Advocacy groups filed a civil rights lawsuit against Harvard on Monday, alleging that Harvard’s use of legacy admissions — a system that gives children of alumni preferential treatment in admissions — discriminates against applicants of color.
Lawyers for Civil Rights, a Boston-based nonprofit, has applied for civil rights Complaint He told the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) that the university’s traditional admissions system does not emphasize merit and robs students of color of admission. The civil rights case comes after the Supreme Court ruled Thursday that Harvard’s affirmative action admissions policy is unconstitutional. (Related: Universities consider new rankings to avoid SCOTUS ruling on race-based admissions)
“Why do we give our children the privileges and benefits that previous generations have forged?” said Ivan Espinosa-Madrigal, executive director of Civil Rights Attorneys. Said Associated Press. “Family surnames and bank account sizes are not measures of merit and should not affect the college admissions process.”
The complaint alleges that 70% of Harvard legacy and donor-related applicants are white students, and that Harvard legacy applicants are six times more likely to be admitted to Harvard.
The complaint alleges that if traditional admissions were abolished, more students of color would be able to attend college.
Demonstrators gather to support affirmative action at the Supreme Court on October 31, 2022. (Jonathan Ernst/Reuters)
In a 6-2 decision, the Supreme Court overturned Grutter v. Bollinger, which allowed higher education institutions to consider race as a determining factor in admissions procedures. Following the court’s ruling, Harvard University proposed using the applicant’s essay to continue to consider the race of its students.
“Last week, the university reaffirmed its commitment to the core principle that deep and innovative teaching, learning and research depend on communities made up of people with diverse backgrounds, perspectives and lived experiences.” the university told the Associated Press. “As we said, the university will decide in the coming weeks and months, in line with new court precedents, how to uphold our core values. Become.”
Harvard University and the Civil Rights Bar Association did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.
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