For Immediate Release:  

Contact: media@colorofchange.org 

 

Color Of Change Demands Accountability from Colleges and Corporations Ahead of Supreme Court Ruling on Affirmative Action

 

As the Supreme Court is set to rule on the constitutionality of affirmative action this month, Color Of Change released the following statement from Color Of Change President, Rashad Robinson:

“The Supreme Court’s prerogative to scrap affirmative action is part of a broad, coordinated attack on policies that focus on equity and freedom for people who are not in power. If affirmative action is repealed, the Supreme Court will join the ranks of white, billionaire, right-wing extremists who are trying to take us backward into an era we tried to leave behind, in which one person’s past family legacy matters more than another person’s future potential. We cannot go back to privilege-based hiring and admissions, no matter how many right-wing billionaires manipulate the courts to take us there.” 

“For the last 44 years, affirmative action has always been about combating white privilege and abating a system designed to work only for white men. Privileged-based hiring and admissions are the actual problem and the court’s expected repeal of affirmative action won’t solve these. Instead, the effects of this decision will have immediate negative repercussions, there will be doors immediately slammed shut and opportunities taken off the table for Black people, women, queer people, and poor people overnight.”

“Extensive data shows that the academic and social implications of increased racial diversity at higher education institutions leads to positive outcomes, including higher levels of academic achievement and the improvement of cultural competencies and intergroup relations. Racial equity enhances places of employment and learning for all of us, and protecting equity without affirmative action must start now. Congress must act swiftly to mark a clear path forward in the absence of affirmative action, a path that provides more robust and more actionable solutions for countering privilege. Colleges and universities also need to make bold commitments to new admissions structures that will enable and increase diversity without the use of affirmative action. Lastly, there is now a profound responsibility that falls on corporations and employers to install strong policies that promote the hiring and the retention of Black applicants. As we look toward the future, we will hold these institutions accountable for their actions after the Court’s decision and continue to lead the fight for racial justice in our schools and in our workplaces.”

 

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