First-generation Asian immigrant parents, perhaps some of the most vocal supporters of the lawsuit, sacrificed and struggled a lot to build lives here. But, whereas their vision of success includes a prestigious education, others of their generation and most second-generation immigrants like myself see success as more than a matter of personal gain.

On WeChat, these differences in opinion are shouted at my mum: “It’s just unfair if my kid earns better grades, better SAT scores, and loses his spot. It’s discrimination!”

So many of these arguments on WeChat are about fairness and family. As Chinese-Americans, with a culture rooted in meritocracy and familial ties, it makes sense. My mum and I care about the same things.

That’s why we wholeheartedly support affirmative action. In fact, she and some others have started their own group fighting to defend affirmative action on the app.

Even after months of arguments, other Chinese parents on WeChat still think affirmative action is unfair. They say, “Chinese people should be considered white because they have similar IQ and values.”

To guarantee any sort of fairness in American society, every Asian-American WeChatter needs to understand that the same racism which plagues every other minority also hurts us.

Ironically, the very institutions that many opponents of affirmative action want their kids to attend have taught us that their vision of conventional success is a losing strategy: systemic racism is real and we need to get to the root of that problem to ever be considered equal citizens.

If we care about giving our kids a fair shot at life, a good education, and every other piece of success that is argued about on WeChat, we need to support policies like affirmative action that increase tolerance and support for people like us.

We need to band together with other racial minorities against the admissions advantage accorded to white students. We need to understand how much stronger we could be working together.

Today, my mum is hopeful. She’s excited to know so many Asian-American students and student organisations at Harvard and colleges across the country have stood up for affirmative action.

With a final legal resolution perhaps still distant, I hope our future together is united: may Asian-Americans join up with each other and other people of colour to fight against racism and create a fair future for all.

Daniel Lu is a junior at Harvard University and a student amici that submitted a declaration in support of Harvard’s race-conscious admissions programme