Asian American Business Roundtable Joins Other AAPI Organizations
File an
Amicus Brief in
the Supreme Court in Support of the U. of Michigan’s
Affirmative Action
Washington, DC – The Asian American Business
Roundtable (AABR), along with 25 other organizations, files an
“amicus curiae” (“friend of the court”) brief in
support of the University of Michigan in the affirmative
action Grutter v.
Bollinger (law school case) and Gratz
v. Bollinger (undergraduate case).
The brief was supported by a broad range of Chinese
Filipino, Japanese, Korean, Hmong, South Asian, Pacific
Islander, Cambodian, and Vietnamese American public interest
groups representing the civil rights, business, law,
education, labor, women, and health communities.
The case involves a white applicant’s challenge
over both the US Constitution and a federal statute regarding
the university’s admissions programs. The programs look at a
number of factors, including race, test scores and grades to
ensure that its student body provides the diversity of
backgrounds and perspectives necessary for an enriched
educational experience. Both
the undergraduate and law school cases are pending
before the Supreme Court of the US to determine whether
affirmative action can be used in education admissions.
“The
University of Michigan considers multiple factors as positive
additions to an application and in no way sets a quota for a
number of minority students to be admitted.
The equal opportunity requirement espoused by opponents
of this policy is valid only if a level playing field exists
for all applicants,” said Rawlein G. Soberano, President of
the Asian American Business Roundtable. “Using this logic,
no university should be allowed to consider factors, such as
family legacy, at the institutions which tend to favor white
applicants. Policies that tend to favor the children of white
alumni tend to benefit the wealthy and the white. This is the
worst kind of affirmative action.”
“Asian Pacific Americans continue to
experience discrimination in many arenas and affirmative
action is still necessary to address glass ceiling issues and
exclusion from business opportunities,” said Karen P.
Narasaki, President & Executive Director of the National
American Pacific American Legal Consortium. “The U. of
Michigan’s admissions programs are thoughtfully drafted to
provide a balance between achieving diversity and maintaining
fairness in the admissions process, “ added Stewart Kwoh,
Executive Director of the Asian Pacific American Legal Center.
The amici
on the brief are:
