Last week’s landmark Supreme Court ruling striking down race-conscious admissions programs at the nation’s universities was a breath of fresh air for those who have long advocated for a society that judges people, in the words of Martin Luther King, “by the content of their character, not the color of their skin.” Yet the reaction to the ruling in some quarters is perhaps even more helpful in achieving that goal because it outlines like never before the absurdity of the continued push for “racial equity” by a cadre of elites in other areas of society.
The court held that race-conscious admissions programs at Harvard University and the University of North Carolina discriminated against Asian students in favor of those from other minority groups and violated the U.S. Constitution’s promise of equal protection under the law. In his majority opinion, Chief Justice Roberts noted that “Both programs… unavoidably employ race in a negative manner [and] involve racial stereotyping.”
The decibel level of the Democrats’ dudgeon over the ruling against racial stereotyping revved rapidly into the danger zone. President Biden led the charge, calling it “a severe disappointment to so many people” that risked becoming “a permanent setback for the country.” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer labeled it “a giant roadblock in our country’s march toward racial justice.” Mazie Hirono of Hawaii, one of two sitting Asian American senators, groused that the decision was “shortsighted and detached from reality.”
Yet these same Democrats bemoaning the decision outlawing Asian-American discrimination in admission to elite universities sang a completely different tune two months ago in bowing at the latest altar of racial identity politics, in this case, believe it or not, Asian American Pacific Islanders month.
In announcing the month-long celebration, Biden decried “persistent racism” against Asian Americans. Schumer gushed, “We celebrate and honor the rich history, diverse cultures, and invaluable contributions of [Asians.]” Hirono noted that the “celebration” of AAPI month, represented, in part, “a time to reflect on the challenges our communities have faced, [including] racist legislation…This month, and all year long, I’ll keep working to build a more inclusive and diverse future where members of the AANHPI community and all people are treated with dignity and respect.””
But when it comes to standing up for Asian American students against clear actual and pervasive racial discrimination in college admissions, it’s not just crickets from these Democrat champions of Asian American fairness, it’s high-decibel opposition.
The dazzling doublespeak of Democrats in reaction to last week’s ruling on university admissions is so glaring that it actually may help expose the futility and divisiveness of continued identity politics and diversity hiring in other elite redoubts of society including corporations, law firms and sports leagues.
Thanks to the efforts of so many pioneers for equality over the past century, it is virtually impossible in today’s America to find a single corporation, small business, farm, any branch of the military, or any other place in government or the private sector where anyone would be fired or discriminated against based upon his or her race, gender or sexual orientation.
In fact, if that did happen, it would be front-page news and the victim of such antediluvian bigotry would appear as a guest on Good Morning America or The View the very next day. With regard to racial discrimination specifically, it has been fifteen years since a majority-white America elected a Black president, and re-elected him four years later, both times with significant support from white voters.
Given the state of clear and indisputable fairness in society today across the board, why does a band of patricians continue to bang the drum on identity politics when it comes to race, gender, and sexual orientation through diversity hiring and hyping shopworn alphabet-soup “heritage months” such as AAPI and LGBTQ+ Pride observances?
Such Woke virtue-signaling from top-tier corporations, law firms and sports leagues comes at a steep price to national unity and is increasingly costly for the institutions that practice it. Just ask Anheuser-Busch, Target and the Los Angeles Dodgers about their recent experiences flying the grievance flag.
Like race-based university admissions, diversity hiring also hurts those whom it purports to help, by implying that they lack the qualifications for being admitted or hired based on merit alone. In his concurring opinion in last week’s case, Justice Thomas, himself once a beneficiary of affirmative action, noted that such racial preferences “stamp [targeted minorities] with a badge of inferiority…[w]hen [they] take positions in the highest places of government, industry, or academia, it is an open question . . .whether their skin color played a part in their advancement.”
As the Supreme Court recognized last week, it’s time to shelve identity politics overall – whether in universities, corporations, law firms, sports leagues or any other citadels of society today – and get back to viewing each other simply as Americans, no matter our background, race, gender, or sexual orientation.
Or, in the opinion of the Court written by Chief Justice Roberts, a “student must be treated based on his or her experiences as an individual – not on the basis of race. Many universities have for too long done just the opposite. And in doing so, they have concluded, wrongly, that the touchstone of an individual’s identity is not challenges bested, skills built, or lessons learned but the color of their skin. Our constitutional history does not tolerate that choice.”
On that bold and patriotic note of unity in the week we celebrate close to 250 years since our nation’s founding: drop the mic, Mr. Chief Justice.
Mr. Ullyot is a U.S. Marine Corps veteran and a former Deputy Assistant to the President.