a very unique application essay.
When the essay prompt asked, "What matters to you, and why?", Ziad Ahmed, from New Jersey, responded with "#BlackLivesMatter"- 100 times.
In an e-mail to Mic, Ahmed said, "I didn't think I would get admitted to Stanford at all, but it's quite refreshing to see that they view my unapologetic activism as an asset rather than a liability".
His Twitter handle is @ziadtheactvist and is the founder of Redefy, an organization that works to fight against stereotypes.
Ahmed has been recognized as one of MTV's Top 9 Teens Changing the World and Business Insider's Top 15 Young Prodigies.
He announced his acceptance on Twitter, sparking support and criticism. Some say that Ahmed did not answer the "why" portion of the prompt.
Ahmed responded to Mic by saying, " Black lives have been explicitly and implicitly told they don’t matter for centuries, and as a society — it is our responsibility to scream that black lives matter because it is not to say that all lives do not matter, but it is to say that black lives have been attacked for so long, and that we must empower through language, perspective, and action."
Ahmed also added on Twitter that his essay was one portion of his application and "there's a lot more to it".
The Mercury News reports that Stanford University responded to Ahmed's essay by saying, "We do not discuss student applications".
Ahmed has also been accepted to Yale and Princeton.