Staff Reports
The Supreme Court recently decided not to tackle the thorny issue of affirmative action as it pertains to three elite Boston high schools. This decision marks the second time the Court has opted out of a case involving the ever-controversial affirmative action policies that have faced increasing scrutiny following last year’s monumental ruling against race-based admissions practices.
In a classic twist of bureaucratic logic, Boston officials switched their admissions framework for the 2021-2022 school year, aiming to boost the number of Black and Hispanic students at these prestigious schools. Instead of relying on grades and entrance exams—science and merit, essentially—they decided to play a game of bingo with slots based on geography, favoring students from lower-income areas. Apparently, when it comes to education, urban planners believe that mere location trumps academic aptitude.
Justice Samuel Alito Jr. didn’t mince words in addressing the implications of Boston’s misguided policy. He pointed out that the city’s officials had a curious way of blaming “White racists” while simultaneously demeaning the names of Asian-American students, all under the banner of achieving “race equity.” For some reason, the idea of balancing races seems to translate to actively marginalizing certain demographics, all in the name of diversity.
Justices Alito and Clarence Thomas expressed some disappointment that they weren’t granted the opportunity to set things right by reviewing the case. Although Justice Neil Gorsuch raised some eyebrows regarding Boston’s new policy, he felt it was premature to jump in at this time. Nevertheless, he made it clear that refusing this case shouldn’t be interpreted as tacit approval of the city’s fresh approach to school admissions. After all, just because the method of discrimination has changed doesn’t mean it’s any less discriminatory.
Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. scolds colleagues as Supreme Court ducks new affirmative action casehttps://t.co/oU1q29xZ6Z pic.twitter.com/EQXhf04LMr
— The Washington Times (@WashTimes) December 10, 2024
Boston is not alone in grappling with how to enforce diversity following the Supreme Court’s ruling that deemed racial preferences unconstitutional. The thorny issue has led several other school systems, including the infamous Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology in Virginia, to adopt similar geography-based schemes. In both instances, the results of tossing out meritocracy have yielded a handful of raised eyebrows and an ample sprinkling of confusion about true educational value.
Justice Alito’s remarks suggest that this reluctance to confront the truth can’t last forever. If the Court has twice stepped back from correcting what it termed a “glaring constitutional error,” it raises serious questions about how long lower courts will tolerate policies that aim to distort educational merit into a politically correct experiment. The sobering reality remains: education shouldn’t be a playground for progressive ideologies but a domain where ability reigns supreme above all social engineering efforts.
