US Dept. of Education Investigating Harvard's Legacy Policy

Facts

• In the wake of last month’s SCOTUS decision striking down race-based admissions at US universities, the US Dept. of Education (DOE) is investigating whether Harvard is racially discriminating against non-White students by favoring applicants with ties to donors and alumni.¹
• The Boston-based non-profit Lawyers for Civil Rights claims that Harvard’s use of so-called legacy admissions policies is discriminatory since 70% of donor-related and legacy applicants — who are six times more likely to be admitted — are White.²
• Earlier this month, a complaint was filed on behalf of Black and Latino community groups in New England which claims that 28% of Harvard’s Class of 2019 had a parent or other relative who graduated from the university.³
• The DOE's Office for Civil Rights informed Lawyers for Civil Rights Boston of the investigation. The department will focus on whether legacy admissions policies violate Title VI of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, which prohibits racial discrimination by any program or activity receiving federal funds.⁴
• Schools that have already terminated their legacy admissions policies include Amherst College in Massachusetts, Carnegie Mellon University in Pennsylvania, and Johns Hopkins University in Maryland. Wesleyan University in Connecticut announced last week that it would be doing the same.³

Sources: ¹Reuters, ²NBC, ³Associated Press, and ⁴The Hill.

Narratives

• Left narrative, as provided by The Grio. While SCOTUS ruled against admissions policies aimed at uplifting marginalized Black and Latino students, the conservative court made sure to keep affirmative action in place for White people. Prestigious universities perpetuate intergenerational cycles of wealth and inhibit upward mobility by favoring the wealthy — and predominantly White — children of alumni. Biden is 100% right to call for an investigation into legacy admissions that discriminate against minority students.
• Right narrative, as provided by Daily Wire. After losing its mind over a court ruling that ended racism in college admissions, the woke left is trying to claim that legacy admissions are somehow racist. Biden is now calling for an investigation into the so-called racist policy that benefits wealthy applicants. However, there’s one problem — Biden has used his position as a Senator, Vice President, and President to get his unqualified family members into elite institutions. It's easy for powerful Democrats to oppose policies that will still advantage them.