US court says Harvard admissions process does not discriminate against Asian-Americans
- Lawsuit alleged that admissions policies hold Asian-Americans to higher standard by using a subjective ‘personal rating’
- Judge says Harvard’s admissions process not perfect but passes constitutional muster
A federal judge has ruled that Harvard University did not discriminate against Asian-Americans in a key decision expected to shape the confines of US affirmative action policy.
US District Judge Allison Burroughs wrote in her decision, released on Tuesday, that Harvard’s admission program “passes constitutional muster”.
Diversity at Harvard and elsewhere would one day move society to the point where race was viewed as a fact “but not the defining fact and not the fact that tells us what is important,” wrote Burroughs, emphasising that such a point had not yet arrived.
“Until [such a time], race conscious admissions programs that survive strict scrutiny will have an important place in society and help ensure that colleges and universities can offer a diverse atmosphere that fosters learning, improves scholarship, and encourages mutual respect and understanding.”
The complex case, first filed in 2014, hinges on whether the 25 per cent cap on Asian Americans is discriminatory and how race can be considered in schools hoping to create a diverse student body.
