This story first appeared in Power Shift, The Yappie's weekly newsletter on national AAPI power, politics, and influence. Subscribe for free here.
The Supreme Court has agreed to hear a case alleging racial discrimination against Asian American middle school students, a move that could test race-neutral admissions policies amid an escalating wave of rhetoric accusing Asian Americans of taking away educational and job opportunities.
How we got here: A coalition of Asian American parents sued Maryland’s Montgomery County school board in 2020 challenging the lottery-based admissions system at four competitive magnet middle schools, which they claim violates equal protection laws under the 14th Amendment and was designed to reduce Asian enrollment.
- The school board implemented the policy in the 2021-2022 school year as part of a broader effort to address racial disparities—grades and test scores are still considered throughout the process—and maintains that they are committed to “providing equitable access to rigorous opportunities for all students,” per Maryland Matters.
- A report had previously found that Black and Latino students were underrepresented while Asian students were overrepresented, NBC News reports.
Lower courts rejected the case because the group couldn’t show the Asian American share of admissions fell below their share of the applicant pool, and ruled that there’s no evidence the policy was motivated by discriminatory intent.
The latest: The Supreme Court said Monday it would consider whether a case “challenging a facially neutral admissions policy as racially discriminatory must establish that the targeted racial group suffered an aggregate disparate impact relative to its share of the applicant pool” in order to proceed.
- That means justices aren’t expected to rule on the policy’s constitutionality—they will decide a more technical question over the evidence needed to bring such a claim.
- Still, it reopens the ongoing debate over affirmative action, which has taken newfound prominence with the far-right movement peddling the Great Replacement Theory.
Our take: The coalition suing the school board is represented by Pacific Legal Foundation, a conservative-leaning organization that has challenged other policies benefiting marginalized communities.
- While the foundation appears to advocate for Asian American interests in this case, their degree of success could also shape arguments for future anti-DEI lawsuits.
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