Zaineh Saleh
Crimson Chronicle Editor
The Supreme Court is ruling over two cases regarding affirmative action for the rest of the year.
Affirmative action has been a controversial topic in the United States for years. The question behind the morality of factoring race into an individual’s college applications has been debated for the last four decades.
Harvard University has been accused of discrimination toward Asian American applicants. The university uses a point scale system to rate each applicant from one to six. According to statistics released by Harvard, 60 percent of Asian students got a score of one, compared to 9 percent for Black students, and 17 percent for Hispanic students.
On the other hand, the University of North Carolina was accused of favoring Black and Hispanic applicants over White and Asians. Both cases were brought up to the Supreme Court by a group called “Students for Fair Admissions,” which is sponsored by Edward Blum.
According to a statement released by Harvard University, “Each year, the President and Fellows of Harvard College reaffirm Harvard’s commitment to affirmative action and equal employment opportunity.”
Many key cases regarding affirmative action occurred in the past that shaped how college admissions are today. The most recent case regarding affirmative action was in 2016, during the Fisher v. University of Texas resulted in a 4-3 vote allowing the use of race-conscious admissions.
The arguments supporting affirmative action emphasize the importance of racial diversity on college campuses. If affirmative action is ultimately overruled the presence of Hispanic and black students will ultimately decrease in many colleges.
The likelihood of the case being overturned is suspected by many individuals. The overturning of Roe v. Wade this year leads to doubts among the political standings of each judge. The overturning of the case will mean that colleges can no longer explicitly factor an individual’s race into admissions.
The Supreme Court will most likely make a decision either in the spring or summer of 2023.