Americans for a Fair Chance Gears Up for Supreme Court Decision
Feature Story by civilrights.org staff - 6/16/2003
At this critical juncture for the future of affirmative action programs, Americans for a Fair Chance (AFC), a collaboration of six of the nation's leading civil rights legal organizations, is mobilizing support for the policy among opinion leaders, key stakeholders, and the general public.No matter what the outcome of the University of Michigan cases pending before the Supreme Court, the fallout from these decisions will likely have a significant impact on both Congress and state legislatures across the nation.
Ever since the Court's decision in Regents of the University of California v. Bakke, educational institutions throughout the country have utilized various affirmative action programs as a means of counteracting the effects of past racial discrimination and providing greater educational opportunities to racial and ethnic minorities.
Opponents of affirmative action, however, have attacked these policies in the federal courts with increasing frequency. This term, the Supreme Court - for the first time since Bakke - considered one such challenge, this one to affirmative action policies at the University of Michigan's undergraduate and law schools.
AFC, now a project of the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights Education Fund (LCCREF), is calling for support for affirmative action policies and programs, in recognition of the fact that America's campuses, workforce, and national security benefit by recruiting men and women from diverse races, ethnicities, and backgrounds.
AFC is convening a forum on "The Military and Affirmative Action" to be held at the Georgetown University Law School on June 18, 2003, to examine how the military developed successful affirmative action programs and what is likely to happen if the Supreme Court decides to change current law.
A panel of legal experts will review the legal history of affirmative action, the role affirmative action policies have played especially for changes in the military academies, what the Supreme Court is likely to do, and what impact that decision will have on the nation's military academies.
Recognizing that the stakes are now at an all-time high for current and future generations of students, AFC convened a "National Student Leadership Strategy Session on Affirmative Action", designed to assist them in their efforts to educate and mobilize students on the importance of affirmative action.
A newly designed web site, www.fairchance.org., complements AFC's recent partnership with LCCREF, which is designed to position AFC at the center of the civil rights coalition, allowing for expansion of the scope and reach of its work. AFC's work is grounded on the belief that the measurable gains accomplished by affirmative action contribute to the prosperity and health of the nation.
The new fairchance.org has an updated look that provides a new look and feel, new features, and new, streamlined navigation.
The new fairchance.org offers:
Real People/Real Stories: Real-life stories of how affirmative action opened the doors of opportunity, and what this access has meant.
The Facts: Quick access to such topics as Affirmative Action in Education and Affirmative Action in Employment.
Newly-streamlined information clearinghouse: The new site aggregates content from the national social and economic justice organizations that make up the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights coalition.
Media Watch: An interactive map of affirmative action media in your state.
Affirmative Action in the News: The site also supports a new daily online publication, "Affirmative Action in the News," which collects and disseminates affirmative action-related news and information from around the country.
AFC was founded by a consortium of six leading civil rights organizations: the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, Mexican American Legal Defense & Educational Fund, NAACP Legal Defense Fund, Inc., National Asian Pacific American Legal Consortium, National Women's Law Center, and the National Partnership for Women and Families.
