Supreme Court: Racial Preferences Unconstitutional in College Admissions

Martin Luther King's dream came true today.  

Will it apply to the Rooney Rule! ….I assume it will work that way with public employment & promotions

Affirmative Action was/is nothing more than "reverse racism."  Two wrongs don't make a right.

Good that the Supreme Court realizes this as well.    

Pretty sure affirmative action was done away with decades ago. Look it up. There are schools that changed the name but kept some form of inclusionary policies but they weren't wide spread. This is a nothing burger but still a good thing.

While all of us at Covers appreciate helping the underprivileged...

practicing discrimination to end discrimination is a contradiction to human rights

Supreme court turns equal protection upside down by pretending racial discrimination no longer exists.  Affirmative action is intended to help remedy economic inequality.  Giving opportunities to historically disadvantaged minority groups improve equal access to that of the majority population.  However by undermining affirmative action, black and latino minorities are less likely to benefit from college education.  Oddly, court upholds affirmative action for diversity in military academy but not other schools.

Instead of being a neutral arbiter of political disputes, unelected supreme court is dictating policies.  Extremist right wing majority rolls back longstanding rights and laws.  Their radical activism threatens public trust in the court and democracy.  Decades of progress reversed by undermining abortion access, consumer protection, environmental regulation, federal agencies, religious freedom, effective governance, public health and gun safety.  Their radical ideological bias are out of step with most Americans.

Talk to me about this " historically disadvantaged " minority groups.  The truth is that affirmative action exists because it gives minorities with  " lesser impressive " grades and test scores a seat at the table.... based on the color of their skin.  Does that sound right to you ? 

I'm all for helping the disenfranchised... but it starts and ends with  EDUCATION  !

Court ruling won't improve society by making it harder to close wealth gap between rich and poor.  College admission has never been totally based on merits.  Affirmative action still favors white college applicants.  For examples, children of faculty and rich philanthropists.   So instead case further cements generational wealth as a way to get ahead in the US.  Achieving equality in opportunity requires government to take affirmative action to help disadvantaged minorities.  Supreme court obscures that many Asian Americans support affirmative action for minorities.

Transportation secretary Buttigieg said there was no evidence the web designer was approached by anyone asking her to work on a same sex wedding.  It appears she only went into the wedding business to provoke a case against LGBTQ rights.  Fake case is a solution in search of a problem.  But extremist supreme court allows for discrimination against LGBTQ people.  Future risk of opening discrimination against people based on other things such as race, religion, national origin or disability.  However other courts keep blocking republican states from introducing anti-trans legislations because banning gender affirming healthcare is illegal and drag shows are protected by first amendment.

@Rush51

 I have to chime in to your reply about education and how minorities are getting in to schools when others have better grades and are more deserving. From direct experience I know for a fact that certain segments do not have opportunities to gain an advantage with education that others do for a variety of reasons. Where I live its a very diverse demographic mix with many Asians and India families and my kiddo went to school with lots of students including hispanic minorities of course because down here they are a large population segment. There are also many charter schools that teach advanced learning and accelerated techniques, like the Basis program which was founded by an Intel exec and there are multiple schools here that give an advantage but it requires a large sacrifice from the parent to make it happen. 

Basis programs require parents to transport students in most cases, they require parent hours to service the school and the homework load is very heavy. I had several friends who went through the Basis program and in the process their kids got opportunities, the percentage of college acceptance is VERY high for many of these charter schools but it requires the parent be strongly involved. I also know that many families supplemented their students education via tutoring and programs like Mathnasium and Kumon which are very expensive and time intensive for the parent and the student. It is very competitive to get scholarships and it does not happen as you might think, there are demographics that do not have opportunities, do not have parent involvement or funding to get advantage. and the fact this happens means the playing field is biased to those with resources, so having universities give opportunities to known targeted demographics is a very reasonable endeavor and should be in place IMO.

First off, it's not the job of the Supreme Court to pay attention to the wealth gap..  And need I remind you again that the "wealth gap" narrowed after the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act ?  And who was your President ? 

On your 2nd point, so white applicants that are children of faculty and rich philanthropists are being given a favor in college admission?   Wow, stop the press !  Talk about a "very small" exception to the rule.    Are you seriously trying to say that white (and Asian applicants for that matter) are favored ?  Lol. 

Final point... You dems do a tremendous disservice confusing and interchanging the terms "equality" and "equity."  You do it, the press does it, your president does it, and dems as a group do it.. 

All kids are given the "opportunity" to succeed in life, and generally start on equal footing, regardless if they go to a charter school, public school.    The real question is what do kids do with that opportunity when in school.  No question those that come from a "broken home" face a greater uphill climb.  To which I say, address the problem in these early years of one's life !  Additional tutoring, etc.  Whatever is needed to enhance one's education, because w/o it, your chances of succeeding in life go down appreciably.  

So, stop w/ the nonsense of having the government always come to the aid of those that are not as successful as others.  Pushing for an "equal outcome" in our society is "equity."... that is far different than "equality."   But you dems do it in so many facets of our lives., ... whether it be "wealth redistribution", or  maintaining "affirmative action" .  There is always this push by Dems  to "level the playing field."     That isn't democracy... that's socialism..  

If it were up to you Dems, you would organize a 100 yard dash where everyone starts at the same line (equality),  and you would ensure that everyone crossed the finished line together, too  (that is equity),... i.e. socialism. 

@wallstreetcappers

 My comments were really concentrated on college admissions which is what the SCOTUS voted on, not necessarily elementary schools, charter schools.  

BTW, I'm all for enhancing kids' education, whether it be school choice, charter schools, or public schools.  It just seems our public schools  are failing our society miserably.  How are we as a country to compete in the 21st century when we have LGBTQ+ fighting to get this crap "in our schools."  Heck, english & math test scores are miserable, and this is what our school boards want us to focus on ?  Miserable !  

Rush.. well stated.   Parenting is being responsible, accountable not absent.  Blame society, weather, trump, anybody ,anything but themselves.   I know many single parents, work 2 jobs, that are non white, who have time for their kids, their homework and their well beings.  They are called racists and uncle Tom's.  That's messed up.  I guess they want all to live on the democratic plantation.   

Rush, I agree... I believe it's starts at home.  1 group encourages while another wants to dismantle it.  Prioritize not politicize .

@Rush51

 I was suggesting that the college admission situation should not have been altered and the reasons why I listed. On that topic, I was looking up the National Merit Finalists for the state where I live and specifically the local area and it was not shocking that yet again the majority of students earning National Merit are from India and China, its a theme I have seen for many years.

The point is certain demographics do not have the means or the parent involvement to take advantage and get that chance. Charter schools here are often times much better than the cruddy public system so people make the extra effort and invest in that opportunity...but that means time and more homework and as I mentioned service hours for parents. I agree with college admissions giving opportunities to targeted demographics who might not get the chance because they are not able to afford the tools and time from parents to get what other students do.

Also a funny thing, the National Merit has a second award given for Hispanic and Native American students, that bar is lower Ive noticed that several students I know from being in the edu system with my kiddo were for sure NOT a true demographic for that award, their families are part Latin American and if you saw the kid in the school lunch line you would not think they would qualify. Same goes for a scholarship offered locally for the Hispanic targeted group, lots of kids that are really not meeting the true requirement took it because they could..

If the playing field were equal and all had the same opportunities then yes you could go off grades and ACT/SAT but that is for sure not the case, there are certain demographics that make great effort to put their kiddo in front of the line and have the means and time to do so. that is not equitable and is unfair for the many who are not as lucky.

Ending affirmative action has consequences.  Lawyers for civil rights file a lawsuit on behalf of minorities against Harvard admissions favoring children of alumni.  This priority has nothing to do with merit and discriminates against students of color.  Now it is indefensible without affirmative action providing a counter balance.  Myth is that affirmative action is harmful to Asian Americans.  Rather the bigger barrier is admissions priority for the rich and privileged. 

@scooby-doos

@Wall

yep.. consequences... grades ,scores mean something... what a concept..

That's 90% of it right there, parents who give a damn.

My personal experience, although several decades ago still sheds light. Children with parents who give a damn stand a far greater chance of educational success than those who don't. Then there are soooo many other factors. Who are your peers and what do they value? 

I went to public schools to the end of 9th grade. Then catholic school just to avoid the dangerous and lousy public high school. What an eye opener. All A's honor society member and officer in junior high. Absolutely unprepared at catholic high school. Sooo many smart kids with much more advanced education. Did a lot of catching up.

Used to be if you had a group of gifted students you grouped them together so competition would push them. Exacty what we do with athletics. Today's gifted athletes almost always end up in some academy for gifted athletes. They compete against other gifted athletes. Race? Doesn't matter, its the skill level. Not so it seems with higher learning. Oh no! Grouping the most gifted is racist. Gotta dummy it down to meet a quota.

Makes no sense to me. 

And as far as "Indian and Asian familes" dominating I believe there is a reason. They push education to the limit. Where most Americans want a balance in life of work and play many don't see it that way, all work and little play. How much of your life are you willing to sacrifice to one cause? 

@UNIMAN

 Well said

Now we’re talking 

@UNIMAN

 Fantastic post ! 

Uniman.... great post!!

@UNIMAN

 The issue isnt just that good parents make a good result because we know that is not true, the point is that certain demographics do not have the same opportunities due to financial issues or that maybe both parents have to work, single parent household etc. The reality is that those who have the advantage are not any more deserving of an opportunity than someone who has not been able to reach their potential but that if the playing field were equal they WOULD be as good or better than those who DO have the advantage. 

Colleges are actually moving away from generic static grades and test scores and are moving towards a bigger picture larger perspective fuller view approach. Book/study only skills is an image of the past and it is curious how some cultures like India and China still focus on that and not on how to interact and engage with others where here in the West the focus isnt just memorization of test questions and book knowledge but more about working and collaborating with others and functioning as an organizational part not just an individual orb of knowledge.

I think there is great value in giving opportunities to groups that for whatever reason did not have that before. I actually hope that universities move further from grades and tests for admission to a larger more expansive view of the student.