Advocates of Changing Australia’s Constitution Should Heed the US Supreme Court’s Race Ruling
Commentary
The United States Supreme Court has rendered an important decision on race-based admissions to colleges and universities which, at least indirectly, is relevant to Australia’s debate on the proposed entrenchment of The Voice in the Constitution and necessitates a reflection on Australia’s university admission policies.
On June 29, the Supreme Court decisively banned race-based admission processes. It decided that racial preferences in the admission of students are unconstitutional as it violates the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment, according to which no state shall “deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.”
Chief Justice, John Roberts, wrote that “the student must be treated based on his or her experiences as an individual—not on the basis of race. Many universities have for too long done just the opposite. And in doing so, they have 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.”…