Judge rules Harvard admissions doesn't discriminate against Asian Americans

Harvard students rallied in favor of the university's admission policies before the trial begain in 2018.

Harvard's affirmative action policy "passes constitutional muster" and doesn't discriminate against Asian Americans ruled a federal judge Tuesday (Oct. 1).

In U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts federal Judge Allison D. Burroughs issued her decision, saying "the Court finds no persuasive documentary evidence of any racial animus or conscious prejudice against Asian Americans." In the decision, Burroughs said that while Harvard's admissions program is "not perfect," "ensuring diversity at Harvard relies, in part, on race conscious admissions."

“Ultimately, the Court finds that Harvard has met its burden of showing that its admissions process complies with the principles articulated by the Supreme Court in Fisher II,” she wrote, referring to an earlier affirmative action challenge, Fisher v. University of Texas, which was instigated by anti-affirmative action advocate Edward Blum.

Blum was also president of Students for Fair Admissions (SFFA), which reportedly represents several Asian American students in the case against Harvard. Blum said he was disappointed in Burrough's ruling.

"SFFA will appeal this decision to the 1st Court of Appeals and, if necessary, to the U.S Supreme Court," he said.

Blum's statement demonstrates that while the Boston court trial is over, the debate over affirmative action is far from over. With the conservative majority currently in the Supreme Court, civil rights advocates fear that affirmative action could still be overturned.

Tuesday's "decision is a critical victory for Asian American students, who benefit from affirmative action and support race-conscious admissions policies,” said Aarti Kohli, executive director of Advancing Justice - Asian Law Caucus. “While we must do more to ensure that Asian American students do not face unequal opportunities through harassment, stereotyping and language barriers, the use of race-conscious admissions policies — which safeguard against discrimination — is an important step.”

Rep. Judy Chu, D-CA, said, “It is shameful that the educational playing field remains unequal for so many students of color, including many within the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community who continue to face significant barriers to attaining a college degree. 

"For instance, only 14% of Laotians, 16% of Cambodians, and 19% of Pacific Islanders have a bachelor’s degree. These educational disparities show us why it is important to expand opportunities to higher education for all students, including AAPIs, who have benefited from race-conscious admissions policies that help to level the playing field," she continued.

Harvard University President Lawrence S. Bacow wrote in a statement Tuesday that the College’s consideration of race in its admissions process “helps us achieve our goal of creating a diverse student body that enriches the education of every student.”

“Everyone admitted to Harvard College has something unique to offer our community, and today we reaffirm the importance of diversity—and everything it represents to the world,” he wrote.

“I applaud the Harvard students who made their voices heard in this case and during the trial. They made vividly clear the benefits of student body diversity,” he wrote. “I also saw firsthand the intense commitment of many, including all those who testified, and who defended and supported the University, with tremendous acumen and skill, and I am deeply grateful for their excellent work.”

HARVARD UNIVERSITY

None of the Asian American students SFFA purportedly represents didn't want to testify during the trial. The testimony of the students in favor of affirmative action played a major factor in Burrough's decision. She wrote that their testimonies showed how race played a critical role in their experiences before and during their time at Harvard.

"The students who are admitted to Harvard and choose to attend will live and learn surrounded by all sorts of people, with all sorts of experiences, beliefs and talents" she wrote. "They will have the opportunity to know and understand one another beyond race, as whole individuals with unique histories and experiences. It is this, at Harvard and elsewhere that will move us, one day, to the point where we see that race is a fact, but not the defining fact and not the fact that tells us what is important, but we are not there yet."

The basis for Blum's lawsuit was that Harvard discriminated against Asian applicants who had higher test scores than some of the students admitted through Harvard's admission policies which considers race as one factor in looking at a student holistically.

The trial and debate also exposed an apparent schism in the Asian American community that Blum took advantage of. Generally, it pitted long-time AAPI civil rights organizations against newer immigrants -- primarily from China -- who pushed for a pure meritocratic evaluation of test scores, GPA and extracurricular activities without out taking into account other socio-economic factors -- including race -- in an applicant's background.

With the focus on Harvard's admissions, researchers also learned that the university had a high proportion of so-called "legacy" students, who are children of large donors, alumni, children of alumni or who have special skills, such as athletics. Roughly three-quarters of white legacy students would have been rejected if they had been treated the same as non-white legacy students. 

“As an Asian American, affirmative action helped give me a fair shot in Harvard’s application process,” said student Sally Chen, who testified in support of Harvard in the trial last fall. “The court made the right decision for Asian Americans, for diversity in education, and for all of the students like me who believe race is an important part of our identity and something we deserve to be able to share. The fight for racial equity is far from over. I will continue to fight for race-conscious policies on behalf of other Asian American students at Harvard and across other college campuses.”

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