WASHINGTON — In a decision that may herald a new era in the long struggle over racial integration in public education, the Supreme Court declared Thursday that officials may not use race to assign children to schools, even if the goal is greater diversity.
Neither white nor black students may be turned away from a particular school simply because of their race, the court said in a 5-4 decision.
The decision opens the door to legal challenges to integration strategies that have been adopted in school systems across the country, including Los Angeles Unified School District -- strategies that limit the number of white and minority students who may attend particular schools.
School integration: A Section A article Friday about the Supreme Court ruling on racial diversity in public schools quoted Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. as writing in the majority opinion: "The way to stop discrimination on the basis of race is to stop discriminating on the basis of race." That quote was from a section of the decision that did not receive a majority of votes from the justices.
Thursday's ruling did not directly address any programs other than the Seattle and Louisville, Ky., policies before the court, but the language of the majority opinion suggested others could face close scrutiny.
"The way to stop discrimination on the basis of race is to stop discriminating on the basis of race," Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. wrote in the majority opinion. Public schools must "stop assigning students on a racial basis," he said.
Some lawyers following the case said the ruling could spell trouble for racial guidelines in as many as 1,000 school districts across the nation. But each district's program differs, and it is unclear how sweeping the effect of Thursday's ruling will be.
The ruling also raised questions about how the high court, with its conservative bloc strengthened by the addition of Roberts as chief justice in 2005, will deal with the legacy of the landmark Brown vs. Board of Education decision that ignited half a century of struggle over busing and other efforts to promote racial integration in schools.
The decision, coming on the last day of this year's term, highlighted the fact that a conservative bloc led by Roberts prevailed in nearly all of the major cases that came before the court. On abortion, religion, campaign finance and now school integration, the chief justice has put together a five-member majority to move the law to the right.
Roberts cited the decision in Brown in support of his opinion in the current case. Just as Brown struck down forced segregation nationwide, he said, the court is now declaring that students may not be classified "based on the color of their skin."
The court's four liberal justices accused the majority of turning its back on Brown and the promise of racial integration.
- Court to Revisit Race in Schools Jun 06, 2006
- Schools Appealing Transfer Policy Jun 24, 2002
- Integration Plans Opposed Aug 25, 2006
