Why Asian Americans Oppose The Harvard’s Admission System

In the 1960 s,the rise of the Civil Rights movements and neo-pluralism prompted the United States to carry out Affirmative Action to correct historical injustices.Affirmative Action seeks to overturn historical trends of discrimination against disadvantaged groups(such as ethnic minorities and women)by providing special care to them.Because of Affirmative Action,many colleges and universities in the United States drew up a plan to keep the proportion of students of every ethnic group(the quota system)during the admission process.Harvard University has never denied the fact that it takes racial factors into consideration during the admission process,which has triggered the dispute of “systematical discrimination.” The Harvard Discrimination Case embodies the intensified contradiction: Since 2014,Student for Fair Admissions Organization(SFFA)has accused Harvard University of systematically discriminating against Asian students during the admission process.This case has attracted great attention and was reported by many mainstream media in the United States.Many Human rights organizations concern about the case,too.In October 2019,the case had a result.The Boston District Court ruled in favor of Harvard University.It can also be seen as a sign that some Asian Americans think the education field in the United States still supports the AA-based(based on Affirmative Action)admission system.Asian students will continue to be affected by the admission system and suffer from “systematic discrimination” for a long time.Taking the Harvard Discrimination Case as an example,this thesis will study the reasons why Asian Americans oppose the Harvard quota admission system.The study attempts to present from three aspects: Firstly,the Harvard quota admission system has a weak legal basis.It is unconstitutional to sacrifice Asian students to achieve racial diversity in school;Secondly,qualified Asian applicants suffer from reverse discrimination caused by the Harvard quota admission system;Thirdly,Asian Americans think the quota system violates the principle of equity in opportunity.Therefore,Asian Americans opposing this quota system believe that it will cause negative influences on the future development of Asian Americans.As a top university in the United States,the policies of Harvard University have the exemplary significance for American higher education.Thus,studying Asian Americans’ standpoint in the Harvard Discrimination Case and their reasons is helpful to understand the current situation of ethnic equity in American higher education.By analyzing the Harvard Discrimination Case,this thesis hopes to provide some perspectives for the understanding of the universality and importance of American educational equity.