Not to mention Blade. He could have been one of the most bad ass characters in the entire freaking game.
And on Capcom's side they could have included Elena, which would have appeased the many fans who have complained about her not being in SF4.
I know that as soon as you bring the concept of affirmative action into things you open up the floodgates for all kinds of BS, but I don't really see this as affirmative action so much as I see it as a lot of popular characters getting snubbed who happen to be black, almost as if they've avoided adding more black characters. (I am White, BTW)