In a ground-breaking decision, on June 29, 2023, in Students for Fair Admissions vs Harvard, the United States Supreme Court (SCOTUS) deemed the race-conscious admission policies at Harvard and the University of North Carolina (UNC) as unconstitutional and violative of the Equal Protection Clause in the Fourteenth Amendment.
As Chief Justice John Roberts stated, “Eliminating racial discrimination means eliminating all of it.” This ruling profoundly impacts affirmative action programmes, where ‘race’ has historically been a factor to foster diversity in college admissions, such as in Texas and Michigan. Many believe that the Harvard judgment now makes affirmative action nearly impossible in the U.S.
SCOTUS underpinned its verdict with four reasons. First, it emphasised that the equal protection clause is colour-blind, and the term “equal protection” means identical treatment. Thus, race-based affirmative action contravenes this promise. Second, it affirmed that any such contravention could only be justified if the state has a compelling goal, and affirmative action is absolutely necessary to attain it. The state must articulate this goal clearly to enable judicial scrutiny. The court found Harvard and the UNC’s objectives, such as “training future leaders”, as commendable but vague. Third, the Court reiterated an earlier ruling that affirmative action policies should have a ‘sunset clause’. However, both Harvard and the UNC lacked this. Lastly, the court held that affirmative action should not rely on racial stereotypes or disadvantage anyone based on race — two aspects it identified as problematic in this case.
