30 Sep 2015 The Significant Affirmative Action Case Before the U.S. Supreme Court

The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to re-hear an affirmative action case involving university admissions. Project 21 co-chairman Horace Cooper appeared on Newsmax TV’s “The Hard Line” on September 25 to explain why Abigail Noel Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin, et al. is such an important case.

The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to re-hear an affirmative action case involving university admissions. Project 21 co-chairman Horace Cooper appeared on Newsmax TV’s “The Hard Line” on September 25 to explain why Abigail Noel Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin, et al. is such an important case.

First, the case tackles reverse discrimination. “Now, instead of a law that says you can’t come here because of your dark skin color,” said Horace, “we are now looking at rules in the case of the University of Texas which are saying that you can’t come here UNLESS you have dark skin color.”

Second, the case causes us to remember the original intention of affirmative action, and realize how far we have strayed from that ideal. “Affirmative action was a kind of special treatment but it was never supposed to be quotas,” noted Horace. “You know the kind of treatment it was supposed to be? You go to schools and you find really talented and capable people and you sell them on coming to your university. That’s what good football coaches do. That’s what good band coaches do. They recruit exceptionally talented people and they sell them on the advantages of coming to that university.”

Third, the case enlightens us about unintended consequences of affirmative action which threaten to make racial stereotypes even worse. “We’re doing something else that’s also sinister,” pointed out Horace. “When you bring subpar people in and they compete against exceptional people… they learn a bad lesson. You can tell who the poor performer will be based on their skin color. That’s the opposite message that we ought to be trying to get.”

Watch Horace’s entire appearance below.