WASHINGTON—The U.S. Supreme Court ruled Thursday that the discriminatory admissions policies of Harvard University and the University of North Carolina, which are identical to the policies of many other American educational institutions, cannot be reconciled with the equal protection guarantees of the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.

Heritage Foundation senior legal fellows Hans von Spakovsky and Sarah Parshall Perry along with senior fellow Mike Gonzalez released the following statement on the ruling:

“For far too long, racial preferences benefiting certain students have been abused in college admissions to racially discriminate against other students and deny them equal educational opportunities. Today’s decision by the Supreme Court helps reverse decades of repugnant discriminatory conduct exercised by administrators who punished or rewarded students based not on their credentials, qualifications, and hard work, but on the color of their skin. This is the biggest win for colorblind education since Brown v. Board of Education.”

“More policy changes are necessary, as many school administrators have ignored or skirted laws that abolish racial preferences in hiring or admission decisions. As we look for ways of improving student performance, lawmakers should consider the importance of other factors including opportunities for school choice, the home environments of students, their access to technology, and more. Any discussion of achievement gaps must consider factors other than race to pass statutory and constitutional muster. This decision offers a wonderful opportunity to adopt an all-of-society focus on family formation and other background variables that produce disparities.”

“Woke university administrators are now on notice that racial discrimination and the biased admissions systems they implemented no longer have a place in America.”