OK. I'll weigh-in on this. I identify as an African American, developer, and aspiring entrepreneur. I'll post here the message that I give to my kids and will continue to hammer as long as they will listen. IT DOESN'T MATTER if it's a meritocracy or not. Go succeed. If there was an envelope that had a provable answer as to whether things are harder/easier for me to succeed with a new venture...I'd rip it up without opening it. What I love about Silicon Valley is the number of people who don't care to be told by other people what's possible.