 and Harvard.The Supreme Court has twice upheld race-conscious admissions programmes in the past 19 years, including just six years ago, but that was before three Right-leaning justices were appointed by Donald Trump, the former US president, swinging the balance to 6-3 towards the conservatives. 'Racial classifications are potentially dangerous'Right-leaning Justice Clarence Thomas, one of the court's two black members, expressed misgivings about the principle of diversity and its educational benefits.'I've heard the word 'diversity' quite a few times and I don't have a clue what it means,' he said.'I don't put much stock in that because I've heard similar arguments in favour of segregation, too,' he added. © Provided by The Telegraph Supporters of affirmative action rally in front of the US Supreme Court - Chip Somodevilla/ Getty Images North America Justice Brett Kavanaugh, a fellow conservative, told the state lawyer defending UNC's policy that the court's precedents have held that 'these racial classifications are potentially dangerous and must have a){kind=link}
‘Affirmative action’, accused of unfairly discriminating against white and Asian American applicants, could be banned
The US Supreme Court is likely to ban Harvard university from using its race-conscious admissions policy in what would be a landmark decision.
The policy, known as “affirmative action”, means that universities take the race of individuals into account when assessing their applications, in an effort to boost the diversity of their students.
While this has led to a higher proportion of students from minority or underrepresented groups, critics say that it unfairly discriminates against white and Asian American applicants.
Justice Samuel Alito, a conservative, likened affirmative action to a race in which a minority applicant gets to “start five yards closer to the finish line”.