Columbia Law School Professors Weigh in on High Court's Affirmative Action Ruling
New York, June 25, 2013—The U.S. Supreme Court yesterday directed lower courts to re-examine whether a race-based admissions policy at the University of Texas at Austin should survive constitutional scrutiny.
The 7-1 decision reignites debates over the consideration of race in higher education.
Several Columbia Law School professors who are leading experts on civil rights are contributing to the national conversation. Here is a selection of some of their commentary:
- Professor Lee C. Bollinger, President of Columbia University, writes that the opinion continues the U.S. Supreme Court's drift away from the ideals it advanced in the civil rights era.
- Professor Kimberlé Williams Crenshaw talks to Tavis Smiley about the ruling and other pending U.S. Supreme Court cases.
- Professor Olatunde Johnson, Professor of Law, breaks down the decision in a blog post for SCOTUSblog.
- Professor Theodore M. Shaw, Professor of Professional Practice in Law, writes that the case extends a 35-year string of cases upholding diversity as a compelling state interest in college admissions.
- Professor Susan P. Sturm, George M. Jaffin Professor of Law and Social Responsibility, explains why “Fisher is not the point” in an opinion piece published in the Chronicle of Higher education.