• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Advertise
  • Contact Us
  • About Towleroad
  • Towleroad on Social Media
  • Privacy Policy

Towleroad Gay News

Gay Blog Towleroad: More than gay news | gay men

  • Politics
  • Health
  • Travel
  • Gay Pride
  • Music
  • Sports
  • Law/Justice
  • Celebrities
  • Men
  • Space
  • Science
  • Gay Iconography
  • Madonna
  • Books
  • Monkeypox
  • Film/TV

U.S. Supreme Court to hear challenge to race-conscious college admissions

Towleroad January 24, 2022 Leave a Comment

Published by
Reuters
485808 origin 1

By Andrew Chung and Lawrence Hurley

(Reuters) -The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday agreed to hear a bid to bar Harvard University and the University of North Carolina from considering race in undergraduate admissions in a case that imperils affirmative action policies widely used to increase the number of Black and Hispanic students on American campuses.

The justices agreed to hear appeals by a group called Students for Fair Admissions, founded by anti-affirmative action activist Edward Blum, of lower court rulings that upheld the programs used by the two prestigious universities to foster a diverse student population. The cases give the court, with its 6-3 conservative majority, a chance to end such policies.

The lawsuits accused the universities of discriminating against applicants on the basis of race in violation of federal law or the U.S. Constitution. Blum’s group alleged in the Harvard case that the school discriminated against Asian American applicants. In the UNC case, Blum’s group alleged that the university’s policy discriminated against white and Asian American applicants.

The universities have said they use race as only one factor in a host of individualized evaluations for admission without quotas, and that curbing the consideration of race would result in a significant drop in the number of Black, Hispanic and other underrepresented students on campus.

The Supreme Court has a 6-3 conservative majority. U.S. conservatives long have opposed affirmative action programs used in such areas as hiring and student admissions to address past discrimination against minorities.

The use of affirmative action has withstood Supreme Court scrutiny for decades, including in a 2016 ruling https://www.reuters.com/article/usa-court-affirmativeaction-idINKCN0ZA08C involving a white student backed by Blum, who challenged a University of Texas policy, though the justices have narrowed its application. The eventual ruling in the new challenge could dilute or potentially eliminate college affirmative action programs.

Blum’s group sued Harvard in 2014, accusing it of violating Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which bars discrimination based on race, color or national origin under any program or activity receiving federal financial assistance. Harvard is a private university founded in 1636 and located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. It receives federal funds.

The group also sued UNC in 2014, accusing the university of impermissibly using race as the main factor in admissions in violation of the U.S. Constitution’s 14th Amendment guarantee of equal protection under the law. UNC, located in Chapel Hill and chartered in 1789, is North Carolina’s flagship public university.

The Supreme Court first upheld affirmative action in college admissions in a landmark 1978 ruling in a case called Regents of the University of California v. Bakke that held that race could be considered as a factor but racial quotas could not be used.

Blum’s group asked the Supreme Court to overturn a 2003 Supreme Court ruling in a case called Grutter v. Bollinger involving the University of Michigan Law School that held that colleges could consider race as one factor in the admissions process because of the compelling interest of creating a diverse student body.

Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor wrote in that ruling that she expected “the use of racial preferences will no longer be necessary” by 2028.

President Joe Biden’s administration has backed Harvard, telling the justices in a court filing not to hear that case. The court’s precedents “correctly recognize” that the educational benefits that result from diversity justify race-conscious measures.

Biden’s predecessor Donald Trump, a Republican, had backed Blum’s lawsuit against Harvard.

Students for Fair Admissions said Harvard’s policies limited Asian Americans to 20% of incoming undergraduate classes and left them less likely to be admitted than white, Black and Hispanic applicants with comparable qualifications. It said in court papers that Harvard “automatically awards racial preferences to African-Americans and Hispanics.” Harvard said the challengers depicted its policies inaccurately.

The Supreme Court’s conservative majority has widened since it ruled 5-4 in favor of the University of Texas in 2016, with now-retired conservative Justice Anthony Kennedy joining four liberal justices. The addition of three justices appointed by former Republican President Donald Trump moved the court rightward.

Under Chief Justice John Roberts, the court has been hostile to other efforts to remedy past racial discrimination. In 2013 it struck down https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-court-voting/supreme-court-guts-key-part-of-landmark-voting-rights-act-idUSBRE95O0TU20130625 a key part of the Voting Rights Act, enacted in 1965 to ensure that minorities could vote. In 2020, the court weakened https://www.reuters.com/world/us/voting-rights-breyers-future-spotlight-us-supreme-court-2021-07-01 another key part of that law.

The case is expected to be heard during the court’s 2022 term, which begins in October and ends in June 2023.

(Reporting by Andrew Chung in New York and Lawrence Hurley in Washington; Additional reporting by Nate Raymond; Editing by Will Dunham)

485808 485808 origin 1 1
485808 485808 origin 1 2
485808 485808 origin 1 3
485808 485808 origin 1 4
485808 485808 origin 1 5

Topics: Aaon, towleroad

  • Opinion: The Right-Wing Airing of Imaginary Grievances Like Sex Ed Is Not and Never Has Been Used To Groom

    Opinion: The Right-Wing Airing of Imaginary Grievances Like Sex Ed Is Not and Never Has Been Used To Groom

      Published by NJ.com   Let’s start this post off with a small bit of objective truth: There is no such thing as the widespread use of sexual education curriculum to groom young children. None. It …Read More »
  • Tan France gets parenting advice from Gigi Hadid

    Tan France gets parenting advice from Gigi Hadid

      Published by BANG Showbiz English   Tan France gets parenting tips from Gigi Hadid. The 39-year-old star and his husband Rob France welcomed their son Ismail into the world via surrogate last July and he’s …Read More »
  • U.S. health officials releasing some Jynneos vaccine doses for monkeypox – CDC

    U.S. health officials releasing some Jynneos vaccine doses for monkeypox – CDC

    Published by Reuters WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. health officials are in the process of releasing some Jynneos vaccine doses for use in monkeypox cases, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Monday, adding there …Read More »
  • Dame Angela Lansbury to receive Lifetime Achievement gong at the Tonys

    Dame Angela Lansbury to receive Lifetime Achievement gong at the Tonys

    Published by BANG Showbiz English Dame Angela Lansbury is set to receive a Lifetime Achievement gong at the Tony Awards. The 96-year-old actress – who has won five Tonys during her career – will be honoured …Read More »
Previous Post: « Spice Girls ‘to reunite at Brooklyn Beckham’s wedding’
Next Post: U.S. Supreme Court agrees to consider limiting wetlands regulation »

Primary Sidebar

News

  • Vladimir Putin’s TV Appearances ‘Staged’ As Russian Leader Continues To Suffer Worsening Health Problems

    Vladimir Putin’s TV Appearances ‘Staged’ As Russian Leader Continues To Suffer Worsening Health Problems

  • US flight brings tons of needed baby formula from Germany

    US flight brings tons of needed baby formula from Germany

  • Courtney Love apologises for ‘bullying’ Amber Heard

    Courtney Love apologises for ‘bullying’ Amber Heard

  • ‘Desperate To Chase His Lost Relevance’: Donald Trump SLAMS Mike Pence’s ‘Plans’ To Run For President In 2024

    ‘Desperate To Chase His Lost Relevance’: Donald Trump SLAMS Mike Pence’s ‘Plans’ To Run For President In 2024

Break

  • Toni Collette, Mark Ruffalo and Noami Ackie join ‘Parasite’ Filmmaker Bong Joon-ho’s new movie And it Sounds Mind Blowing

    Toni Collette, Mark Ruffalo and Noami Ackie join ‘Parasite’ Filmmaker Bong Joon-ho’s new movie And it Sounds Mind Blowing

  • Starbucks to completely exit Russia after Ukraine invasion

    Starbucks to completely exit Russia after Ukraine invasion

  • Evan Spiegel & Miranda Kerr Pay Off $10 Million In Loans Of Otis College’s Graduating Class

    Evan Spiegel & Miranda Kerr Pay Off $10 Million In Loans Of Otis College’s Graduating Class

  • Vladimir Putin’s Daughter SECRETLY Living In Germany With Man Named Igor Zelensky

    Vladimir Putin’s Daughter SECRETLY Living In Germany With Man Named Igor Zelensky

RSS Partner Links

  • Nick Cannon Doesn’t Think The Mothers Of His Eight Children Need To Get Along
  • Student Uses CURLY HAIR To Get Around Don't Say Gay + Gervais Jumps On Anti-Trans Bandwagon + Dorothy's Gingham Dress Yanked From Sale + MORE! — 12-PACK
  • OMG, LISTEN TO THIS: Madonna teams with Sickick for ‘Frozen’ remix ‘Frozen On Fire’
  • OMG, WATCH: Jinkx Monsoon paints a self portrait and talks about her big return to Drag Race
  • Chris Hemsworth Stripped Nude By Russell Crowe In THOR: LOVE AND THUNDER Trailer
  • Birthday Sluts
  • Song of the Day: 'Last Night I Dreamt That Somebody Loved Me' by Eurythmics
  • Page 1 Roundup (05/24)
  • Tennis Tuesday

Most Recent

  • ‘The Kids in the Hall’ review: Sketch comedy is a young person’s game — yet here are older guys just ripping into the form as if they never left

    ‘The Kids in the Hall’ review: Sketch comedy is a young person’s game — yet here are older guys just ripping into the form as if they never left

  • Opinion: The Right-Wing Airing of Imaginary Grievances Like Sex Ed Is Not and Never Has Been Used To Groom

    Opinion: The Right-Wing Airing of Imaginary Grievances Like Sex Ed Is Not and Never Has Been Used To Groom

  • Tan France gets parenting advice from Gigi Hadid

    Tan France gets parenting advice from Gigi Hadid

  • U.S. health officials releasing some Jynneos vaccine doses for monkeypox – CDC

    U.S. health officials releasing some Jynneos vaccine doses for monkeypox – CDC

  • Dame Angela Lansbury to receive Lifetime Achievement gong at the Tonys

    Dame Angela Lansbury to receive Lifetime Achievement gong at the Tonys

  • Factbox: Seven races to watch in Georgia, Alabama midterm primaries, Texas run-offs

    Factbox: Seven races to watch in Georgia, Alabama midterm primaries, Texas run-offs

  • Cybill Shepherd supports Bruce Willis after aphasia diagnosis

    Cybill Shepherd supports Bruce Willis after aphasia diagnosis

Most Commented

Social

Twitter @tlrd | Facebook | Instagram @tlrd
  • Advertise
  • Contact Us
  • About Towleroad
  • Towleroad on Social Media
  • Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2022 · Log in