‘Racist decision:’ U.S. Rep. Maxwell Frost, Florida Democrats raise concern over affirmative action ruling
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U.S. Rep. Maxwell Frost, D-Orlando, called Supreme Court’s affirmative action decision racist at a virtual discussion on Twitter Thursday evening.
“It’s important that we realize that this decision is a racist decision, because it will negatively impact students, people of color and specifically Black students,” he said. “When we look at the timeline of the civil rights movement, when we look at the decisions that have come down from the Supreme Courts, this will be a decision not on the right side of history but on the wrong side of history.”
On Thursday, the court’s conservative majority ruled against Harvard College and the University of North Carolina, arguing affirmative action programs violate the Constitution’s equal protection clause, effectively ending colleges’ ability to consider race in admissions.
Supporters believe affirmative action creates diverse classrooms and ensures that a range of opportunities remain accessible to people in historically marginalized communities, but critics argue the color of a person’s skin should not be a factor when it comes to college admissions.
Florida conservative leaders voiced their support of the ruling on social media, including Sen. Marco Rubio who shared Justice Clarence Thomas’ opinion on the unconstitutionality of affirmative action in a Twitter post that read: “Powerful and wise words from Justice Clarence Thomas. Today’s decision from the Supreme Court is the right one: students should be judged on their merits, not the color of their skin.”
Gov. Ron DeSantis, a 2024 Republican presidential candidate, also hailed the decision.
“College admissions should be based on merit and applicants should not be judged on their race or ethnicity,” he tweeted. “The Supreme Court has correctly upheld the Constitution and ended discrimination by colleges and universities.”
Florida banned affirmative action in 2001 on grounds that racial diversity can be achieved without race-conscious admissions.
It is among nine states that have passed laws or referendums that prohibit affirmative action in public universities, including Arizona, Idaho, Michigan, Nebraska, New Hampshire, Oklahoma and Washington. A New York Times report that looked at the effects of those prohibitions found that most public universities saw a sudden dip in admissions rates for Black and Hispanic students.
The virtual discussion was streamed on Rep. Frost’s Twitter account and featured the voices of college students who say they’re concerned about the Supreme Court ruling, like Braxton Barr, a music performance major at the University of Central Florida, who worries the ruling will discourage Black high school students from applying to more colleges and universities.
Jordyn Jerry, a college student from Florida who studies finance at Tennessee State University, said she believes colleges should always be looking at ways to diversify their student bodies because by it promotes equity.
“Let’s address the argument that race is the sole factor under scrutiny, while elite colleges and universities consider various aspects in their admissions process, including gender, legacy, wealth, geographic locations and athletic performance, it is only race that certain conservatives aim to exclude,” she said. “Race is a card that white individuals can play without facing rejection.”
Other speakers at the event included State Rep. Fentrice Driskell; State Rep Michele Rayner-Goolsby; Timothy Ayers, chair of the Orange County Black Caucus; State Sen. Geraldine Thompson; State Sen. Shevrin Jones; and Dr. Jeremy Levitt, founder and president of the Stono Institute for Freedom.
At the event, State Sen. Geraldine Thompson questioned the rationale of the Supreme County ruling.
“We’re told that the reason for this is to make sure that race is not a factor in denying admission or in admitting individuals to our institutions of higher education, and if you look at the history of Florida, look at the history of America, you know that race has always been an issue,” she said. “It’s never been race neutral.”
She said she hopes college leaders and admissions staff stay true to their commitment to bolster campus diversity.
They’ll need to find new ways of making good on that commitment, she said.
“We’ve got to come to the table and figure out new ways to work around [the ruling] and make sure that students are given a leg up and that we leave the cast on until the leg heals.”
