Primer - Affirmative Action and College Admissions
In light of recent (1, 2) Supreme Court hearings on Affirmative Action and race-conscious college admissions processes, Political Union has elected to hold a debate on the topic. We first want to recognize that some of our members, as well as the general Northwestern community, may find this topic sensitive and stirring. However, we believe that, as a non-partisan club dedicated to conversation, we are uniquely in a position to discuss this difficult topic. We want to remind all attendants to please follow our guidelines for dialogue, respect everyone’s opinion, and acknowledge we each come from a diverse range of backgrounds. If you at any time feel harmed by something someone has said, we invite you to fill out our anonymous feedback form so that Political Union can respond to your situation.
With that, please enjoy the following primer:
As you may have noticed, there are two hyperlinks in the first sentence. These link to the transcripts of oral arguments presented to the Court on Monday, October 31 by the Students for Fair Admission, Inc. v. University of North Carolina and Students for Fair Admission, Inc. v. President and Fellows of Harvard College respectively. I have provided these for our tenacious readers, but also so you may refer or search questions or arguments that justices or individuals asked/made. (Both 100+ pages)
This NPR article gives a fairly impartial overview of the oral arguments presented on Oct. 31, as well as the historical context for the cases being heard today. (9 minutes)
This FAQ from ACLU gives a good line by line on the policies of race conscious admissions and the benefits of such policies. (7.5 minutes)
This article from The Hill argues in favor of the affirmative action policies that have been commonplace for so long, and details the effects reversing such policies could have on the US in general. (8 minutes)
This opinion from the New York Times argues against racial preferences in admissions, and proposes a model that could still allow for diverse campuses to flourish. (8 minutes)
"Back to School in Boston" by Robert Cross is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.