“It’s refreshing that the Supreme Court decided race-based admission standards are unconstitutional,” said Project 21 fellow Deneen Borelli. “Racial quotas are harmful because they reinforce resentment towards minorities and increases racial tensions. Parental judgment and educational needs should be the basis for choosing what schools children should attend.”

The ruling combined two cases: Community Schools v. Seattle School District No. 1 (Washington) and Meredith v. Jefferson County Board of Education (Louisville, Kentucky). In the Seattle case, school administrators implemented an enrollment quota of 40 percent white and 60 percent minority in each high school to reflect the racial makeup of the overall student body. In Louisville, all schools must have between 15 percent and 50 percent black enrollment, forcing parents to rank which schools they would prefer their children to attend. In both cases, there are students who must travel great distances to get to the schools selected for them.

Project 21, a nonprofit and nonpartisan organization sponsored by the National Center for Public Policy Research, has been a leading voice of the African-American community since 1992. For more information, contact David Almasi at (202) 543-4110 x11 or dalmasi@nationalcenter.org, or visit Project 21’s website at www.project21.org/P21Index.html.