The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights

In Cincinnati, attorneys representing a wide range of groups including students, faculty and prospective applicants asked a 15-judge federal appeals court panel to uphold an earlier ruling that struck down Michigan’s ban on equal opportunity programs in public higher education, employment, and contracting.

The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear a challenge to the use of race as a factor in determining admissions at public universities.

Update 4/4/2012: The Sixth Circuit is currently rehearing en banc the constitutionality of Michigan's Proposal 2, which prohibits Michigan's public colleges and universities from granting "preferential treatment to ...  any individual or group on the basis of race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin.”"

The 6^th Circuit Court of Appeals recently struck down (2-1)  Michigan's ban on equal opportunity programs in public higher education, employment, and contracting.

Even though there are millions of unemployed workers looking for jobs, some employers are excluding them from job applicant pools regardless of their qualifications, a trend that is growing according to testimony before the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) last week.

In a significant victory for advancing equal opportunity in higher education, on January 18, the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals unanimously upheld the constitutionality of University of Texas at Austin's (UT Austin) current admissions policy, which considers race as one of several factors.