Exactly one year ago today, the heated issues surrounding affirmative action crashed to the shores of higher education, bringing to light many questions surrounding the future and effectiveness of such programs.
In the case Hopwood v. Texas, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit found that the admissions policies of the University of Texas in Austin discriminated against white and Asian American applicants. Cheryl Hopwood, a white female applicant, sued the Texas School of Law after she was rejected by the school. She accused the defendants of giving substantial racial preferences in their admissions program.
Although the ruling applied only to public universities represented by the 5th District - schools in Texas, Louisiana, and Mississippi - the ruling resonated throughout the academic world.
While the immediate effects of the Hopwood decision remain to be seen until this year's application process is completed, there has already been a decrease in the number of minority applicants to the University of Texas School of Law.
"The University of Texas law school will most likely have between 50 to 80 percent less black enrollees," said Texas Law Prof. Samuel Issacharoff.
Issacharoff said African Americans comprised about 6 percent of last year's entering class.
More recently, another lawsuit has been filed against the University of Washington Law School also alleging that its admissions policies are discriminatory. Both lawsuits, and the passage of California Proposition 209, represent a growing backlash against affirmative action programs, which were initiated under President Lyndon B. Johnson in 1965 to remedy the effects of past discrimination.
Three decades later, skepticism about the effectiveness of affirmative action is rampant, and it is debated whether the programs are still necessary.
"I do not believe we are yet to the point where affirmative action programs can be dismantled without causing serious damage to the ability of social institutions to serve all of society," said former University of Michigan President James Duderstadt, an outspoken advocate of diversity at the University.
Duderstadt launched the Michigan Mandate and the Michigan Agenda for Women, both of which aimed to "increase the participation of underrepresented minorities among students, faculty and staff, while building a campus community which both valued and sustained diversity."
But philosophy Prof. Carl Cohen, a vocal critic of preferences by race, called the University's admissions policies illegal and discriminatory. "The University professes a policy of non-discrimination by race," Cohen said. "I support that 100 percent, but the admissions policies of the University are discriminatory."
Vice Provost for Academic and Multicultural Affairs Lester Monts called affirmative action an important tool for achieving diversity.
"California and Texas show that affirmative action is at risk," Monts said.
One of the forces fueling the debate about the implementation of these programs is the Center for Individual Rights, a law firm in Washington, D.C. that sponsored both cases against the University of Texas and Washington.
Robert Alt, director of public relations and education for the Center for Individual Rights, said segregation exists in America today and it is often participated in and funded by federal agencies.
"When you treat people clearly different on the basis of race, equal protection of the law is violated," Alt said.
Should the lawsuit against the University of Washington be appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals, the possibility of conflicting decisions rendered by the 9th and 5th Districts could force the U.S. Supreme Court to re-examine the constitutionality of affirmative action.
Since taking office in February, University President Lee Bollinger has reaffirmed the University's commitment to diversity, calling the Hopwood decision a threat to diversity.
"Having students and faculty from diverse backgrounds, representing a wide range of perspectives and talents, is critically important not only for instilling a positive sense of community within and beyond the University, but also for creating the most vital intellectual and educational atmosphere," Bollinger said. "Racial and ethnic diversity is a critical component of this broader goal."
But Cohen said diversity extends beyond skin color.
"Diversity is not racial proportionality," said Cohen, who has authored several books and articles about affirmative action. "It's a range of different points of view and intellect."
Jeanne Harris, speaker for the Black Student Union, said she would like to see the University take more aggressive actions to achieve diversity.
"The measures that the University has taken show a definite commitment to diversity - yet the commitment is one in which the University is not motivated to move outside its comfort zone," Harris said.
JOHN KRAFT/Daily
Carl Cohen, Residential College professor of philosophy and politics, resides in a house overlooking Nichols Arboretum. Cohen is an outspoken critic of racial preferencing policies in higher education.