affirmative action : Supreme Court upholds race-based college admissions program

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affirmative action : Supreme Court upholds race-based college admissions program

June 23rd, 2016

Awake Goy

The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday upheld the consideration of race in college admissions, rejecting a white woman’s challenge to a University of Texas program designed to boost the enrollment of minority students.

The court, in a 4-3 ruling written by Justice Anthony Kennedy, decided in favor of the university and turned aside the conservative challenge to a policy intended to bring racial and ethnic diversity to campus.

The Supreme Court was weighing for the second time a challenge to the affirmative action admissions system used by the University of Texas at Austin brought by Abigail Fisher, who was denied a place in 2008.

Affirmative action is a policy under which racial minorities historically subject to discrimination are given certain preferences in education and employment.

Fisher said the university denied her admission in favor of lesser-qualified black and Hispanic applicants. She maintained that the program violated the U.S. Constitution’s guarantee of equal protection under the law.