Anti-Affirmative Action Group Sues West Point

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The Facts

  • Virginia-based Students for Fair Admissions on Tuesday filed a suit against the US Military Academy at West Point, accusing the Army’s school of discriminating against white applicants.

  • The anti-affirmative action group claims West Point has been setting quotas for the number of Black, Hispanic, and Asian cadets it accepts to each class, thereby violating the Fifth Amendment’s equal-protection clause.


The Spin

Right narrative

There’s no justification for West Point continuing to weigh race so heavily in its admission decisions. SCOTUS has already struck down race-based admissions at all other institutions of higher education and it’s time to apply the same standard to West Point, so as to avoid harming students who deserve acceptance but get rejected based on skin color.

Left narrative

Unlike other institutions of higher learning, the military has determined that a diverse student body will lead directly to improved performance of the organization in the field. Vietnam taught the military that a lack of minorities in officer positions affected its effectiveness on the battlefield, so the SCOTUS ruling shouldn’t apply to West Point or any other military institution.


Metaculus Prediction


Political split

LEFT

RIGHT

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