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Seventy Percent of Public Agrees Race Should Not Need to Be a Factor in Higher Education Admissions in 25 Years
Seventy Percent of Public Agrees Race Should Not Need to Be a Factor in Higher Education Admissions in 25 Years
Published 08-12-03
Submitted by American Bar Association
The survey shows 88 percent believe the nation has made either substantial or some progress eliminating discrimination in public schools in the 50 years since the Supreme Court ruled in the 1954 case of Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas.
Incoming American Bar Association President Dennis W. Archer of Detroit today released the results of a Harris Interactive® poll at a San Francisco news conference launching his one-year term as the first African-American president of the ABA. His term begins tomorrow.
Despite the public's assessment of progress since the Brown ruling, recent studies show a steady climb in the number of students enrolled in predominantly single-race schools in this country over the last decade, with more than 20 percent of elementary and secondary school students in the United States attending schools with minority enrollment ranging between 75 and 100 percent.
"Although perceptions of racial progress in this nation vary among ethnic groups, there is a consensus that progress has been made, that diversity is fundamentally important, and that there is hope for the future," said Archer.
The poll, conducted the last weekend in July, questioned 1,011 respondents about several cases in the nation's history involving race and education. It has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percent.
Justice O'Connor's prediction came in her opinion in the recent ruling on affirmative action procedures at the University of Michigan Law School, procedures upheld by the court in the case of Grutter v. University of Michigan. In another question about that ruling, 77 percent of respondents agreed that it is important for law schools to achieve diversity among their students. The Court ruled that the benefits of diversity are so important that they justify narrowly-tailored use of race among other admissions factors to create a diverse student body.
The poll also asked about a 1978 Supreme Court ruling involving affirmative action as a response to historic discrimination in higher education, in the case of Regents of the University of California v. Bakke. The Court outlawed minority quotas in admissions decisions to compensate for past discrimination, but agreed that race could be one factor considered. When asked whether it is in fact possible to "make up for past discrimination" in education, more than half, 54 percent, disagreed either strongly or somewhat that it is possible to do so.
Finally, respondents affirmed the importance of diversity in the legal system, with 72 percent agreeing either strongly or somewhat that racial diversity among judges, lawyers, court personnel and law enforcement personnel is necessary to ensure fair operation of the legal system.
Archer kicked off a year-long observance of the anniversary of Brown v. Board of Education by announcing appointment of a Brown v. Board of Education Commission, headed by Prof. Charles Ogletree of Harvard University Law School. The anniversary will be May 17, 2004.
The commission will lead the association's activities to introduce a new generation of young people to the historic struggle to achieve equality for all Americans and to engage the public in debate over the extent to which the Brown decision's promise of equal opportunity has been achieved.
A key component of the observance will take place in high schools across the country, as lawyers, judges, teachers and students engage in a "Dialogue on Brown v. Board of Education," exploring the history of the decision and its continuing legacy in American law and society. The first such dialogue took place Sunday, August 10 in San Francisco, during the ABA 2003 Annual Meeting.
Complete poll results are available on the American Bar Association's Web site at www.abanet.org/media/aug03/harrispoll8_03.pdf.
The American Bar Association is the largest voluntary professional membership association in the world. With more than 410,000 members, the ABA provides law school accreditation, continuing legal education, information about the law, programs to assist lawyers and judges in their work, and initiatives to improve the legal system for the public.
About Harris Interactive®
Harris Interactive (www.harrisinteractive.com) is a worldwide market research and consulting firm best known for The Harris Poll® and for pioneering the Internet method to conduct scientifically accurate market research. Headquartered in Rochester, N.Y., U.S.A., Harris Interactive combines proprietary methodologies and technology with expertise in predictive, custom and strategic research. The Company conducts international research through wholly owned subsidiaries - London-based HI Europe (www.hieurope.com) and Tokyo-based Harris Interactive Japan - as well as through the Harris Interactive Global Network of local market-and opinion-research firms, and various U.S. offices.
