ACLU Statement on Department of Justice Filing in Harvard University Admissions Lawsuit

The Department of Justice filed a statement of interest in the Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard case. The American Civil Liberties Union issued the following statement in response:

“In its latest move to dismantle progress in racial equity, the Department of Justice has inserted itself into the Harvard University admissions lawsuit, challenging Harvard’s consideration of race as part of a whole-person admissions process. This argument comes on the heels of the administration’s decision to reverse the Obama-era guidance on affirmative action.

“While the DOJ’s brief does not challenge Supreme Court precedent granting universities the right to freely select their own student body—presumably because it cannot do so at this stage of the litigation—the Trump administration has advocated for “race-blind” policies, which Harvard and virtually all other universities have found are demonstrably insufficient to achieve meaningful diversity, given the reality of historic and continuing racial discrimination in this country.

“The ACLU will be filing a friend-of-court brief supporting Harvard this morning.”