The civil rights movement was about getting rid of racial preferences — for whites over blacks — and instituting a color-blind system. As Reverend King put it, an America where people were judged on the content of their character, not the color of their skin.
Unfortunately, this movement abandoned equality for all in favor of racial preferences where students from favored groups (“underserved”) were given better treatment than others. For many years, the trend was for special treatment for minorities. Many politicians liked it and the courts turned a blind eye to it. But that has changed, with the Supreme Court leading the way against preferences and the Trump administration also coming out in strong opposition.
In today’s Martin Center article, I write about the offensive against racial preferences, with a focus on “Hispanic-Serving Institutions.”
Under the Higher Education Act, colleges and universities could quality for extra federal money if they managed to qualify as Hispanic-serving, which requires at least 25 percent of students who are deemed “Hispanic.” Why should the percentage of students from a particular ethnic group matter?
Tennessee filed a lawsuit to invalidate this preference, arguing that it is unconstitutional. Then, Trump’s Justice Department announced that it would not defend the law in court.
Simultaneously, the American Civil Rights Project wrote to key members of Congress, arguing that the Hispanic-serving-institution law should be repealed.
Naturally, the higher education establishment has gone berserk over this, crying that the administration is trying to hurt Hispanic students. But one college president admitted that he was going to donors to try to find the money to preserve what he thinks are some good initiatives. That’s exactly what needs to happen — college officials must stop treating Uncle Sam as a huge ATM machine that gives them cash for whatever they want.