By P.C. Staff
A new report shows that Asian Americans are more likely to be charged for higher prices for the Princeton Review’s Test Preparations Services. In a study done by ProPublica, under Princeton Review’s geographical pricing system, Asian Americans are almost twice as likely to be charged the higher prices for online SAT tutoring.
The report stated that Asian Americans make up only 4.9 percent of the U.S. population, but they make up for more than 8 percent of the population in areas being charged the highest possible prices. The report analyses that higher income zip codes are twice as likely to be charged higher prices than the population on an average basis.
The “bias” hit Asian Americans hardest in low-income areas like Flushing, Queens, N.Y. It is a neighborhood where Asians make up more than 70 percent of the population, however they have a below-national-average income of $41,884. Despite that fact, families in the area pay $8,400 for a Princeton Review Prep Course, similar to that of prices in New York City.
ProPublica states that this bias and discrimination is illegal in most other areas but not under this certain circumstance. “Unintentional racial discrimination is illegal in housing and employment under the legal doctrine, known as ‘disparate impact.’” However, there is not a big enough “online marketplace,” so no such legal doctrine like the disparate impact exists.
