[1/5] Demonstrators gather in support of affirmative action as the U.S. Supreme Court is set to consider whether colleges may continue to use race as a factor in student admissions in two cases, at the U.S. Supreme Court building in Washington, U.S. October 31, 2022.
The justices heard nearly three hours of arguments in the UNC case before turning to the Harvard dispute.
Blum's group said UNC discriminates against white and Asian American applicants and Harvard discriminates against Asian American applicants.
The cases give the court an opportunity to overturn its prior rulings - including one as recent as 2016 - allowing race-conscious admissions policies at colleges and universities.
The court in 2016 upheld a University of Texas race-conscious admissions policy, but has shifted rightward since then.
Strawbridge asked the Supreme Court to overturn a 2003 Supreme Court ruling that held that colleges could consider race as one factor in the admissions process because of the compelling interest of creating a diverse student body.
The court first upheld affirmative action in college admissions in a 1978 ruling that held that actions to achieve diversity were permissible but racial quotas were not. »