Black Community News News and Commentary for Christians
Legal firm America First Legal (AFL) last month filed a class action lawsuit on behalf of a white man rejected from six medical schools in Texas. AFL contended that the schools discriminated against the man because he was white and a man, in violation of the U.S. Constitution and federal law.
Whites, Asians, and men “bear the brunt of this egregious policy granting applicants with lesser academic credentials medical school admission over academically more qualified candidates on the basis of race and sex,” AFL wrote.
Through an open records request, the man obtained data that revealed the following:
– The median and mean grade-point averages and MCAT scores of admitted black and Hispanic students are significantly lower than the grade-point averages and MCAT scores of admitted white and Asian students;
– Admitted female students have lower MCAT scores than admitted male students
After AFL filed suit, Texas Governor Greg Abbott issued a memo, denouncing the schools and reminding government agencies and universities that so-called diversity, equity, and inclusion policies are illegal in Texas.
“As Texas, we celebrate the diversity of our State and the presence of a workforce that represents our rich culture,” the governor wrote (PDF). “In recent years, however, the innocuous-sounding notion of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) has been manipulated to push policies that expressly favor some demographic groups to the detriment of others.”
Gov. Abbott stated that DEI initiatives are having the opposite effect of increasing diversity in the workplace.
“Illegally adding DEI requirements as a screening tool in hiring practices or using DEI as a condition of employment leads to the exclusion and alienation of individuals from the workplace.”
Lowering standards to increase the presence of members of certain racial groups means that individuals of other racial groups are rejected because of race. Some people call this blatant discrimination “equitable.”
“AFL is proud to have been at the forefront of challenges to programs and policies that discriminate against Americans based on immutable characteristics,” AFL vice president and general counsel Gene Hamilton said. “DEI policies–which require those in power to deny opportunities to some Americans on the basis of immutable characteristics in an attempt to lift up others–are antithetical to the American ideal and the values that are at the core of our American identity. We commend the Governor’s office for issuing this memo and will continue our critical fight for true equality under the law.”
Photo credit: Wally Gobetz (Creative Commons) – Some rights reserved
Do you like this post? Sign up for more!
