Harvard Accused of Discriminating Against Asian-Americans
The organization Students for Fair Admissions is accusing Harvard University of holding Asian-American students to higher requirements than students of other races when considering applicants.
Students for Fair Admissions first took legal action against Harvard University in 2014, arguing that it tries to limit how many Asian-American students it accepts.
The organization argues that race should not be considered when deciding which students to accept, saying that it is unfair and illegal. It accuses Harvard of discriminating against Asian-Americans trying to get into the school by giving them a “personal rating.”
Lawyers for Students for Fair Admissions said these ratings measure personal qualities such as “likability.” Such qualities are measured subjectively, leaving the process open to discrimination, the lawyers argued. The group says it has more than 20,000 members, including students, parents and others.
But Harvard denies the accusations, saying it uses race as one of many things it considers in admissions decisions. It believes considering race can help create a diverse community “where students from all walks of life” can learn from each other.
The university has noted that its share of Asian-American students has grown in recent years, reaching 23 percent of the latest first year class.
Harvard also reports that 15.2 percent of its most recent first year class is African-American. Hispanic or Latino students make up 12.3 percent, while 1.9 percent are Native American.
Education and employment policies that consider race are known as affirmative action. Such policies were introduced to help make up for decades of racial discrimination of minority groups.
Earlier this year, the Trump administration announced it was removing guidelines meant to increase student diversity at US schools. Some university officials, however, criticized the move and said they would continue their efforts toward creating diverse student populations.
