Supreme Court to weigh affirmative action in colleges

Wed, 10 Oct 2012 16:42:00 +0000

Abigail Noel Fisher applied to the University of Texas at Austin in 2008 and was denied a place. Fisher -- a white woman -- fell short of the top 10 percent of her Texas high school's graduating class, which would have guaranteed her admission into the state university. Instead she had to compete in an applications process in which talents, circumstance and race were all considered. Considering her rejection an instance of discrimination based on race, Fisher, along with one other white girl, sued UT.

Today, Fisher v. University of Texas reaches the Supreme Court. Justices will consider whether the university's consideration of race in admissions is constitutional. According to Wendy Kopp, founder of Teach for America who has come out in support of UT on this issue, Fisher's suit "challenges the right of all colleges to use race in a holistic process that fosters diverse student bodies."

The SCOTUS hearing has attracted considerable attention; groups and individuals have sent amicus briefs to the court in support of both Fisher and UT (17 briefs support Fisher while 73 support the university). CBS News noted:

Salon.com > University of Texas

Supreme Court to weigh affirmative action in colleges