The Supreme Court of the United States continued to wreak havoc with legal precedent this month, handing down far-reaching decisions on affirmative action and the first amendment. In Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. President and Fellows of Harvard College, a 6-3 majority on the court ruled that Harvard University’s and the University of North Carolina’s affirmative action programs designed to give African-American students greater opportunity violated what Chief Justice Roberts described as our “colorblind constitution.” The ruling effectively eliminates affirmative action admission programs in higher education, and likely in other venues as well. Robert’s constitution may colorblind, but it is apparently not “sexual preference blind” as the court also ruled, also 6-3, in 303 Creative v. Elenis that a private website designer could legally discriminate against gay couples. The rulings have elicited delight from political conservatives and scorn from progressives. Joining us now to help make sense of it all is Anuj Desai, Volkman-Bascom Professor of Law at the University of Wisconsin Law School.
Image by Mark Thomas from Pixabay
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