Magnet schools in Los Angeles won a significant court victory Friday when a state appellate panel rejected a lawsuit charging that they violated California's Proposition 209, which outlawed affirmative action in the state.
In strong, clear language, the three-judge panel said an organization affiliated with Proposition 209 author Ward Connerly was wrong to claim that the Los Angeles Unified School District could no longer use the race of students as a factor in magnet school admissions. Race-based admissions were mandated in a 1981 court order that remains in effect despite Proposition 209, the appeals court said.
Although Connerly's organization could still appeal to the state Supreme Court, an American Civil Liberties Union lawyer who took part in the case on behalf of the district said she thought the challenge was effectively over.
"It's an unequivocal victory for students in this district and terrific news for students statewide," Catherine Lhamon said.
Because the ruling was based on largely technical grounds, Connerly said it was not a serious setback to his campaign against affirmative action. "This isn't something that challenges 209," he said. "But I think it's just the wrong way for us to be going with regard to the issue of race, at a time when we just elected a self-identified black man as president and we're trying to get beyond race."
In an interview, incoming L.A. Schools Supt. Ramon C. Cortines said he might not have fought the lawsuit had he been in charge when it was filed in 2005. He said he supports the concept of magnet schools, which use strong academics or specialized curricula to attract students citywide, but thinks that using them as a tool for desegregation might be an outdated idea. In a district where more than 90% of students are nonwhite, it is no longer possible to integrate the school system, he said. The magnet system mandates that 30% or 40% of the seats in a school be set aside for white students. It does not distinguish among other races or ethnicities.
Asked if he thought the district could have responded to the lawsuit by halting its use of race in magnet admissions, he said, "I think they could." He added that he didn't want to be a Monday-morning quarterback.
