US Solicitor General Calls Race-Based Admissions at Service Academies a ‘Critical National Security Imperative’

Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar called race-based admissions at service academies a “critical national security imperative.”

The Supreme Court heard two cases on Monday that challenged race-based admissions at Harvard and the University of North Carolina. Both were filed against the universities by Students for Fair Admissions.

During oral arguments for Students for Fair Admissions v. University of North Carolina, Prelogar said:

Our armed forces know from hard experience that when we do not have a diverse officer corps that is broadly reflective of a diverse fighting force, our strength and cohesion and military readiness suffer. It is a critical national security imperative to attain diversity within the officer corps.

And at present it is not possible to achieve that diversity without race-conscious admissions, including at the nation’s service academies. The military experience confirms what this court recognized in Grutter. That in a society where unfortunately still matters in countless ways, achieving diversity can sometimes require conscious acts by our leading educational institutions.

In the 2003 case Grutter v. Bollinger, the Supreme Court ruled that race can be considered in college admissions. Writing for the majority, then-Justice Sandra Day O’Connor stated that “in the context of its individualized inquiry into the possible diversity contributions of all applicants, the [University of Michigan] Law School’s race-conscious admissions program does not unduly harm nonminority applicants.”

Watch above.
(h/t Greg Price)