Cantrell v. Granholm

Shortly after the Supreme Court's decision to uphold the constitutionality of affirmative action in 2003's Grutter v. Bollinger, opponents of equal opportunity began a campaign to destroy affirmative action in Michigan. The result was Proposal 2, a ballot initiative campaign marked by widespread fraud and deception. Although a federal court found the proponents of the initiative, the so-called American Civil Rights Institute, to have committed a campaign of deception in violation of the rights of the citizens of Michigan, the initiative was nonetheless put before the voters in the fall of 2006 and passed by a margin of 58% to 42%. In response, Michigan's public universities put an end to their affirmative action programs.

In December of 2006, a diverse group of students, prospective students and faculty at the University of Michigan, represented by the ACLU, NAACP Legal Defense Fund and others, filed suit against Proposal 2. The lawsuit, Cantrell v. Granholm, argued that Proposal 2 violates the Equal Protect Clause of the United States Constitution by creating a double standard in university admissions for people of color. The suit argued that Proposal 2 denies students of color the opportunity to talk about their racial experiences, while leaving other students free to talk about other non-academic factors, thereby discriminating against students of color. The suit also maintained that the passage of Proposal 2 created an unfair political process in establishing a lengthy and expensive campaign to amend the Michigan constitution as the only remedy for any student of color who might wish to challenge a university's admissions policies.

A federal judge dismissed the lawsuit in March of 2008.

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Read more about the case at the ACLU of Michigan's website