The Justice Department has confirmed it is investigating Harvard for violation of civil rights in connection with its affirmative action program.
Through the Freedom of Information Act, American Oversight and the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law confirmed the review by the Department of Justice.
“This is a deeply troubling revelation that potentially threatens to undermine the educational opportunities of African Americans, Latinos and other racial minorities,” said the Lawyer’s Committee in a statement. “It is truly shameful to see this Justice Department forging ahead with a baseless investigation into race-conscious admissions policies at our nation’s colleges and universities.”
According to several reports, Asian Americans are being used by conservatives as a wedge to bring down these diversity programs.
A complaint filed by 60 little known Asian American groups against Harvard was dismissed in 2015 by the US Department of Education. Harvard said at the time that the percentage of Asian Americans had increased from 17 percent to 21 percent in the last decade.
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That happened under the Obama Administration, but the Trump White House has spent its first year working to overturn the legacy of Obama.
Affirmative action remains a hot button issue, according to the publication Diverse Education.
“If there is some discrimination going on against Asians, it is not due to affirmative action,” said Nicole Gon Och of Advancing Justice-LA during a a panel discussion organized by the Education Writer’s Association.
The Asian American Coalition for Education (AACE), however, says there are quotas limiting the admission of Asian Americans in higher education. Both sides agree if such a quota exists, it is a concern.
“It’s very difficult to speculate why” discrimination against Asian American students is happening, said Yukong Zhao, president and co-founder of AACE.
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RE: Justice Dept Investigates Harvard for Discrimination against Asian Americans: Can anyone explain why Asians have to score higher than race in order to be admitted to colleges?