The Supreme Court has declared the affirmative action admission policies of Harvard and the University of North Carolina unconstitutional. The court’s majority opinion states that these programs utilize race in a negative manner, promote racial stereotypes, and lack clear endpoints. Justice Sonia Sotomayor dissented, expressing disappointment in the court’s decision to roll back decades of progress and precedent. This ruling deals a significant blow to long-standing efforts aimed at increasing minority enrollment in American universities through race-conscious policies.
Chief Justice John Roberts, in the majority opinion joined by his fellow conservative justices, emphasized the importance of eliminating racial discrimination entirely. He argued that both Harvard and UNC’s affirmative action programs employ race in a negative manner, perpetuate racial stereotyping, and fail to establish meaningful goals. Roberts further contended that these policies violated the equal protection clause of the Constitution’s 14th Amendment, which prohibits states from denying equal protection under the law.
Protesters gathered outside the U.S. Supreme Court during the hearing of the affirmative action cases involving Harvard and UNC admissions, expressing their concerns. Chief Justice Roberts clarified that universities can still consider an applicant’s discussion of how race has impacted their life, as long as it is directly linked to the applicant’s character or unique abilities that contribute to the university.
Justice Clarence Thomas, a Black conservative, wrote a concurring opinion, stating that affirmative action admissions policies contradict the colourblind principles of the Constitution. Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, another liberal justice, expressed her dissent, labelling the ruling as a tragedy. Justice Sotomayor criticized the majority opinion, arguing that it cements a shallow concept of colourblindness as a constitutional principle in a society that remains inherently segregated and where race continues to play a significant role.
The ruling pertained to two separate yet related cases, one involving Harvard (voted 6-2 with Jackson recusing herself) and the other concerning UNC (voted 6-3 with Jackson participating and dissenting). President Joe Biden strongly disagreed with the court’s decision, stating that discrimination still exists in America, and the ruling does not change that fact.
Harvard stated its intention to comply with the court’s decision while emphasizing the need to preserve their essential values within the new precedent. UNC Chancellor Kevin Guskiewicz reiterated the university’s commitment to diversity and accessibility while expressing disappointment in the outcome and pledging compliance with the law.
Former President Donald Trump, in a statement, applauded the ruling as a victory for merit-based admissions. However, Chief Justice Roberts clarified in a footnote that the decision does not apply to the United States military academies, as they present potentially distinct interests that were not addressed in the cases.
NAACP CEO Derrick Johnson condemned the ruling, criticizing it as an endorsement of extremist beliefs and vowing to protect the hard-won victories against discrimination.
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