Throughout the 20th century, one of the central debates pertaining to postsecondary education has been about the concept of merit. Who deserves to go to college? The answer to that question goes to the heart of various policies that have been developed, changed, and debated. Perhaps no other policy has drawn more prominence and criticism than that which has come to be called "affirmative action." In this article, the author discusses the idea of merit as it relates to affirmative action and postsecondary education. The article first delineates the parameters of what is defined as a "democratic public culture" and then considers the concerns of critics and proponents about affirmative action by exploring the meritocratic assumptions of the concerns. The author concludes by discussing the role that academic institutions might play in advancing the democratic sphere and considers what this role suggests for policies such as affirmative action.