A Supreme Court in the United States has banned the use of race and ethnicity in university admissions, dealing a major blow to a decades-old practice that boosted educational opportunities for African-Americans and other minorities.
The top court’s decision on Thursday came in response to lawsuits that challenged the policies of Harvard University and the University of North Carolina (UNC) by claiming race-conscious student admissions programmes discriminate against white and Asian-American applicants.
READ MORE: US Court Jails Nigerian Five Years For Money Laundering
The ruling is the latest by the conservative-dominated court to advance right-wing political causes, and it could have significant implications for US college enrolment and diversity on campuses across the country.
Reacting to the court’s decision on Thursday, President Joe Biden, while calling on universities to continue to advance diversity in spite of the ruling, by considering race-related factors like adversity.
Biden said: “I’ve always believed that the promise of America is big enough for everyone to succeed, and that every generation of Americans, we have benefited by opening the doors of opportunity just a little bit wider to include those who’ve been left behind”.
“We cannot let this decision be the last word on it,”
“College admissions are zero-sum. A benefit provided to some applicants but not to others necessarily advantages the former group at the expense of the latter,” Biden said.
Add Comment