Asian-American coalition sues Harvard over admission discrimination

A coalition of over 60 Asian American organizations on Friday asked federal authorities to investigate whether Harvard University discriminates against Asian American applicants.

Calling it the largest joint action by Asian Americans for equal education rights in the past two decades, the coalition said it had asked the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice and the Office for Civil Rights of the Department of Education to launch a civil rights violation investigation of alleged discriminatory enrollment practices by Harvard University.

The discriminatory practices by Harvard include using racial stereotypes and racially differentiated standards, a de facto racial quota and using race well beyond merely a "plus" factor, according to a statement released by the coalition.

Calling the discriminatory enrollment process by Harvard "in the same vein as the past discrimination against and exclusions of Asian-Americans," the statement said it was imperative for the federal government to intervene "in a forceful manner."

"The share of Asians at Harvard peaked at over 20% in 1993, then immediately declined and thereafter remained roughly constant at a level 3-5 percentage points lower," said Yukong Zhao, chair of the Organizing Committee for the joint complaint, at a press conference.

"We want to eliminate discrimination of Asian-Americans, and we want procedural justice for all racial groups," Zhao told reporters.

Harvard University General Counsel Robert Iuliano defended its enrollment practice of taking race into consideration as an effort to "build a dynamic class."

"In fact, within its holistic admissions process, and as part of its effort to build a diverse class, Harvard College has demonstrated a strong record of recruiting and admitting Asian American students," Iuliano said in a statement.

The percentage of admitted Asian American students admitted to Harvard College has increased from 17.6 percent to 21 percent over the past decade, according to data released by Harvard.

"We will vigorously defend the right of Harvard, and other universities, to continue to seek the educational benefits that come from a class that is diverse on multiple dimensions," said Iuliano. Endite