Corwin describes the victim of a South-Central Los Angeles drive-by shooting. He is a teenage boy with no identification who becomes known as “John Doe Number 27” (1). While the detectives first assume he is merely another gang member, they find something interesting in his pocket—an exam on the French Revolution neatly folded in his pocket. His answers are thoughtful and printed in meticulous handwriting. The detective says, “This doesn’t look like your typical dipshit” (1).  

Corwin, a reporter for the Los Angeles Times researching a story about homicide in South-Central, finds out the victim was enrolled at a local school for gifted students. The talented student did not know the gang members who shot him. After learning about this student, the reporter decides to write about the youth in South-Central who defy the odds to become high-achieving students. He also wants to present how unfair the situation remains for students from South-Central as the national debate intensifies about affirmative action.

In order for Corwin to write about how the end of affirmative action policies would affect high-achieving youth, he finds two LA high schools that educate gifted students: The program in the San Fernando Valley is 90% white; the other, at

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