Last week's Do Now asked students to consider the arguments around Affirmative Action and respond to the question -- should universities be allowed to make race-based admissions decisions that give preference to minority applicants in an attempt to have a more diverse student body? Read their responses below.
photo by Mark Fischer/flickr
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In an attempt to have a more diverse student body, should universities be allowed to make race-based admissions decisions that give preference to minority applicants? Tell us why or why not?
Abigail Fisher, a white honor student, certainly didn’t think Affirmative Action was right, explaining that universities should not be allowed to make race-based admissions decisions that give preference to minority applicants. In 2008, she was rejected from the University of Texas. She sued the school, claiming that its race-conscious admissions policies unfairly and unconstitutionally favored black and Hispanic applicants over whites and Asians. Last week (Oct. 10, 2012), the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in the case, the latest in a half-a-century long string of challenges to affirmative action policies.
For more than half a century, Americans have battled over the constitutionality and ethics of affirmative action policies. To see a timeline of the landmark moments in the history of an issue, visit the latest KQED Lowdown post Affirmative Action On The Rocks: Another Chapter In A Long Contested History
The Court’s eventual ruling on the case will help determine the extent to which race can be used as a factor in admissions and employment decisions. If you were a judge on the Supreme Court, how would you rule and what would be your reasoning?
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