The Supreme Court granting review on Monday to two cases about affirmative action is an ominous sign for diversity in higher education and advancing racial equality. Given the composition of the court, it seems very likely that the six conservative justices will use these cases to ban any form of affirmative action in the United States.
The two cases — one involving the University of North Carolina and one involving Harvard — both deal with this question: Can universities continue to use race as one factor in admissions decisions to enhance diversity on campus?
In the UNC case, the challengers argue that the affirmative action program, which the university says fosters educational diversity, violates the Constitution’s requirement of equal protection. In the Harvard case, the challengers accuse the private university of violating the 1964 Civil Rights Act, which prohibits recipients of federal funds from discriminating based on race. They claim Harvard discriminates against Asian American applicants by penalizing them for subjective personal traits.
