Explained | US Supreme Court struck down affirmative action: What this means for college admissions

Race is a topic of heated debate in the Unites States. The nation which was witness to slavery during colonial times and later has even seen a civil war on the issue of slavery. Segregation was a common thing even in 20th century. The issue of racism and identity has surfaced once more over US Supreme striking down affirmative action policies for college admissions. The decision has ended decades of a precedent that allowed schools across the country to take steps to increase diversity among students they admit for educational courses

What is affirmative action?

Affirmative action, in the context of higher education, refers to policies designed to increasing the number of Black, Hispanic and other minority students in order for the cohort to be inclusive.

This does not mean that colleges and universities award admissions based on race but in their holistic assessment of an application, they consider race in addition to grades, extra-curricular activities and test scores.

Watch | New era in the US education system: Top court bans affirmative action

Aim of such race conscious admission process is to increase diversity among students who are granted admission. Colleges and universities do not usually disclose their admission process but race-conscious admission process is reportedly common among institutions that are more selective in their intake of students.

Reuters reported that a 2019 survey by National Association for College Admission Counseling revealed that quarter of respondent schools said that race had "considerable" or "moderate" influence on admissions. More than half reported that race did not play any role whatsoever.

Even before the Supreme Court ruling, nine states in the US has banned consideration of race in public colleges and universities. These states are Arizona, California, Florida, Idaho, Michigan, Nebraska, New Hampshire, Oklahoma and Washington.

What is the current litigation in Supreme Court about?

The US Supreme Court was considering two cases when it delivered its verdict on affirmative action. One of the cases was brought by Students for Fair Admissions. This group is headed by Edward Blum who is a conservative legal strategist. He has spent years fighting affirmative action.

One case alleged that Harvard University's admission policy unlawfully discriminates against Asian American applicants. While the other asserted that University of North Carolina unlawfully discriminates against white and Asian American applicants.

Both of the universities have rejected these claims. The universities said that race is determinative in only a small number of cases. The universities also said that barring the practice would result in significant drop in number of minority students on campus.

How has US Supreme Court ruled in the past?

In past, the US Supreme Court, in its ruling across decades, has upheld race-conscious admissions, though not without limits.

In landmark 1978 case, a divided Supreme Court considered the issue. The case was Regents of the University of California v. Bakke. The case was before the Supreme Court in an era when schools had begun taking affirmative action as a result of civil rights movement.

The swing vote, Justice Lewis Powell, ruled that schools could not use affirmative action to rectify past racial discrimination and struck down the university's practice of setting aside a certain number of spots for minorities.

Nevertheless, Powell found that increasing campus diversity was a "compelling interest" because students of all races - not just minorities - would receive a better education if exposed to different viewpoints. Powell ruled that schools could weigh race in admissions as long as it remained only one factor among many.

In the year 2003, the Supreme Court struck down a system in University of Michigan that awarded points to minority applicants. The court held that the system was going too far.

However, the Supreme Court upheld Bakke's central finding that schools could use race as one of several admission factors.

The Supreme Court again upheld race-conscious admissions in a challenge backed by Blum to University of Texas policies.

But the court has moved sharply to the right since then, with six conservative justices now and only three liberals.

What will the universities do now?

Colleges and universities may now have to find new ways to ensure diversity in their student populations. They may have to revamp their policies.

However, other measures may not be so effective.

University of California and University of Michigan have reportedly filed briefs with the US Supreme Court and said that they have outlawed race-conscious admissions. The universities have said that they have spent hundreds of millions of dollars on alternative programs but these measures have fallen short of goals.

The reaction on verdict

US President has expressed his displeasure at the decision to end affirmative action. He said USA's powerful top court was no longer in step with American norms.

"The court has effectively ended affirmative action in college admissions and I strongly, strongly disagree with the court's decision," he said in remarks broadcast live.

Biden said that the ruling "walked away from decades of precedent", adding that universities "should not abandon their commitment" to maintain diversity among their students.

(With inputs from agencies)

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