Today, a federal court issued a ruling upholding the U.S. Naval Academy’s limited consideration of race in admissions, concluding that the program is constitutional because it is narrowly tailored to meet mission-critical national security interests.
In response to the ruling, Michaele Turnage Young, Senior Counsel and Co-Manager of the Legal Defense Fund’s (LDF) Equal Protection Initiative issued the following statement:
“We are pleased to see the District Court affirm the right of the Naval Academy to use an admissions policy designed to identify talented, hard-working students that hail from all parts of the racially diverse country our military serves.
“The military is keenly aware that a climate of distrust caused by a lack of equal opportunity along racial lines risks mission failure and loss of life. It is unfortunate that some are willing to undermine the safety of our sailors and risk our country’s national security by promoting exclusion.
“While we are encouraged by today’s ruling, LDF is prepared to support the Naval Academy against any further attacks to their admissions program.”
In Students For Fair Admissions v. Harvard/UNC, the Supreme Court noted that its decision did not affect race-conscious admissions at the U.S. military academies, which it said had “potentially distinct” interests that separate them from civilian colleges. Following this, SFFA sued West Point and the U.S. Naval Academy, alleging that their limited consideration of race in admissions is unconstitutional. LDF filed an amicus brief with the ACLU and the National Association of Black Military Women defending the military academies’ programs.
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Founded in 1940, the Legal Defense Fund (LDF) is the nation’s first civil rights law organization. LDF’s Thurgood Marshall Institute is a multi-disciplinary and collaborative hub within LDF that launches targeted campaigns and undertakes innovative research to shape the civil rights narrative. In media attributions, please refer to us as the Legal Defense Fund or LDF. Please note that LDF has been completely separate from the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) since 1957—although LDF was originally founded by the NAACP and shares its commitment to equal rights.
