On August 22, 2023, the American Coalition for Equal Rights sued two of the largest law companies in the United States for scholarships that the group thinks are biased.
In particular, the organization gives scholarships to individuals from racial minorities and the LGBT community, which the anti-affirmative action group thinks is an illegal way to discriminate against white prospects. Two months following the Supreme Court ruling against affirmative action policies, which were used by a number of colleges to increase the number of non-white students, the American Coalition for Equal Rights sued Perkins Coie in Dallas as well as Morrison & Foerster in Miami.
Federal judges were asked to hear the cases. They said that both law firms were breaking the law by putting limits on which law students of which races could get paid scholarships. The main idea behind these grants was that they would help make the law field more diverse.
The American Coalition for Equal Rights was established by Edward Blum.
“It is unfair, divisive, and against the law to keep students from receiving these prestigious fellowships simply because they are considered to be the wrong race,” Blum stated in a statement.
The lawsuits were filed at a time when there have been increasing legal challenges against business diversity initiatives since the Supreme Court’s landmark affirmative action decision in Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. versus President and Fellows of Harvard College. Activision Blizzard, Gannett, and Kellogg, are just a few of the companies currently dealing with legal issues.
Perkins Coie has “diversity scholarships” that give $15,000 to $25,000 along with paid summer associate jobs. A job like this at a well-known law company can lead to a full-time job after graduation.
Perkins Coie, a firm with 1,200 attorneys on staff in the U.S. and Asia, says that the applicants must be from “a group that has been historically marginalized in the legal field. This includes students of color, LGBTQ+ students, and those with disabilities.”
The 1,000 lawyers who work for Morrison & Foerster are spread out all over the world. This law company has a similar program where people of color, LGBT people, and Native Americans can get a scholarship. This grant comes with a summer associate job and a salary of $50,000.
The cases say that the grants breach Section 1981 from the Civil Rights Act from 1866, which was a federal law that was passed after slavery was ended during the American Civil War. This law makes it illegal for private contracts to be based on race.
This month, the American Alliance for Equal Rights sued an Atlanta-based venture capitalist fund called Fearless Fund for the same thing. In the case, the anti-affirmative action group claimed that it improperly permitted only the black women to be deemed eligible for funds, which violated the contracting law.
At a time when both private and state organizations are pushing a very anti-white message, we need these groups more than ever. The ancestors of the white Europeans who started this great country will be kicked out of their homes if people are too comfortable.
Author: Scott Dowdy
