Anti-affirmative action legal discourse about U.S. higher education within selective institutions race-conscious admissions encompasses co-opted civil rights aims for racial equity in education that maintains white supremacy. Racially progressive efforts to include historically racially minoritized applicants of color have been met with unfounded…

Racisms are plural, taking different forms in different countries, subject to change in focus and intensity over time. Colonialism and slavery influence attitudes and policies in both countries through to modern times. In examining the British and American contexts, one needs to particularise by (a) country, (b) ethnicities, (c) histories, (d)…

In this essay, the author discusses how affirmative action contributed to an unnatural rise in enrollments in college. In considering the higher education bubble, he makes the case that as the opposition to preferences continues to build, the momentum of this trend will only increase as funding shrinks. He offers some tentative answers to a series…

Opponents of higher education affirmative action programs are gearing up to launch their largest attack in recent years. The planned assault comes in the wake of the recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling that severely limited the use of race in K-12 integration plans. It was Ward Connerly, the chairman of the American Civil Rights Institute, a…

A review of literature revealed three groups of scholars expressing concern regarding the Bakke decision: (1) those who agree with the decision; (2) those who disagree with the decision, contending that the state must remedy past societal discrimination; and, (3) those who felt the court was too vague and chose an accommodationist approach.…

Identity is central for research on education since, under certain conditions, it may influence school choice, career preferences and classroom behaviour. Identity also determines disposition toward schooling because it may have the capacity to shape and modify the values, beliefs and characteristics that distinguish one person from another, by…

Reviews United States Supreme Court decisions regarding the correction of racial and sexual discrimination. Concludes that individuals must make up their own minds concerning whether the Supreme Court has contradicted constitutional guarantees against racial discrimination represented by the fourteenth amendment in deciding its recent cases in…

This article uses four data sets to assess changes in the relative weights of test- and performance-based merit criteria on college enrollment during the 1980s and 1990s and considers their significance for affirmative action. Our results support the "shifting meritocracy" hypothesis, revealed by selective postsecondary institutions'…

The six different opinions in the Bakke case are analyzed to gain an understanding of the final decision in light of the issues that were considered by the Supreme Court. The implications for admission, financial aid, and affirmative action programs are discussed. (Author)

Provides responses from a small group of conservative scholars concerning the compromise proposed by Dr. James Q. Wilson indicating that the nation will allow some affirmative action in the form of race-based preferential admissions at the undergraduate level, but not in graduate programs. (GR)

Provides a brief sketch of the position Walter Feinberg stakes out in his book, On Higher Ground. Looks at the most central and problematic thesis of Feinberg's book: the "historical debt" argument. Argues from the perspective of someone who generally agrees with the kind of affirmative action policy Feinberg supports, but on different grounds.…

Shows how Kenneth R. Howe's review to the author's book, "On Higher Ground," might be used to advance and clarify the justifications presented for affirmative action. Addresses a few of the concerns with Howe's review and responds to two main criticisms that Howe presents. (VWC)

Argues that although certain assumptions underlie those who have received affirmative action, these programs have produced many important successes. Examines the ironic polarizing effect of affirmative action and discusses how affirmative action should not be confused with diversity. Highlights the importance of diversity and its role in higher…

An argument is presented that liberal social reforms do not and cannot provide justice. Historical perspectives supporting this thesis are discussed. (JMF)

This article enumerates the implications of the Bakke case for the American educational system and presents alternatives that include the development of an educational system beginning in kindergarten that prepares minority students for professional schools. (JMF)