AFT’s Weingarten Slams Supreme Court Ruling Overturning Affirmative Action in College Admissions

WASHINGTON—American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten issued the following statement on the Supreme Court’s decision in Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard; Students for Fair Admissions v. UNC:

“Make no mistake: Today’s draconian ruling by the Supreme Court is a catastrophic decision that will have dire outcomes for millions of Americans for decades to come. This decision ignores the original sin of this country—it’s a throwback to a cruel, racist past that admissions policies like this tried to repair. This decision doesn’t simply end affirmative action, it has huge consequences for public life far beyond higher education. Ignoring the facts before them, the majority pretends that both discrimination and the effects of discrimination simply do not exist and do not need to be tackled.

“Justice Sonia Sotomayor is right when she writes in her dissent that ‘the Court subverts the constitutional guarantee of equal protection by further entrenching racial inequality in education, the very foundation of our democratic government and pluralistic society.’

“This is nothing more than politically charged, regressive policymaking from the bench. It’s long past time that Congress fulfills its responsibility in reining in a dangerous court that routinely issues unacceptable, unpopular and damaging opinions in the name of a partisan agenda. Our fight for justice will continue—but this decision is a stain on our nation’s principles that will not be so easily reversed.”