Major Legal Events in Affirmative Action

CHRONOLOGY: Major Legal Events in Affirmative Action, from the New York Times, June 24, 2003.

In and Out of Court: Affirmative Action

• JULY 2, 1964 Civil Rights Act of 1964 The act established legal recourse against discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. This protection covered public accommodations, public transportation, public education, and federally assisted programs.

• JUNE 28, 1978 Regents of the University of California v. Bakke In a 5-to-4 vote, the Supreme Court struck down an admissions program that reserved a fixed number of spots for minorities, but allowed that race may be considered as one of a number of factors. The controlling opinion stated that diversity contributes to a richer educational environment.

• MARCH 18, 1996 Hopwood v. University of Texas Law School The Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit suspended an affirmative action admissions program, outlawing any preferences whatsoever based on race. The decision rejected the Bakke notion of diversity as a compelling state interest.

• NOV. 5, 1996 Proposition 209 in California Californians voted to forbid any consideration of race, gender or national origin in hiring or school admissions.

• DEC. 3, 1998 Initiative 200 in Washington Washington State voters eliminated all preferential treatment based on race or gender in government hiring and school admissions.

• FEB. 22, 2000 "One Florida" Initiative The Florida cabinet enacted the education component of Gov. Jeb Bush's "One Florida" program, which ended the consideration of race in university admissions and state contracts. It instead called for more aid based on financial need.

• JUNE 23, 2003 University of Michigan rulings The Supreme Court upheld an affirmative action program at the University of Michigan law school, but struck down the undergraduate system that awarded extra points to minority students.

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