PDS Student Writes #BlackLivesMatter 100 Times On Stanford Application, Gets Accepted

PRINCETON, NJ — If there’s one thing we know about 18-year-old Ziad Ahmed, it’s that he believes #blacklivesmatter. It might be the only thing we know about him, but it was good enough for Stanford University.

In an application essay to the highly regarded California-based university, the Princeton Day School student answered the question “What Matters To You?” by writing “#BlackLivesMatter” 100 times, according to published reports.

“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,” Ahmed, who is Muslim, told Mic.

He said his progressivism is part of his identity, and he wanted to represent that in his application.
He posted his acceptance letter on Twitter. It has received over 2,000 likes, and has been retweeted more than 700 times.

Actually, there is quite a bit known about Ahmed, beyond his stance on Black Lives Matter.

In 2015, he was recognized at by President Barack Obama for his battle against racism. The then-16-year-old launched campaigns to raise awareness on issues related to race using redefy.org as his platform. He founded redefy when he was 14.

He was also an intern for Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign last year, according to Mic.

He said he will use his time at Stanford to continue to support the Black Lives Matter movement, according to the New York Post.

Stanford was ranked fifth nationally in U.S. News and World Report’s 2016 college rankings.

The attached image from Ziad Ahmed’s 2015 visit to the White House were previously provided