Trump administration rescinds affirmative action guidelines

When the SCOTUS looked an affirmative action  case in 2016, AAPI sided for the use of race in college admissions.

THE DAY BEFORE Independence Day, U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions rescinded two dozen Justice Department guidelines most of which are meant to make life in the United States a little more manageable for minorities and immigrants.

Among the targeted guidelines were those to help schools administer affirmative action and to help employers hire a more diverse workforce.

"In furtherance of its agenda of intolerance and discrimination, the Trump administration is once again failing in its responsibility for the well being of all students by tossing aside diversity and inclusion — core American values," said Vanita Gupta, who was in charge of the DOJ's Civil Rights Division under Obama and the current head of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights.

Like the guidelines themselves, the new direction taken by the Department of Justice and the Department of Education does not have the force of law, and schools committed to the practice can continue to use it. But it is a another step toward's the Trump administration's opposition and another petty step to Trump's apparent wish to erase every trace of Obama's presidency. It also signals the position the Trump administration will take in the complaint against Harvard University by a group of Asian Americans claiming the admissions procedures used by the Ivy League college works against Asian American applicants.

“The decision announced by the White House to rescind crucial Obama era guidance on affirmative action is disgraceful," said Rep. Mark Takano, D-CA. "Not only is this part of a larger effort to undermine and undo affirmative action policies in admissions completely, it is also another attack by this Administration on diversity and equal opportunity at our nation’s colleges and universities. From eroding Title IX protections to gutting regulations to hold for-profit institutions accountable, the Trump Administration once again proves they are not on the side of students.”

The Trump administration also struck another blow against immigrants by eliminating guidelines which said that asylum seekers and refugees have a right to seek work in the United States. The guidance, issued in May 2011, said that refugees and asylees “may possess a variety of documents that prove employment authorization,” that they could could obtain a Social Security card without employment restrictions, and that they are “authorized to work indefinitely because of their status.”

Many of the non-binding guidelines were issued during the Obama administration to help institutions and employers abide by the law and to avoid potential litigation for any misinterpretations of the Supreme Court decisions on affirmative action.

“The Obama-era guidance rescinded today did not promote the use of racial quotas," said Rep. Judy Chu, D-CA. "Instead, it encouraged schools and colleges to consider race as one of several factors to promote campus diversity in a way that is consistent with current law. These policies enrich the quality of our education institutions. In fact, Asian American and Pacific Islander students – particularly within the Southeast Asian and Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander community – have directly benefited from these efforts.  

Trump officials believe those guidelines “mislead schools to believe that legal forms of affirmative action are simpler to achieve than the law allows.”

The list of 24 guidance documents that DOJ has withdrawn in 2018 is as follows:

1. March 17, 2011, OJJDP Memorandum re Status Offenders and the JJDPA.
2. October 20, 2010 OJJDP Memorandum re Status Offenders and the JDDPA.
3. June 17, 2014, Revised Guidance on Jail Removal and Separation Core Requirements.
4. Disaggregating MIP Data from DSO and/or Jail Removal Violations: OJJDP Guidance for States, 2011.
5. OJJDP Policy Guidance for Nonsecure Custody of Juveniles in Adult Jails and Lockups; Notice of Final Policy.
6. OJJDP Guidance Manual: Audit of Compliance Monitoring Systems.
7. OJJDP Disproportionate Minority Contact Technical Assistance Manual, Fourth Edition, 2009.
8. BJA State Criminal Alien Assistance Program Guidelines, 2016.
9. NIJ April 6, 2016, Dear Colleague Letter regarding additional topics and research questions of high priority and particular interest to the NIJ as part of its Comprehensive School Safety Initiative.
10. Looking for the Best Mortgage, December 14, 2010.
11. FRB: Putting Your Home on the Loan Line is Risky Business, August 6, 2015.
12. Federal Protections Against National Origin Discrimination, April 30, 2006.
13. Look at the Facts, Not at the Faces:  Your Guide to Fair Employment, Approx. July 2009.
14. Refugees and Asylees Have the Right to Work, May 2011.
15. Language Assistance Self-Assessment and Planning Tool for Recipients of Federal Financial Assistance, on or before February 12, 2003.
16. FAQs About the Protection of Limited English Proficiency (LEP) Individuals under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Title VI Regulations, March 1, 2011.
17. Draft Language Access Planning and Technical Assistance Tool for Courts, December 18, 2012.
18. December 2, 2011 Dear Colleague Letter Regarding the Use of Race by Educational Institutions.
19. 2011 Guidance on the Voluntary Use of Race to Achieve Diversity in Postsecondary Education dated December 2, 2011.
20. 2011 Guidance on the Voluntary Use of Race to Achieve Diversity and Avoid Racial Isolation in Elementary and Secondary Schools dated December 2, 2011.
21. September 27, 2013 Dear Colleague Letter on the Voluntary Use of Race to Achieve Diversity in Higher Education After Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin [Fisher I].
22. September 27, 2013 Questions and Answers About Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin [Fisher I].
23. May 6, 2014 Dear Colleague Letter on the Supreme Court Ruling in Schuette v. Coalition to Defend Affirmative Action.
24. September 30, 2016 - Questions and Asnwers About Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin (Fisher II)

“The law on this hasn’t changed, and the Supreme Court has twice ruled reaffirming the importance of diversity,” Anurima Bhargava, the head of civil rights enforcement at the Justice Department under the Obama administration, told the Wall Street Journal. “This is a purely political attack that benefits nobody.”

_________________________________________________________________________________