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students and students of color attending institutions of higher education, it is clear that the affirmative action policies directly impact marginalized students’ access to these institutions.42 If the Supreme Court decides to undermine the affirmative action principles in education, “employment lawyers may then argue for a complete ban on race-consciousness in hiring as well.”43 Education policies and employment policies are inherently intertwined.44 According to Marilynn Schuyler an employment attorney and a aboard member for the American Association for Access, Equity and Diversity, “[e]ducation is a great equalizer, and if we want to have diverse people working in good jobs, we need a diverse applicant pool from which to choose and we need affirmative action to get there.”45
V. The Possible Conclusion
It is likely that the Supreme Court’s upcoming decision will invalidate affirmative action policies.46 Professor Greenhouse, a clinical lecturer and senior research scholar at Yale Law School and a former New York Times Supreme Court reporter highlighted that “the fact that the Supreme Court chose to hear this case despite the findings of lower courts in favor of the universities” leads her to believe that the Justices want to utilize this opportunity to change the current legal precedent that exists.47 With the likelihood of affirmative action policies in higher education being held unconstitutional, we should also prepare for more challenges to race based affirmative action policies, being challenged soon, including in the employment arena.
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Id.
Jordan Fitzgerald & Philip Mousavizaded, ANALYSIS: Experts weigh in on Supreme Court affirmative action case, Yale
Daily News, https://yaledailynews.com/blog/2022/02/18/analysis-experts-weigh-in-on-supreme-court-affirmative- action-case/ (last visited March 7, 2022).
Id. Id. Id. Id.
Imoh E. Akpan is an FDCC Defense Counsel Member and Co-Chair of its Diversity Committee. He is also a Partner with the Goldberg Segalla law firm in the Baltimore, MD office. Contact him at: iakpan@ goldbergsegalla.com. Alana Glover assisted in the research and writing of this article. She is an Associate with the firm.
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