University of California sued over alleged racial discrimination in admissions
A group of students sued the University of California on Feb. 3 for alleged racial discrimination by favoring Black and Hispanic applicants over Asian American and white applicants.
Students Against Racial Discrimination, an organization established in 2024 “to restore meritocracy in academia,” filed the suit and claimed that all nine undergraduate UC campuses let students with “inferior” academic credentials win admission over better-qualified applicants.
The lawsuit in Santa Ana’s federal court seeks to block the UC from asking for race in student admissions and to appoint a court monitor to oversee university admissions.
It said this violates the Equal Protection Clause of the U.S. Constitution’s 14th Amendment, along with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which bars federal fund recipients from discriminating based on race.
The group also said the preferences violate Proposition 209, which California voters passed in 1996 to forbid race and other factors from affecting public education, public employment and public contracting.
The UC said in a statement that its undergraduate admissions collect data on students’ race and ethnicity “for statistical purposes only and they are not used for admission,” Reuters reported.
It also said since Proposition 209 passed, it adjusted its admissions to comply with the law.
The complaint alleges that Asian American and white applicants are discriminated against because of their race, while Latino and Black students are “often placed at a significant academic disadvantage, and thus experience worse outcomes, because of the university’s use of racial preferences.”
“Students of all races are harmed by the University of California’s discriminatory behavior,” the lawsuit says.
America First Legal, founded by President Donald Trump’s deputy chief of staff for policy Stephen Miller and Jonathan Mitchell, also known for advocating conservative causes, will represent the student group in court.
UC President Michael V. Drake to hold final town hall on Feb. 19 before stepping down
UC President Michael V. Drake will have a final UC systemwide town hall on Feb. 19 over Zoom.
The virtual event will be hosted by Jen Bowser, chair of the Council of UC Staff Assemblies, and former council chair Dennis McIver. UC staff and students will have the opportunity to hear from Drake before he steps down from his role at the end of the 2024-25 academic year.
Drake was the first Black UC president and the 21st UC president. He took on the role in 2020 at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic and oversaw the transition to remote instruction and work. His achievements include forming partnerships with state and federal lawmakers to increase admissions for California students and securing a five-year funding compact with Governor Gavin Newsom and state legislators, meant to provide the UC with fiscal stability.
Specifically, he helped guide the system to admit more Californians. The UC announced in July that it admitted 93,290 first-year students from California for fall 2024, a record number and a 4.3% increase from last year.
Significantly, pro-Palestinian protests and encampments consumed several of UC’s campuses last year, with several UC chancellors calling in police to disband encampments, resulting in the arrests of students. Protesters demanded that UC divest from companies linked to Israel, but Drake’s office said in April that it “has consistently opposed calls for boycott against and divestment from Israel.”
Before becoming the UC president, Drake chaired the boards of six national organizations of leaders in higher education and was the president of The Ohio State University from 2014 to 2020. He also served as the chancellor of UC Irvine from 2005 to 2014 and the UC systemwide president for health affairs from 2000 to 2005.
Northern California ACLU reduces support for Berkeley’s ACLU chapter
Due to speculated cutbacks to the Northern California American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), their liaison, who spoke with UC Berkeley’s student chapter, will lessen communications and overall support this year, the Daily Cal reported.
The ACLU is a nonprofit that provides legal support and defends the rights of individuals across the states. ACLU chapters at college campuses help advocate for student issues.
The campus club typically meets with the liaison once a month to get help with understanding what bills to support, phone banking and lobbying. Now, it’s not clear how often they will meet.
“It was a really invaluable resource to be able to talk to them and get their insider opinion and help with organizing those types of things on a local level,” Connor Green, ACLU of UC Berkeley’s co-president said.
In response, the club has prepared to shift its organizing tactics and overall direction.
Last semester the Northern California ACLU liaison left the ACLU and told the ACLU of UC Berkeley in an email that future communication would be limited.
The email lacked explicit details about funding, and that “there was an understanding” of cutbacks at the Northern California ACLU, Connor Green, ACLU of UC Berkeley’s co-president said.
The campus’s ACLU did not receive a response from the new contact of the organization for about a month, leaving it in limbo.
Northern California ACLU responded to the ACLU of UC Berkeley earlier this week, with a future meeting scheduled to try and reestablish communication, Green said. He said the club plans to try and gain an understanding at the meeting on how to best move forward.
“They made it clear that it won’t be as close of a relationship,” Green said.
A version of this article appeared on p. 2 of the Feb. 6, 2025 edition of the Daily Nexus.
