U.W.'s Admissions Policy

After listening to talk radio, reading what many of our state politicians had to say, and then listening to my husband, who is a U.W. grad, I wondered why there are any places on any application of any kind for race or gender. If we're suppose to be color blind, then why is color a factor for anything? If gender isn't a factor, then only use initials on the application so no one can tell if it's a male or female. Am I missing something?