The United States Supreme Court has declared that Affirmative Action in universities is unconstitutional by the 14th amendment, and is unlawful at Harvard University and the University of North Carolina. Justice Clarence Thomas’ statement on the decision is as follows: “The Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment enshrines a guarantee of racial equality. The court long ago concluded that this guarantee can be enforced through race-conscious means in a society that is not, and has never been, colorblind.”

It’s true that academia has never been colorblind. Students of color have had to fight for their spots in classrooms and prove their brilliance against the imposing nature of white legacies. But Affirmative Action is a tool for assistance, not another factor of oppression. It’s meant to combat the oppressive nature of academia and aid in creating a more diverse academic population.

Arguing that Affirmative Action is dangerous to racial equity thinly veils the true nature of the decision, which is clearly in favor of white supremacy.

What is Affirmative Action?

Affirmative Action, also known as positive action or positive discrimination, is acts or progressions toward representation of previously underrepresented communities in professional environments. It enlists preferential selection of people and groups who have historically been excluded from such environments, whether it be because of financial status, race, ethnicity or gender identity.

In universities, this looks like considering a student’s background, race and identity as a factor in deciding if they are accepted as an applicant. It’s a tool meant to ensure students equitable access to academics. This includes BIPOC students, lower income students needing financial assistance and first-generation college applicants.

Affirmative Action was not developed as a tool of exclusion, nor was it intended to be used to catalyze further segregation between BIPOC students and white legacies.

Pure White Supremacy

There is no clear reason for the repeal other than the point-blank white supremacy of the conservative right Supreme Court Justices. The argument against Affirmative Action exacerbates the racism of academia — students who benefit from Affirmative Action must work harder than their peers to prove their place, and those without it are excluded altogether.

But the Justices themselves are not actually concerned with racism in these spaces. They don’t care about anti-racist systems in universities. They simply don’t want diverse academic environments and will use any argument to acquire such desired results.

Back in 2015, Chief Justice John Roberts, who signed the majority opinion against Affirmative Action, asked, “What unique perspective does a minority student bring to a physics class?”

The decision also seems to have resulted from Justice Thomas’s own emotional projections. Thomas exhibited hatred for Affirmative Action, ever since he himself attended Yale law school on it. He felt that his post-grad professional rejections were not for any other reason than his status as an Affirmative Action student, claiming that it harms the students it claims to benefit.

Affirmative Action guarantees that students will have academic opportunities where they haven’t historically. While academia is more difficult for first-generation students and students of color, Affirmative Action is meant to help and should have no negative connotation in the professional world.

Justice Thomas makes a hypocritical mockery of Affirmative Action, and the decision to repeal it doesn’t benefit the majority of students. The American political system is sick with centuries of white supremacy. This sickness has always been sinister, but now, it’s making us move backwards. The government’s decisions are dooming history to repeat itself — robbing young students who are first-generation, low income and in need. It chokes academia of the diversity it needs.

What worries me most about this decision are the repercussions on young Americans and our wellbeing. Students like me — white and able-bodied, whose parents attended college — will carry on as normal, while students who are positively affected by Affirmative Action risk being left behind. Without opportunity, many students will miss out on higher education, and I fear this is what SCOTUS wants.

A population without access to education is unaware of the cruelties of the government. It will be immune to the symptoms of history repeating itself, and of its civilization rotting underneath it.

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@harperlhargis