US allows colleges to leave race out of decisions
Govt move reflects long-term debate on racial equality in society, expert says
US President Donald Trump’s administration said on Tuesday that the government would no longer encourage schools in the United States to use race as a factor in the admission process as the Department of Justice reversed a series of Barack Obama-era guidelines, claiming to offer equal opportunities for all students.
US Attorney General Jeff Sessions rescinded 24 documents, including seven on the use of race to achieve diversity in higher education, calling them “unnecessary, outdated, inconsistent with existing law, or otherwise improper”.
Zuo Xiying, an associate professor at Renmin University of China, said Trump’s decision reflects the long-term debate on racial equality in US society.
“US people have been constantly arguing on the boundary of affirmative action, and there is always a big conflict between the concepts of equality and fairness,” he said.
The reversal in policy was applauded by groups that campaigned for fair admission.
Edward Blum, president of Students for Fair Admissions, or SFFA, based in Arlington, Virginia, said on Tuesday in a statement that the organization “welcomes policies that will end racial classifications and preferences in college admissions”.
The shift gives colleges the federal government’s blessing to leave race out of admissions and enrollment decisions and underscores the contentious politics that for decades have surrounded affirmation action policies, according to AP.
Zuo said the rescission may give more advantages than disadvantages to ethnic Chinese and may increase the enrolled number of such students, as Chinese students tend to achieve higher scores in college admission exams.
He said the rescinded guidelines had led many universities to tend to recruit certain races, which was unfair to others.
For example, Harvard was sued by SFFA after claims that it unlawfully limits how many Asian students are admitted. However, the school said it would continue considering race as an admissions factor to create a “diverse campus community where students from all walks of life have the opportunity to learn with and from each other”.
The seven documents, published between 2011 to 2016 under the Obama administration, provided guidelines for US schools to take applicants’ race into consideration during the admission process.
The Trump administration’s announcement is more in line with the George W. Bush-era policy that discouraged affirmative action and instead encouraged the use of raceneutral alternatives, like percentage plans and economic diversity programs, AP said.
Though such guidance does not have the force of law, schools could presumably use it to defend themselves against lawsuits over admission policies.
Danielle Holley-Walker, dean of Howard University law school, called the new guidance “highly unfortunate and counterproductive”. She said the decision is another indication that the Justice Department under Sessions is likely to be aggressive toward schools that do continue to factor in race in admissions decisions.
With Trump expected to announce his Supreme Court nominee next week, the issue should be a central part of any confirmation process, said Holley-Walker.
Civil rights groups also criticized the Trump administration’s announcement, saying it went against decades of court precedent permitting colleges to take race into account.
“We condemn the Department of Education’s politically motivated attack on affirmative action and deliberate attempt to discourage colleges and universities from pursuing racial diversity at our nation’s colleges and universities,” Kristen Clarke, president and executive director of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, said in a statement.
AP contributed to this story.
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