The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights

Sample Alert

ALERT! ALERT! ALERT!

Supreme Court Issues Decision on Michigan Affirmative Action Cases
[Student Organization] Hails U.S. Supreme Court in University of Michigan Decision

Background

April 1 - For the first time in nearly 25 years, the U.S. Supreme Court considered the critical issue of whether - and under what circumstances - public universities can consider race as a factor in the admissions process. In two lawsuits filed against the University of Michigan, attorneys challenged the affirmative action policies of the University’s undergraduate and law school programs, alleging that they discriminate against non-minority applicants on the basis of race.

Today’s U.S. Supreme Court Decision

[Dateline] - Today’s U.S. Supreme Court’s decision regarding the University of Michigan’s race-based affirmative action programs is a great victory for America, said [name of organization], [organization descriptor].

[Information on the decision] This decision recognizes that a diverse and racially integrated campus benefits all students. It also recognizes that America’s national security and American businesses benefit by recruiting men and women from diverse races, ethnicities, and backgrounds.

The decision, although it threw out Michigan’s specific scoring system, did not reject affirmative action as a policy. Instead, the Court emphasized that schools can maintain diverse student bodies by screening applications more rigorously to ensure that race and ethnicity are among factors considered in admissions decisions.

Needed Action

Your involvement is critical in the movement to foster diversity in education and the workplace, and fight threats to equal rights for all Americans. Contact [organization, contact person, phone number, e-mail] for information on how to get involved in the following way(s):

• Get on the [organization] e-mail action network to learn more about what’s happening on your campus to reach out to students about the importance of today’s U.S. Supreme Court decision.
• Sign up for more information on what you can do and subscribe to the Americans for a Fair Chance action network by sending an e-mail to info@civilrights.org.

For more information, go to www.civilrights.org