Dean Johnson Comments on Supreme Court Affirmative Action Case for National Public Radio

Dean Kevin R. Johnson commented for National Public Radio on the U.S. Supreme Court affirmative action case Fisher v. University of Texas. On June 24, the Supreme Court issued a narrow ruling that sent the case back to a lower court. Dean Johnson was interviewed by Michel Martin on NPR's Tell Me More program alongside John Malcolm, senior legal fellow at the Heritage Foundation.

"I think it's very clearly a big victory for affirmative action," said Dean Johnson. "The Supreme Court did not disturb, in the least, the decision in Grutter v. Bollinger, which said that narrowly tailored, race-conscious admission schemes could be lawful."

While the plaintiff in the case, Abigail Fisher, might consider the ruling "a victory of sorts," the Supreme Court clearly did not act to abolish race-conscious affirmative action programs, Dean Johnson said. "It was a very narrow opinion and it's very much limited to the facts of this case."

Kevin R. Johnson is Dean and Mabie-Apallas Professor of Public Interest Law and Chicana/o studies at UC Davis School of Law. He is an internationally recognized scholar in the fields of immigration law and policy, refugee law, and civil rights.

National Public Radio: Tell Me More

Primary Category

Tags