Browsing by Author "Michigan Journal of Race & Law"
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- The Compelling Need for Diversity in Higher EducationMichigan Journal of Race & Law (Michigan Journal of Race and Law, 1999)In the controversial 1996 case of Hopwood v. State of Texas, the Fifth Circuit defied the Supreme Court's opinion in Bakke v. Regents of the University of California, by ruling that institutions of higher education do not have a 'compelling interest' in enrolling a racially diverse student body. Since then, critics of race-conscious admissions policies have sought out similar judicial challenges in courts across the country. In particular, the Center for Individual Rights ("CIR"), which represented the Hopwood plaintiffs, has led the charge to prohibit colleges and universities from seeking to enroll racially diverse student bodies. CIR represents three white applicants who have brought two lawsuits against the University of Michigan challenging as unlawful its policy of considering race as one of many factors in the process for admissions to the College of Literature, Science and the Arts, and the Law School. The University of Michigan has brought together a team of leading scholars to serve as its experts in these cases to establish the basis for the University's argument that there is a compelling need for diversity in higher education. Their research is evidence that the use of race in higher education admissions is not only constitutional, but of vital importance to education and to our society.
- Perspectives on Affirmative Action / Rethinking Racial Divides: Asian Pacific Americans and the LawMichigan Journal of Race & Law (Michigan Journal of Race & Law, 1998)For more than 20 years, the issue of affirmative action has spawned major legal and political battles. On October 14, 1997, The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor found itself on the front lines of those battles when the Center for Individual Rights (CIR) filed suit in federal court on behalf of several White students who failed to get into the undergraduate college.' In their complaint, the plaintiffs charge the University with unconstitutional discrimination on the basis of race, claiming that they were not admitted as result of the race-conscious admissions policy maintained by the school.' On December 3, 1997 CIR filed another action against the University of Michigan Law School on behalf of a White woman who had similarly not been admitted to the Law School.3 The advent of these lawsuits sparked a range of responses among members of the University of Michigan community. Law students debated the issue, developed statements, and held press conferences. Additionally, students brought in speakers and panels to discuss, debate and explore affirmative action and related issues. This report compiles the statements on affirmative action followed by the Asian Pacific American Law Students Association Symposium.