The Supreme Court Monday agreed to hear two cases against U.S. colleges for
allegedly "penalizing Asian American applicants" and using "race as a factor in admissions,"
a step that could affect affirmative action and equity programs in higher education.
The Supreme Court announced Monday it will reconsider race-based affirmative action
in college admissions, a move that could eliminate campus practices that have widely benefitted
Black and Hispanic students.
The court will consider more than just the details of how Harvard and UNC operate their
affirmative action programs. It will also reexamine 43 years of precedent by asking whether race
can ever play a role in admissions.
The challenges targeting university admissions policies at the public and private institutions are the latest that seek to end affirmative action in college admissions, which has been used at universities to foster diversity among student bodies. Nine states have banned affirmative action at public universities.
The Supreme Court has repeatedly held up affirmative action in the past, but there are fears it will now be overturned given the court’s 6-3 conservative majority. Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito have already ruled against affirmative action in the past, as has Chief Justice John Roberts…
The Supreme Court agreed Monday to hear challenges to the admissions process at Harvard and the University of North Carolina, presenting the most serious threat in decades to the use of affirmative action by the nation's public and private colleges and universities.
The lawsuits against Harvard University and the University of North Carolina argue that the admissions policies engage in “racial balancing” and discriminate against Asian-American applicants.