Why I (no longer?) hate the phrase “underrepresented minorities”

I used to cringe with disgust whenever I heard of the so called “underrepresented minorities”. I would get all red in the face, hyperventilate, and start ranting about how supporting these people is just reverse discrimination, how it is taking money away from the most meritorious and so on, and so forth. To hell with all political correctness! Now don’t get me wrong, I think that underprivileged members of the society deserve some degree of stimulus so that the ones with the most potential are not hindered in their dreams by their poverty and so that we can avoid a polarization of the society a la France on the eve of the Revolution.  BUT, my reasoning so far has been that this stimulus should be applied on the basis of one’s financial status, NOT their ethnic background or the color of their skin. I have, however, been missing one important point…