Editors’ note: The following essay forms part of “Affirmative action & the law: a symposium,” a special section exploring topics to be addressed in the current Supreme Court session. Roger Kimball’s introduction can be read here.

Suppose that in its current term the Supreme Court comes down like a sledgehammer on race-preferential admissions policies, giving Students for Fair Admissions (sffa) a historic win in its lawsuits against Harvard and the University of North Carolina. What then?

Will colleges and universities suddenly turn away from admissions standards that vary depending on whether a student is black, white, Asian, or Latino?

That seems...

 
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