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A4 U.S. NEWS
Thursday 4 February 2021
Justice Department drops Yale admissions discrimination suit

By COLLEEN LONG and MI- to combat anti-Asian dis-
CHAEL BALSAMO crimination,” said Yukong
Associated Press Zhao, the president of the
WASHINGTON (AP) — In Asian American Coalition
another reversal of Trump- for Education.
era policy, the Biden ad- But the decision was lauded
ministration on Wednesday by other civil rights groups,
dropped its discrimination including one run by the
lawsuit against Yale Uni- Biden administration’s in-
versity that alleged the Ivy coming assistant attorney
League school was ille- general for civil rights. “It
gally discriminating against has been proven in the
Asian American and white courts that race-conscious
applicants. admissions programs are
Federal prosecutors said lawful, and Black students
the Justice Department’s and other students of color
underlying investigation, who come from all walks
aimed at ensuring Yale of life can rest a little easier
complies with federal anti- knowing our government is
discrimination laws, con- looking to lift them up, not
tinues. The government divide and suppress,” said
accused Yale in October David Hinojosa, director of
of violating civil rights laws In this May 24, 2010 file photo, future graduates wait for the procession to begin for commencement the Educational Opportuni-
because it “discriminates at Yale University in New Haven, Conn. ties Project at the Lawyers’
based on race and nation- Associated Press Committee for Civil Rights
al origin in its undergradu- Under Law. The group’s
ate admissions process, it was dropping the suit “in crimination against Asian missions process and that president, Kristen Clarke, is
and that race is the deter- light of all available facts, Americans in education.” Yale “racially balances its Biden’s nominee to run the
minative factor in hundreds circumstances, and legal The change in administra- classes.” Justice Department’s civil
of admissions decisions developments” but didn’t tions brought an end to the The Supreme Court has rights division
each year.” specify further. The govern- suit, but the challenge to ruled colleges and univer- Biden’s Justice Department
The investigation stemmed ment also notified Yale that college admissions policies sities may consider race in is working to undo Trump
from a 2016 complaint it had withdrawn its deter- that take race into account admissions decisions but policies, including “zero tol-
by the New Jersey-based mination letter that the uni- is alive in a case against has said that must be done erance,” the immigration
Asian American Coalition versity discriminated based Harvard’s practices. in a narrowly tailored way policy that was responsible
for Education coalition on race and national ori- The challengers have lost to promote diversity and for family separations. Also
against Yale, Brown and gin. Yale was gratified and at each round in the low- should be limited in time. Wednesday, the Supreme
Dartmouth. pleased by those two de- er courts, but their appeal Schools also bear the bur- Court agreed to requests
Yale said its practices com- velopments, spokesperson is expected in the com- den of showing why their from the Biden admin-
ply with decades of Su- Karen Peart said. ing weeks at the Supreme consideration of race is ap- istration to put off argu-
preme Court precedent But Swan Lee, a co-found- Court, where a conserva- propriate. ments in two challenges to
and that it looks at “the er of the group behind tive majority may well be “I am totally shocked by Trump-era policies involv-
whole person” when de- the complaint, called it “a more receptive. the Biden DOJ’s hasty deci- ing the U.S.-Mexico border
ciding which applicants to racist decision because it The Yale investigation also sion to drop the Yale law- wall and asylum-seekers
admit. preserves discrimination in found that the university suit, only eight days after as Biden works to change
A department spokesper- education. It’s a setback in used race as a factor in President Biden signed an the policies that had been
son said in a statement that our fight against racial dis- multiple steps of the ad- executive order claiming challenged in court.q

Fate of boats owned by ‘The Codfather’

heading to court

Massachusetts this month. the government’s case confinement near the end
It’s the latest development against Rafael included of his sentence, maintains
in a waterfront saga that forced divestiture of his as- he did nothing wrong. His
has dragged on for years sets and a permanent ban lawyer, John Markey of
in one of busiest fishing from commercial fishing. New Bedford, said he is
ports in the country. Car- Rafael complied, but a fighting the suit in court.
los Rafael, whose fishing New Bedford fish auction The case was slated for a
operations were based house sued him with a pretrial hearing Monday
out of New Bedford, Mas- complaint that he didn’t that was postponed by
sachusetts, was once the honor a right of first refusal snow, and it is awaiting
In this Oct. 14, 2014, file photo, Carlos Rafael talks on the owner of one of the larg- agreement to buy boats. a new date this month,
phone at Homer’s Wharf near his herring boat F/V Voyager in est commercial fishing op- The auction house, BASE Markey said. “The Rafaels
New Bedford, Mass. erations in the U.S. Inc., filed suit in September needed to defend them-
Associated Press
Rafael was sentenced to 2019, claiming it suffered selves because they were
By PATRICK WHITTLE owned by a disgraced for- nearly four years in prison millions of dollars in dam- being sued,” Markey said.
Associated Press mer fishing magnate nick- in 2017 for dodging quo- ages because it wasn’t “When you engage in
A legal dispute over the named “The Codfather” is tas and smuggling prof- able to buy the boats. litigation, all the facts are
sale of fishing boats once headed to state court in its overseas. The result of But Rafael, who is on home going to come out.”q