Adarand Constructors v. Pena
Should treat everyone equally.
Recent Supreme Court rulings have upheld the use of affirmative action programs in schools but have also imposed limitations on their implementation, such as emphasizing that race cannot be the decisive factor in admissions decisions. The rulings aim to strike a balance between promoting diversity and ensuring that the programs are narrowly tailored and do not result in quotas or discrimination against other groups.
Regents of the University of California v. Bakke, although written in the context of a divided court, held for the first time that affirmative action programs should be strictly scrutinized by courts and that diversity within educational institutions was a compelling interest. This court entertained argument on a wide array of contentions for and against affirmative action, so it provided guidance to future courts that their real focus should be on forward looking diversity as opposed to precedent concerning reparations for historic discrimination.
The strict scrutiny test; the state must be able to show that some "compelling governmental interest" justifies the distinctions it has drawn between classes of people.
supreme court jsut a guess
Two USSC cases which dealt with affirmative action cases were Grutter v. Bollinger and Regents of the University of California v. Bakke. It was in these two cases that the Court dealt with the issue of affirmative action in university admissions. Both cases resulted in a very divided Court; even with 25 years between the two decisions. The effectiveness of affirmative action, if correctly addressed, had a place in the job force as well as education admissions. As the Court explained any affirmative action program that is "narrowly tailored", temporary and flexible did not place undue burdens on racial groups as a whole. States and schools have a compelling interest to ensure past racial considerations and minority diversity are prevalent in the process of hiring and educating. As far as the current and future needs of affirmative action I believe that, especially with the influx of diversity in our population, the need for programs has changed. We are not the country we were 50 years ago and continue to "blend" amongst ourselves in a way that creates no definite or absolute racial groups. During the last census, for example, almost half of the people in the United States when asked to check the appropriate box for their race marked more than one answer. Although racism is still prevalent in our country today with the current demographic trends we will surely see a downturn in the use of affirmative action programs in the future.
University of California v. Bakke
The court case that reviewed the policy of affirmative action is Grutter v. Bollinger (2003). In this landmark decision, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the University of Michigan Law School's affirmative action admissions policy, affirming that the use of race as one of many factors in admissions decisions serves a compelling interest in achieving a diverse student body. The Court ruled that such policies are constitutional as long as they are narrowly tailored and do not employ a quota system. This case reinforced the idea that diversity is beneficial in educational settings.
Various laws have restricted certain kinds of discrimination in the United States. Like State Legislatures, the Congress of the United States has the power to pass statutes regulating a wide range of activity. The 1964 Civil Rights Act, for example, placed limits on discrimination (among other things) in the workplace and at businesses that are open to the public. The decisions of the Supreme Court of the United States are another source of law because Supreme Court decisions that interpret the Constitution become the supreme law of the land. Responding to various cases and controvercies that have come before it, the Court has repeatedly ruled that no government entity may discriminate on the basis of race without meeting what is called "strict scrutiny." For governmental discrimination on the basis of race to stand, the government must show both a "compelling interest" and show that no less restrictive means would meet that interest. The practical impact of this requirement is that virtually all governmental race discrimination is prohibited. (One important exception is affirmative action.) The Supreme Court has similarly ruled that no governmental entity may discriminate on the basis of gender without meeting what the Court calls "intermediate scrutiny." In contrast to strict scrutiny, which requires a compelling governmental interest and narrowly tailored means to that end, the intermediate scrutiny test is slightly easier to pass. To pass intermediate scrutiny and permissibly discriminate on the basis of gender, a governmental entitly must prove an important government interest and must prove the means used to reach that end are substantially related to that interest. While there has not yet been a law that bans all forms of discrimination in all contexts, stautes passed by Congress and rulings of the Supreme Court have worked together to combat many of discrimination's harmful effects.
If a business is trying to abide by Affirmative Action Laws, which of the following would be acceptable by the Supreme Court?
In Bakke v Regents of the University of California, Alan Bakke, who had applied to the University and been rejected, sued the Regents claiming that his civil rights as a white had been denied by the University's policy of affirmative action for non--white applicants. Affirmative action, he argued, violated the Civil RIghts Act of 1964, which forbids racial discrimination by the federal government or any program (such as a state university) that receives federal funding. The Supreme Court held that affirmative action was constitutionally allowed so long as race was only one of several factors taken into account by admissions officers, but that strict quotas that could apply regardless of qualifications violated the law.
Democratic views on affirmative action vary, but most Democrats support it as a means to promote equality and diversity. They believe that affirmative action is necessary to address historical disadvantages faced by marginalized groups, and it helps to create a more inclusive and equitable society. Democrats generally argue that affirmative action policies should be implemented to ensure equal opportunities in education, employment, and other areas.