The admissions office at Harvard University has spoken. For the first time in nearly 400 years, the majority of incoming students are non-white. Let us get a round of applause for every single student that worked their butts off.
Harvard University was, and still is, a beacon of success. During its long years standing at the forefront of education, its had future presidents, powerful CEOs, and world leaders walk its halls. I won’t sugarcoat it. Most of those people have been predominantly white. However, according to The Boston Globe, Harvard is taking strides towards racial diversity in the student body.
Ironically, this achievement was followed by a New York Times report involving admission discrimination against white applicants. According to a document obtained by The New York Times, the Trump Administration is currently seeking lawyers interesting in “investigations and possible litigation related to intentional race-based discrimination in college and university admissions”. In other words, we might be seeing Trump’s political appointees run our college admissions offices rather than our Educational Opportunities Section. You know, the people who are supposed to handle school and university related matters.
While the document does not officially state who the DoJ considers at higher risk due to discriminatory legalities, the phrase “intentional race-based discrimination” can give us a guess. Most likely this project is a response to programs aimed towards bringing more minority students into university campuses like Harvard.
Following this accusation from the Times, The Department of Justice quickly snapped back at The New York Times. DoJ spokeswoman Sarah Isgur Flores called this accusation “inaccurate” and claims that “The Department of Justice is committed to protecting all Americans from all forms of illegal race-based discrimination”.
According to Harvard University’s website, the incoming class of 2021 will be about 1,694 students. Out of that large number, about 50.9% of them are from minority groups, including African Americans, Hispanics, Asian Americans, Native Americans, and Pacific Islanders. What a time to be alive.