The Supreme Court ruling on two elementary school affirmative action programs is rippling across the legal and political landscape. The ruling stated that schools cannot use race as the sole criteria in creating a mix in their school populations. According to the AFP:
By five to four, the justices ruled in favor of white parents whose children were denied places at their nearest schools in Seattle, Washington, and the Kentucky city of Louisville because of such admission policies.
"Simply because the school districts may seek a worthy goal doesn't mean that they are free to discriminate on the basis of race to achieve it," Chief Justice John Roberts wrote in the majority decision.
The decision could affect hundreds of US districts that try to give preference to black and other ethnic-minority children, if a school is over-subscribed and is deemed to have enough white children already. Democrats are hopping mad about the decision, while conservatives are lauding it. More on the ruling from the National Journal here.Labels: affirmative action, Supreme Court |
