Affirmative Action Threatened By Harvard Discrimination Lawsuit

Earlier this week, a court ruled that Harvard’s race-conscious admissions process is fair and doesn’t discriminate based on race. It’s a complicated case that is expected to be appealed.

What Happened?

Last year, an anonymous group of Asian-American students sued Harvard, claiming that they were denied admission because of a cap on the number of spots available to Asian-identifying students. Interestingly, the public face of the group is a white man whose stated aim is to eliminate the use of race in college admissions.

Why Does It Matter?

If the case is appealed and a new verdict is reached, it could have huge impacts on affirmative action, which is meant to improve the educational and employment opportunities for those who have historically been disenfranchised. During the trial, the plaintiffs argued that the only way to remove discrimination is to completely remove race as a factor for admission. The judge in the case did not agree, stating that “at least for now, ensuring diversity at Harvard relies, in part, on race conscious admissions.”

However, this is not the first time that a college has been accused of discriminating against Asian-American students: in the 1980s, student activists pushed schools like Harvard, Stanford, and Princeton to conduct internal investigations of their admissions practices.

While accessibility to college continues to be a challenge for people of color, removing programs meant to increase racial diversity may serve to only make inclusion more difficult.

What’s Next?

The case is expected to be appealed and reach the Supreme Court, where it’s speculated that conservative judges like Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh may end up trying to outlaw affirmative action altogether. Meanwhile, there is no timeline set.

Selena Gomez Opens Up About Her Family’s Migration to US, Calls For Action Around Immigration Crisis

As migrants continue to face inhumane conditions at the border, Selena Gomez recently chose to share her story in an op-ed for TIME Magazine. In it, the award-winning actress and recording artist talks through the bravery and sacrifices that her family made to enter the US from Mexico, before sharing that she “feel[s] afraid for my country.”

Gomez produced a recently released docuseries called Living Undocumented, which follows the lives of eight undocumented families as the country’s immigration policies go through radical shifts.

As the fight to make sure all people are treated with human dignity and respect still rages on, Gomez leaves us with an important reminder: “Fear shouldn’t stop us from getting involved and educating ourselves on an issue that affects millions of people in our country.” Let’s Do This.

Take Action: Sign the ACLU’s petition demanding that the government end its inhumane family separation policy.

Mattel Launches Customizable, Gender-Neutral Dolls

This week, Mattel announced the launch of a new customizable, gender-neutral line of dolls called Creatable World. The dolls allow kids (or adults because why not?) to mix and match different hair and clothing styles to create their very own characters.

“[The doll] means a lot to the queer community. It means that as a kid, you don't have to be defined by your gender,” says 12-year-old LGBTQ+ advocate Desmond is Amazing. “Anyone can have fun with these dolls!”

While cultural shifts don’t happen overnight, this is another great step toward removing bias around gender roles.

Take Action: We’re a little early for International Pronouns Day (October 16), but you can still watch and share this Buzzfeed video to teach others why pronouns matter.

• Why aren’t more people talking about… a new study that found birth control pills may be causing depression in teens?

• Meanwhile, in Hong Kong… an 18-year-old protestor was killed by police while calling for democracy.

• My heroes today are… two teenage boys who are fighting the stigma surrounding boys and periods by carrying tampons in their backpack to school in case a friend needs one!

• Today in viral cuteness… Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson made an adorable video for a fan’s 100th birthday, proving why he’s everyone’s favorite former wrestler turned actor (sorry, John Cena).

• I’m obsessed with… these college students’ masterful performance of "Sandstorm" by Darude...using boomwhackers? (Also, I’m just generally obsessed with the song because it’s so fun to listen to when you’ve had too much coffee).

What should we call you (and all readers of The Breakdown)?

Breakdowners...erm, uh...Breakheads? Lil Breakies? (Yes, we know these are bad.) So tell us your ideas!

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