Democrats Vote To Allow Colleges To Discriminate Against Asian-Americans

Not A Single Senate Democrat Voted For An Amendment To Stop Colleges And Universities From Discriminating Against Asian Americans In Admissions

Every present Senate Democrat voted against an amendment offered by Sens. Ted Cruz (R-TX) and John Kennedy (R-LA) to prohibit federal funding for any institution of higher education that discriminates against Asian Americans in recruitment, applicant review, or admissions. (S.Amdt.1456 to S.Amdt.1445 to S.937, Roll Call Vote #162: Rejected 49-48: D 0-46; R 49-0; I 0-2, 4/22/2021)

The Supreme Court Has Been Asked To Review The Use Of Race In College Admissions, With A Group Arguing That Doing So Is Discriminating Against Asian-Americans

“A group opposed to affirmative action in college admissions… asked the Supreme Court to overturn a key precedent that allows schools to consider race when choosing an entering class. The petition from Students for Fair Admissions was the expected next step in its long-running challenge to Harvard University’s admissions process. Colleges and universities around the country are watching a case with major ramifications for the world of competitive admissions. … The group’s new petition asks the Supreme Court to overturn a 2003 ruling that allows race-conscious admissions in higher education in the interest of achieving student body diversity. That 2003 ruling in the case known as Grutter v. Bollinger, the group contends, was ‘grievously wrong.’” (“Group That Sued Harvard Asks Supreme Court To End Use Of Race In College Admissions,” The Washington Post, 2/25/2021)

• EDWARD BLUM, President of Students for Fair Admissions: “After six and one-half years of litigation, the hundreds of Asian-American students who were unfairly and illegally rejected from Harvard because of their race may soon have this lawsuit reviewed by the U.S. Supreme Court… It is our hope that the justices will accept this case and finally end the consideration of race and ethnicity in college admissions.” (“Group That Sued Harvard Asks Supreme Court To End Use Of Race In College Admissions,” The Washington Post, 2/25/2021)

• “In November, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit upheld a lower court’s ruling in 2019 that Harvard does not discriminate against Asian Americans when its undergraduate college uses race and ethnicity as a factor in reviewing applicants. Students for Fair Admissions filed suit against Harvard in 2014, alleging that the university violates civil rights law in ways that penalize Asian Americans. Harvard denied the allegations.” (“Group That Sued Harvard Asks Supreme Court To End Use Of Race In College Admissions,” The Washington Post, 2/25/2021)

But The Biden Administration Abandoned A Lawsuit Challenging Yale’s Admission Practices For Discriminating Against Potential Asian-American Students

“The Justice Department withdrew a lawsuit that alleged Yale University violated federal civil-rights law by discriminating against white and Asian-American undergraduate applicants, the latest indication that the Biden administration is shifting the federal government’s stance on civil-rights enforcement from that of former President Donald Trump. The Justice Department’s underlying investigation into whether Yale is complying with federal law remains open. … In addition to withdrawing its suit against Yale, the Justice Department withdrew its notice letter finding that Yale’s practices violate Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color or national origin in any program receiving federal funds.” (“Justice Department Drops Yale University Admissions Lawsuit,” The Wall Street Journal, 2/03/2021)

• “The Justice Department first opened an investigation into Yale’s undergraduate admission policies in 2018, based on a complaint filed in 2016 with the Justice and Education departments by a group of Asian-American organizations, led by the Asian American Coalition for Education. The lawsuit accused Yale of racial balancing, similar to following quotas, saying the school keeps the annual percentage of admitted African-American applicants to within one percentage point of the previous year’s class, and that it conducts similar balancing for Asian-American applicants. It said Yale’s ‘oversized, standardless, intentional use of race has subjected domestic, non-transfer applicants to Yale College to discrimination on the ground of race.’” (“Justice Department Drops Yale University Admissions Lawsuit,” The Wall Street Journal, 2/03/2021)