WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Thousands of protesters gathered for a march here yesterday in an attempt to voice support for affirmative action policies, while the Supreme Court heard opening arguments in the University of Michigan case, which challenges the use of race-based admissions.
The rally was organized by members of the Coalition to Defend Affirmative Action and Integration, and Fight for Equality By Any Means Necessary.
BAMN organized two rallies, the first of which took place at 9 a.m. in front of the Supreme Court. The second rally was held at noon in front of the Lincoln Memorial, the same location where Martin Luther King Jr. spoke 40 years ago.
Many speakers, ranging from high school age and up, were given a chance to express their thoughts about the case against affirmative action.
Shanta Driver, the organizer of BAMN at the University of Michigan, said she believes the elimination of affirmative action will lead to legal segregation.
Others said they believe deciding to eliminate affirmative action is a decision that will reverse the Brown V. Board of Education decision.
"I agree with the statements made a few months ago by President Bush that the Supreme Court should abolish affirmative action in college admissions," College Republicans Secretary Chris Riser said. "I believe it is unfortunate that minority leaders such as Jesse Jackson equate the potential repeal of affirmative action with the segregationist Jim Crow laws. Affirmative action does not help minority students, it merely singles them out and judges them on the basis of skin color and not merit. In this way, affirmative action perpetuates racism."
Politics Prof. Larry Sabato said he predicts the decision over the case will be difficult and arduous.
"As usual, the [Supreme] Court's four liberals [Stevens, Souter, Ginsberg, and Breyer] seem to be pitted against the Court's four conservatives [Scalia, Thomas, Rehnquist, and Kennedy], with O'Connor the swing vote in the middle, and the most powerful person the Court in this case, and many others," he said.
People attended the protest from across the United States to unite under one cause.
"It was so inspiring to see people from all over the country come out in support of a program that is absolutely necessary for the vitality and welfare of this nation," University Democrats President Ian Amelkin said. "It was great to see a diverse group of people marching, regardless of race, Americans see the need for Affirmative Action programs to continue."
Marchers presented information showing the decrease of minority students at universities where affirmative action and similar programs are no longer implemented, such as Texas, UCLA and Berkeley.
Greg Mathis, a judge who appears on cable television and a member of the NAACP and the Rainbow P.U.S.H. Coalition spoke at the protest. He denounced the ideals of Clarence Thomas and claimed himself and Thomas as beneficiaries of affirmative action.
"I encourage the students of current generations to be leaders in the fight for affirmative action and equal access to education and equal access to economic opportunity," he said.
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