'Now it’s up to all of us to give young people the opportunities they deserve - and help students everywhere benefit from new perspectives,' he said. Roberts went on to suggest that “outright racial balancing,” as he called it, “is patently unconstitutional,” and suggested admission should be based on “substance, not shadows.”įormer President Barack Obama said in a brief statement that 'like any policy, affirmative action wasn't perfect,' but 'it allowed generations of students like Michelle and me to prove we belonged.' “The University all but said trust us when it comes to making race-based decisions,” Roberts said. He ran through what Harvard and UNC identified as goals to reach, which included preparing graduates for a pluralistic society and growing future leaders, but Roberts said the court would have no way of evaluating whether those goals were attained. Roberts talked about the importance of an eventual “endpoint,” as it relates to race-based admissions. “We conclude that they are not,” Roberts said. In announcing the affirmative action decision, Chief Justice John Roberts reminded that the case was about whether Harvard and UNC’s admissions policies were admissible under the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment. With the bang of a gavel and an “Oyez, Oyez,” by the marshal of the United States Supreme Court, the chief justice and associate justices entered the courtroom, and sat at their seats. He directed the Department of Education to analyze what practices help higher education build a more inclusive and diverse student body. 'I believe our colleges are stronger when they are racially diverse.'īiden proposed that colleges take into account the adversity a student has overcome when selecting among qualified applicants.

'I've always believed that the promise of America is big enough for everyone to succeed, and that every generation of Americans, we have benefited by opening the doors of opportunities just a little bit wider to include those who have been left behind,' Biden said. He went on to say that affirmative action has been misunderstood.

We need to remember that diversity is our strength.' 'We need to keep an open door of opportunities. 'I know today's court decision is a severe disappointment for so many people, including me, but we cannot let the decision be a permanent setback for the country,' he said in remarks at the White House. Biden said he strongly disagrees with the Supreme Court's affirmative action decision, saying that one of the greatest strengths of America is the country's diversity.

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