women who joined sfsa as high school seniors after they were rejected from harvard in the university of north carolina. their dedication to the principles of equality is inspirational. thank you. calvin? calvin: good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. my name is calvin yang, and i'm a member of students for fair admissions. for so long asian americans have strived for acceptance and recognition. four contributions to building the foundation -- for contributions to building the foundations of this country to be acknowledged. and for us to take up our rightful place within this society. today's decision has started a new chapter in the saga of the history of asian americans in this country. it marks the promise of new beginning, a resurgence of the principles of the american dream, and a return to the gala terry and principles -- egalitarian principles for all in a city on the shiny hill. any people have asked me why i chose to speak out publicly for affirmative action. especially amidst potential backlash. my answer is simple. if no one is standing up to speak out out against the injuss faced by our comm

can't let this be the last word. >> majority overturned admissions plans at harvard and university of north carolinand public colleges. john roberts said that for too long universities have quote concluded wrongly that the touchstone of an individual's identity is not challenges bested, skills built or lessons learned, but the color of their skin. our constitutional history does not tolerate that choice. justice sotomayor wrote in dissent that the decision rolls back decades of progress. the ruling will not change much in california because of proposition 209. >> abc 7 news reporter leann melendez here. that could give the country a clue as to how this will unfold in the ramifications. >> 27 years of experience, so we know a thing

but, i like you to give us a specific definition of diversitye context of the university of north carolina. would also like you to give us a clear idea of exactly what the educational benefits of diversity at the university of north carolina would be. >> yes, your honor. firsdefine diversity the way this court has in precedents meaning a broadly diverse set of criteria that extend all different backgrounds and perspectives, not solely limited to race. there is a finding in record 113 that many different diversity factors asidered as a greater factor in our admissions process than race. we have a plar interest in north carolina and.ll in rural the last incoming class four from rural north carolina.ere one of every 12 students had dilatoryiation including the most veterans onams since world war ii. we value diversity of all kinds and all th people differ in society. on the educational benefits question, your honor, i do not there are real and meaningfult educational benefits that come ja 546 concede agreedll kinds. enthusiastically in fact o stand that ally diverse and diversity of all kinds

scrapping decades of precedent, striking down race-base admissions programs at harvard and the university of north carolina, ruling their efforts to create racially diverse campuses are unconstitutional the majority rejecting the use of race alone to promote diversity on college campuses here chief justin john roberts in his majority opinion writing both programs lack sufficiently focused and measurable objectives conservatives argue college admissions should be based on merit, not race. president biden, on the other hand, saying discrimination still exists in america. the court did not entirely strike race from the equation a lot of questions about the impact of all this, and it's where we start with laura jarrett. >> reporter: a landmark decision from a bitterly divided supreme court, rejecting the use of race as we know it in college admissions chief justice john roberts leading the 6-3 conservative majority to conclude programs at harvard and the university of north carolina violated the law, writing, the school's unavoidably employed race in a negative manner, involved racial stereotyping, and lack me

university admissions will change how we pursue the educational benefits of diversity. but our commitment to that work remains steadfast. >> reporter: universities nationwide are now forced to rethink and retool their admissions programs. the university of north carolinait will look for new ways to bring together talented students with different perspectives and life experiences. president biden today expressing disappointment. >> we cannot let this decision be the last word. we need to keep an open door of opportunities. we need to remember that diversity is our strength. >> the dissenting justices pointed out that this is going to create absolute chaos. every school will find a way to adapt. we're looking at a long-range timeline that is going to include hundreds if not thousands of lawsuits about what is the meaning of race in higher education? >> reporter: some consideration of the racial background of an applicant is still lawful, the court said today. not by check box but in an essay. >> the student has to be able to connect the race to something that they have realized about themselves, a special skill, a unique perspective, adversity that they've overcome. >> reporter: but studies say ending race as a plus factor on applications will ultimatel

the conservative-leaning court ruling admissions policies at harvard and the university of north carolina violate the 14th amendment. now affecting millions of students and colleges across the country. justice clarence thomas, who has acknowledged affirmative action helped him, against the policy now, describing a colorblind constitution. justice ketanji brown jackson, the court's first black woman justice, calling the decision, quote, a tragedy for us all. saying deeming race irrelevant in law does not make it so in life. tonight, president biden again saying this is not a normal court, when asked a question today at the white house. you'll see the moment. terry moran at the court. mary bruce in the studio with me. and rachel scott on how this immediately becomes an issue in the race for president. >>> also tonight, more than 130 million americans under air quality alerts tonight. millions more suffering from that intense heat growing more deadly today. the smoke from the canadian wildfires now blanketing 23 states, from wisconsin to the northeast. washington, d.c. and detroit with the w

majority, chief justice john roberts assailed race conscious admissions at harvard and the university of north carolina as elusive, imponderable, and opaque, ruling they violate the equal protection clause of the 14th amendment. the court stopped short of buying legacy admissions or ending affirmative action in military academies. justice ketanji brown jackson, the court's first black woman justice, wrote in a dissenting opinion -- "with let-them-eat-cake obliviousness, today, the majority pulls the ripcord and announces 'colorblindness for all' by legal fiat." after headlines, we'll host a roundtable discussion on the supreme court's ruling on affirmative action. in california, a state task force has released its final report proposing reparations for the harms done to black families due to slavery, segregation, and racial discrimination. the panel is asking california lawmakers and governor gavin newsom to approve monetary compensation to black residents for mass incarceration, racist policing, housing discrimination, healthcare inequalities, and environmental racism. cheryl grills, a member of the c

of applicants to the side on new admissions. it says a policy violates the constitution. and also it's a challenge to practice at harvard university and the university of north carolina . but the course decision has infuriated some minority students. awesome jordan report. 2 of the oldest universities in the united states, harvard and the university of north carolina have used race as one of the many factors to admit potential qualified students. but a group of asian american students suit u. n. c and harvard, claiming the practice, denied them access to an elite education in favor of lots are qualified african american and latino applicants. on thursday, the us supreme court agreed ruling 6 to 3 that using raise as a factor violated the 14th amendment to the constitution. and the 1964 civil rights . while opposing groups of students reacted to the ruling on the court steps, the man behind the students lawsuits celebrate these obligations compel the removal of all racial and ethnic classification boxes from undergraduate and post graduate application forms. the incoming president of harvard said the school is now reworking the way it admits new students, while still foc

experiences with the race about an -- and the incredible challenges they faced at the university of north carolina and students we represented in the harvard case. the decision that has been reached today, this has been said somebody times before, but it is appropriate today, it is a travesty of justice. we know in the hearts of law that there is hard --heart and science to the law. the supreme court decision puts a helluva lot more heart into the law. it ignores 40 plus years of experience where universities have tried to administer race consistent with the standards that the supreme court has applied. they have gotten rid of quotas, they have gotten rid of severed admission -- separate admission tracks. it provides opportunities for those students who otherwise may be overlooked in a very unfair admissions progress because of the gross inequities in the k-12 systems that are carried forward. what more specifically about this decision. one person mentioned the discussion around brown v. board of education. that is one of the grossest miscarriages of justice, by trying to suggest that programs tha

and today's decision in the university of north carolina and harvard admissions policies is a demonstration of how far a field the court has gone. as my colleagues have said, we will not let this be the last word, and it is so important that we recommit to the work of diversity, equity, and inclusion. in fact, today's decision makes that moral imperative that much more critical in this moment. all of our students, all of the people who occupy the next generation in this country, who will be our next leaders. who will be our next voters, deserve to be in classrooms where they see one another, where they learn from one another, where they develop understanding and respect for one another. and for differing viewpoints. that is the strength of diversity. and this court, today, undermined one of the viewpoint. that most important legal decisions that this country has ever known, if not, the most important. brown v. board of education, the legal defense fund had the privilege of litigating and winning in 1954. justest sotomayor quoted thurgood marshall in her powerful dissent in this decision and

or not they might apply, whet not they might actually end up going to the eat university of the university of north carolina. justice alito: counsel -- if all of the individual incidents and artifacts that you mentioned ot in this case and if the university were a state university that never practiced segregation, would you say that the case would come out differently? mr. hinojosa: it may, your honor. and that's how and why we should not have an across-the-board policy that all udden jettisons the important limited consideratioace that this court has approved. justice alito: so you would perhaps endors, a system in which a state university in a segregation would be -- would -- would be prohibited from doing what north carolina is doing? mr. hinojosa: yes, because the -- the important point here is whether or not the edual benefits of diversity have been established by that partic university. and so, at the university of north carolina, because it affects recruitment and retention and th. but, at another university where it may not have beu know, still the important heret is is whether or not the universi i

a lot of times the focus is as it is today, here it is the flagship campus of the university of north carolina. and harvard, a pretty good school. i've heard of it. it's all right. my wife went there. it's okay. but it's at the very highest levels of selective city. and so all campuses, the university, california, including our own, would be part of that system. but it will vary in different places of what they will try and what what will be allowed. and so the fight is going to be sort of how can we follow that line that chief justice roberts has suggested exists? i think justice kavanaugh also is on board with that. but what's going to satisfy people, not five justices in terms of saying, okay, we're following these new rules. harvard and the university of north carolina thought they were following the clear rules that the supreme court had set before. but now something different is going to be required. and so it's going to require drilling down into individual students, looking at their essays, maybe making sure that race is not directly part of the ap nation. we do that now. we make sure

majority, chief justice john roberts said admission policies at harvard university and the university of north carolinae 14th amendment's equal protection clause. the student must be treated based on his or her experiences as an individual, not on the basis of race, roberts wrote. many universities have for too long done just the opposite. in a scathing dissent, justice sonia sotomayor accused the court majority of ignoring history and precedent. the court cements a superficial rule of color blindness as a constitutional principle in an endemically segregated society, where race has always mattered and continues to matter. at the white house, president biden criticized the conservative majority and said the nation must find a new way to achieve diversity in college admissions. >> what i propose for consideration is a new standard where colleges take into account the adversity a student has overcome when selecting among qualified applicants. >> reporter: the opinion also exposed deep personal and ideological divisions within the court. justice ketanji brown jackson, the first black woman to serve on the

the court's conservative majority overturned admission plans at harvard and the university of north carolina. the nation's oldest and private and public colleges respectively. nbc's alice barr is on capitol hill with details and with reaction. >> reporter: in a seismic shift today, the supreme court ending affirmative action as we know it. the high court's conservative majority ruling 6-3 that it is unconstitutional to consider race as a determining factor in college admissions. many students worry the decision closes doors of opportunity. >> affirmative action uplifts our communities and encourages our communities to dream about attending these colleges. and now i think that obviously is going to be a much different time. >> reporter: the rulings concern two similar cases against harvard and the university of north carolina, chapel hill. both brought by the conservative leaning student for fair admission which argued the schools' policy discriminated against white and asian american students. >> this will preserve measure -- meratocracy. >> reporter: they say, quote, unavoidably employ race

university of michigan. this time, it's the university of north carolina and harvard. other areas as well. unless this has consequences, we allow 45 to get elected and he puts people on supreme court, one of them illegitimately, those three people just delivered what he expected them to deliver. >> congressman, one argument is that if the goal is to create a more level playing field that needs to start in kindergarten, not college. so really the attention should be in trying to increase funding for public k through 12 schools that are majority black, rather than having colleges make up for all of this. >> we do. that is what we've got, lyndon johnson and the great society programs, they were against that. that is what -- was all about. they were against that. all of these things that were brought on were -- and they are still under funding and -- to try to get rid of them. so we can do both, there's no question. when you've got young people coming out of high school, straight days, many of them go through college, straight a's. and still cannot get into a professional s

justice jackson used her dissent to specifically address how the university of north carolina admissionworked and how the policy has worked to the benefit of everyone, not just the students who get racial preference and she also felt that the court was ignoring the facts of life on the ground in order to impose the colorblind rule. geoff: marcia coyle, thank you so much for your analysis. we appreciate it. amna: the fallout of the court's decisions will have major implications on colleges and universities across the country, but one university that knows the impact of ending raced-based admissions all too well is the university of michigan. joining me now to talk about all of this is university of michigan president, santa ono. welcome and thank you for joining us. your university scrapped your affirmative action plan years ago because of the state a so you have not been taking race into account in admissions. how is your institution impacted today? >> thank you. the decision to ban affirmative action here happened 17 years ago so we have not considered race. we have used multiple strat

majority, chief justice john roberts said admissions policies that harvard university and the university of north carolina protection clause. "the student must be treated based on his or her experiences as an individual, not on the basis of race," roberts wrote. "many universities have, for too long, done just the opposite." in a scathing dissent, justice sonia sotomayor accused the court majority of ignoring history and precedent. "the court cements a superficial rule of colorblindness as a constitutional principle in an endemically segregated society, where race has always mattered and continues to matter." at the white house, president biden criticized the conservative majority. >> this is not a normal court. >> reporter: and said the nation must find a new way to achieve diversity in college admissions. >> what i propose for consideration is a new standard, where colleges take into account the adversity a student has overcome when selecting among qualified applicants. >> reporter: the opinion also exposed deep personal and ideological divisions within the court. justice ketanji brown jackson, the firs

court making a decision on this case, students for fair admissions versus harvard and the university of north carolina. this new ruling overturns decades of presidents and a 2003 supreme court decision. the group argued that both universities policy violates the 14th, amendment's equal protection clause by not guaranteeing racial neutrality. now, institutions of higher education cannot use race as a factor in admissions. we're certain still learning more about how universities and colleges will move forward. chief justice john roberts said that for too long, universities have, quote, concluded wrongly that the touchstone of an individual's identity is not challenges. bested skills built or lessons learned, but the color of their skin, our constitutional history does not tolerate that choice. and governor newsom releasing a statement on the court's decision this morning saying in part, right-wing activists, including those dani ropes are trying to take us back to an era of book bans in segregated tech campuses as justice sonia sotomayor and jackson put it powerfully. no one benefits from ignorance. div

ruling of desk against using race as a factor against culture mission, the case stemming from two lawsuits, one from -- against harvard university and the other against the university of north carolina. we will be hearing more response to t sreme court ruling on race and college admissions in 15 minutes, 2 p.m. eastern time as a group soon for fair admission, the group that challenge the race based admissions. press conference -- holds the press conference. president biden is also reacting to the news that -- of the supreme court decision. here are his remarks. >> 45 years -- for 45 years, the united states supreme court has recognized the freedom to decide how to recognize diverse student bodies. in case after case including recently, just as a few years ago in 2016, the court has affirmed or reaffirmed this view that colleges could use race not as is the determining factor for admissions but as one of the factors among mainly -- many in deciding who to admit from all -- already qualified pool of applicants. the court walked away from decades of president --cnas -- precedent in that state was made clear -- and that state was made clear. i agree with the statement from the dissent.

programs at harvard and the university of north carolina effectively putting an end to the consideration of race in college admissions. all conservative justices sided in the majority in that decision. liberal justice sotomayor in her dissent wrote i'm quoting. despite the court's unjustified exercise of power the opinion today will serve only to highlight the court's own impotence in the face of an america whose cries for equality resound. senator tim scott of south carolina, republican candidate for president joins me now. this is a monumental decision that has reversed a decision that has been in place for 19 years. what is your reaction today? >> i think this is a good day for america honestly. this is a day where we understand that being judged by the content of our character, not the color of our skin, is what our constitution wants. we are continuing to work on performing this more perfect union. today is better than yesterday. this year better than last year, this decade better than the last decade. the progress we see in the nation is palpable. that's good news for every single

university of michigan. this time, the university of north carolina and auburn will complete the task in other areas as well.lections have consequences. we have messed around and allowed 45 to get elected. and those three people that we expect them to deliver. >> one argument is that the goal is to create a more level playing field, it needs to start in kindergarten, not college. so, really, the attention should be in trying to increase funding for you now, k-12 schools that are majority black, rather than having the colleges make up for all of this. >> we do. elementary and secondary education. that was in president johnson's great society program. they were against that. that's what headstart was about. they were against that. all of these things that were brought on were for this purpose and they are still, in law, they are underfunded, and people are doing anything necessary to try to get rid of them. we can do both, there is no question. we have young people graduating from high school, straight a's, many of them go to college, straight a's, they still cannot get into a professional school because of th

carolina because of slavery and and all the rest. and he wants to honor his family's legacy and go to the university of north carolina. i mean, you could do the same analogy with someone. family is white and funds the university and has a ton of money to give away and there might be some black families with money to give away. but as a rule, you know the they probably don't have as much or any. and so you know that's just one example that the american public might now start hearing as as we move more people into all walks of life. and we have people, the highest levels who can really speak personally to this experience. and so i'm very hopeful about that. and i, i just that people understood and maybe this is very pollyannish, but if people understood what happening, that they would say, oh, of course, we've got to fix that. i mean, the jackson water system could speak to this decades centuries of neglect stories coming out. no one knew about. i bruce's beach on the beach in southern california that was taken 100 years ago from its black owners because they were black. and then in the last year or two returned to the d

the group brought two separate cases against the university of north carolina and harvard to the nation's highest court and asian-american student claims he was rejected from six elite universities by race. reaction out of it. >> thank you for coming. let me introduce participants of this press conference. on my far right is calvin yang, calvin is a participating member of students for fair admissions. he was rejected from harvard a few years ago. to my right is thomas mccarthy, typical spelling, thomas mccarthy. tom is the founding partner of a law firm consevoir and mccarthy, and chief trial counsel and students for fair admissions versus the university of north carolina. to my left is adam mortara. adam is with mortara law, formerly with bartley beck, adam is our chief trial counsel and students for fair admissions versus harvard. my name is edward blum, founder and president of students for fair admissions. the opinion issued today by the united states supreme court marks the beginning of the restoration of the color blind legal covenant that binds together our multi-racial, multi-eth

there was a lawsuit brought not just against harvard university, but also against the university of north carolina, alleging that because both universities considered race as one of the application factors in their admissions decisions. that these 2 institutions, and by extension, other colleges and universities across the united states were violating the us constitution. today, the u. s. supreme court agreed with that ruling of with the challenge, i should say, suggesting that in the case of harvard, it was violating this her title 6 of the 1964 civil rights act. and that in the u. n. c. case, it was violating the due cause provision under the 14th amendment. and so that means that colleges and universities now have to look at other ways of building what they consider to be a goal of higher education, which is bringing in a diverse student body. rather than this ruling is, in a sense, it's pretty narrow because it's about college admissions and college recruitment does. it however, undermine affirmative action in a wider sense to well, the only reason why this decision affects the higher uh, bodi

the case against the university of north carolina decided 6-3 as you mentioned. e case against harvard decided 6-2 because justice ketanji brown jackson recused herself. we're getting reaction from a variety of sources including harvard one of the defendants in this case, one of the respondents. they say quote we will certainly comply with the court's decision. the fundamental principle that deep transformative teaching, learning, research depend upon a community comprising people of many backgrounds and perspectives and lived experiences. still neil, this opinion will force highly competitive schools like harvard to find race-neutral ways to diversity on school campuses. chief justice john roberts if the majority opinion saying quote many universities too london just the opposite. in doing so they have concluded wrongly that the touchstone of an individual's identity is not challenge, his bested skills built or lessons learned by the color of their skin. during the oral arguments in october that lasted five hours, justices considered ways other than race to creat

sounds and like it will just put is my heart for people. harvard and the university of north carolina had argued that they were using rates as an admissions factor in order to create a student body that would be more sensitive to the diversity of the united states. and does create a generation of future leaders that with us be more responsive to the challenges in the years ahead. the supreme court said that's a lot of the goals, but it's not enough to justify violating the us constitution. russell and jordan elders 0 the supreme court. the heat related illnesses are increasing in the southern us. at least 12 people have died with heat stroke and dehydration effect. and many others, may geologist say a stationary high pressure system known as a heat them has dropped hot air temperatures from arizona to florida. i have solo to 38 degrees celsius and are expected to remain high for next week. about same heat, the weather system is being blamed for the best of at least a $110.00 people south of the border and mexico. temperatures of reach nearly 50 degrees celsius in some areas. in ron or

so the question here is whether the university of north carolina public school violates equal protectionand weather harvard university which is a private school violates said all six of the civil rights act. when it considers race. it's different cases for radical reason. if they were consolidated as a single case, justice jackson who is this a newest member of the court would not be able to participate in either of those consolidated. now they're separated, she's were cues from the harvard case because she was on the harvard board of overseers. this has the potential to completely transform the landslide of higher education. the question of whether or not the fort -- 14 amendment wasn't to be race blind or whether this amendment wishes passing the wake of the american civil war for the purpose of bringing african americans into the body politic as citizens is completely race neutral. that's the question the courts answering. you've already guess what i think about this but this court seems poised to say that this amendment. that was passed in the wake of the civil war has absolutely not

action of the decision is going to be here only in the halls of harvard or perhaps the university of north carolina, you have the amicus briefs about the impact more broadly, and the domino impact of this decision. >> all right. laura, standby for a minute, because obviously what is going to matter now that we know that the courts have basically overturned the idea of affirmative action or considering race in college admissions is how they state it specifically, and what are the parameters and the exact language. we go back to jessica schneider who has some quotes here, and what have you learned? >> john, that is key. this opinion does contain a little bit of the nuance, and broadly, the colleges and universities can no longer have applicants check a box which says which race they are, and they can't expressly consider the race, however, within this opinion which is a 6/3 opinion led by the conservatives, they do say that nothing in this opinion should be construed as prohibiting university from considering an applicant's discussion of how race affected their life through discrimination, inspiratio

considering the race of applicants to the side on you admissions, it says the policy validates the constitution lawsuits a challenge to practice a common university on the university of north carolina. but the quotes decision has in few related to summit minority students. awesome jordan has more of 2 of the oldest universities in the united states. harvard and the university of north carolina have used race as one of the many factors to admit potential qualified students. but a group of asian american students suit u. n. c and harvard, claiming the practice, denied them access to an elite education in favor of lots are qualified african american and latino applicants. on thursday, the us supreme court agreed ruling 6 to 3 that using race as a factor violated the 14th amendment to the constitution. and the 1964 civil rights . while opposing groups of students reacted to the ruling on the court steps, the man behind the student's law suits celebrate these obligations compel the removal of all racial and ethnic classification boxes from undergraduate and post graduate application forms. the incoming president of harvard said the school is now reworking the way it admits new students,