Local appeals court upholds Michigan Law's race-based admissions policies. Supreme Court's next?

CNN.com ^ | May 14th, 2002 | NationalDebtGrows

[NationalDebtGrows]

Today a Michigan Appeals Court overturned a federal district judge's having eliminated racist admissions policies at the University of Michigan School of Law (which is one of the three highest ranked public law schools in the USA). Shall racism continue at Michigan and U.Va. (etcetera) or shall the U.S. Supreme Court now speak out on affirmative action in admissions policies for the first time in a quarter of a century?

[NationalDebtGrows]

We've recently seen how racist U.Va. Law School's admissions policies are (http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/675325/posts ). Today a federal appeals court upheld Michigan Law School's racist policies by overturning a federal district judge's having eliminated them on Constitutional grounds, for not being color-blind. The U.S. Supreme Court hasn't ruled on this issue in a quarter of a century. Will it do something now?

[mondonico]

The Dems' strategy of delay is working--by blocking Bush's judges, they are permitting the erosion of the Constitution by decisions such as this one.

The US Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit is the one that is most affected by the shortage of judges. If they had approved just one Bush nominee to this Court, the decision would have been a tie; if two, it would have gone the other way.

It is clearer than ever that we must take back the Senate. The Constitution depends on it.

Support the National Republican Senatorial Committee today.

(And, to any who feel differently, please spare me the "but they supported a RINO in the primary" whining--what's more of a problem: a RINO we can ditch later or an appellate judge or Supreme Court Justice with life tenure? As another FREEPER pointed out on another thread, Arlen Specter was key to Clarence Thomas's confirmation.)

[connectthedots]

The U.S. Suprene Court will take this case and reverse the Circuit Court of Appeals.

[MichaelP]

It will take years to rid the country of Clintoon's legacy....Mike

[ET(end tyranny)]

I would hope that affirmative action stays out of it and that attendance would be based on academic records and ability to pay the tuition by whatever means. But then again I am for keeping politics out of the classroom.

[NationalDebtGrows]

I've been told that the U.S. Supreme Court waits until there's a clear disparity between how different federal circuits are ruling on an issue before the justices rule on it. Anyhow, I seem to recall that such racist admissions policies were already thrown out by the federal courts in the Texas region, right? Perhaps in Florida as well, in support of Jeb Bush's policies? Meanwhile, the U. of California threw race-based quotas out, but I don't know if the court system weighted in out there.

I do know, though, that once academic quotas ended in Florida, black enrollment INCREASED overall in Florida's university system, as well as in 8 of its 9 universities. Meanwhile, when California abolished quotas Asian enrollment increased substantially. How could this happen if quotas supposedly "help" minorities?

For one thing, it became harder for minorities' parents and friends to pressure them to party or attend family events rather than actually study. There was no longer the reassurance that admissions would be guaranteed, regardless. It therefore became less embarrassing for such family and friends NOT to be able to count on such aspiring students' participation.

Meanwhile, banks are more likely to make loans to those whose academic credentials are genuinely EARNED, regardless of their skin color. Thus, a degree became more worthy of minorities' pursuit once race-based quotas were abolished. I'm not speaking merely abstractually here...there are many highly accomplished blacks who DESPISE quotas. Quotas GREATLY dilute potential prestige. Their existence also makes it politically much tougher to rally minorities behind demanding academic reforms such as the emergence of tuition vouchers in high schools. Indeed, Washington D.C.'s voucher system has been demonstrated to help blacks considerably in Washington D.C. That town's system was such a basket case that reform couldn't be averted by the teachers' unions. Philadelphia recently followed suit by privatizing around 1 in 4 high schools.

With our record high $6 trillion dollar national debt (Here's the U.S. Treasury's official National Debt website), we had better start getting more for the $8,000 per K-12 student per year that we taxpayers spend. Japan's already bankrupt. Is the USA next? Hopefully the U.S. Supreme Court will stand up to Michigan Law and any other school that caves in to teachers unions like this.

[FreeTally]

Didn't the SCOTUS knock down similar admissions policies in Georgia a few years ago?

[mhking]

Didn't the SCOTUS knock down similar admissions policies in Georgia a few years ago?Yep. But the excuse this time (as flimsy as it is) is that this helps "diversity" (whatever that's supposed to mean). Last I checked "diversity" didn't have a bloody thing to do with whether or not you are qualified to be a lawyer, nor whether or not you have enough knowledge or skills to pass the bar in any state in the Union.

Ah, but in this new "politically correct" age, we have to be more "diverse," eh? So does that mean that "diversity" questions are going to start showing up on bar exams?

[NationalDebtGrows]

Ha! Funny you should ask about the bar exam. Believe it or not, the First Amendment (which is tested rather significantly on the bar exams) is completely ignored in the semester's curriculum of the only mandatory Constitutional Law Classes of the University of Virginia. Needless to say, though, diversity issues ("equal protection", etcetera) get several weeks of tax subsidized coverage in that obligatory class. It would seem that the Ivory Tower liberals want us to know how to be social engineers, but ones who conveniently lack knowledge about how to most aggressively publicly oppose mistaken policies.

[FreeTally]

I doubt the "diversity" excuse is going to go to far with the SCOTUS. It would hard for them to find on the basis of constitutional law that Georgia was wrong, but Michigan is right.

[mondonico]

Laws that discriminate on the basis of race are constitutionally suspect and subject to the Court's "strict scrutiny" standard--the law in question has to achieve an almost legitimate, compelling, governmental interest by the least discriminatory means possible. It's hard to see how "diversity" constitutes a compelling governmental interest, or how race-based preferences are the least discriminatory means of achieving it. There's no reason to believe that one brings a diversity of opinion solely by virtue of one's skin color, is there? To argue otherwise is the essence of racism.

[smolensk]

To consider race as a factor in determining admission to a school is simple black-approved RACIAL PROFILING. They want it both ways! They are against it when it might help catch crooks, but all for it when the time comes to hand-out 'charity' admission permits.

[NationalDebtGrows]

So they want to have their pigmentation but profile it too?

[Balding_Eagle]

It will take years to rid the country of Clintoon's legacy....Mike

Underscores the importance of begining now.

[NationalDebtGrows]

I can't think of a SINGLE example of where racial diversity (as opposed to socioeconomic, geographic or intellectual diversity) added anything of intellectual value during my own years of undergraduate and graduate study. On the other hand, though, I can think of plenty examples where it detracted from it. And I always tried to be fair, open-minded, and compassionate too.

Hmmm.... I guess that means that I DID learn something new and worthwhile as a result: racial quotas involve an improper use of tax dollars. No more of this hiding one's pigmentation, but profiling it too, o.k. SCOTUS?

[VA Advogado]

The early scoop on this case is that it was a 5-4 decision by the full court of appeals. Apparently the 3 judge panel that was assigned the case waited until 2 conservative judges retired before asking the full court to review and render an opinion. Keep in mind, this court of appeals is short about 6 judges waiting for Senate confirmation.

[Jim Noble]

>> It's hard to see how "diversity" constitutes a compelling governmental interest, or how race-based preferences are the least discriminatory means of achieving it<<

Even if the defendants prove this, they still have to also prove that only unqualified blacks will suffice to achieve diversity.

Unqualified whites won't do, nor will qualified blacks.

This policy does not advantage blacks as a class-only those blacks who cannot meet the requirements at the school in question.

The expectations of liberals vis a vis blacks stand revealed again.

[Dan from Michigan]

And CARL LEVIN is the key jerk to blame...and he's running for re-election.

And I'm voting for ROCKY. Andrew "Rocky" Raczkowski.

[Enlightiator]

Bump, and thanks for the link.