Recent Supreme Court Rulings

djchameleon · 06-25-2013, 04:09 PM

There were three pretty big cases that were ruled on recently and I wanted to get everyone's thoughts on them.

One of them covered a case about a young white woman that was upset that she didn't get into UT in Austin. She didn't have the grad requirements to get in in the first place but she claims that affirmative action was used against her to hold her back from getting in.

Q&A: Supreme Court's affirmative action case | Politics | The Seattle Times

Tomorrow, they will decide on the gay marriage case.
They will ultimately decide the fate of California's Proposition 8 and a 1996 federal ban on benefits for same-sex couples.

U.S. Supreme Court to decide gay marriage cases Wednesday - San Jose Mercury News

This one confuses me a bit. They struck down a part of the voting rights act of 1965 in 9 southern states. I hear that if they start requiring tests for black people in the south to vote then they can still be sued and have a case brought up against them. I guess the point may be that black people can't afford to lawyer up and sue. I know most of those southern states will enact the Voter ID laws to further disenfranchise blacks in the south but those states are always won by republicans.

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/26/us...ling.html?_r=0

There was also a custody case over a little girl that was taken from her adoptive parents by her birth father and he was trying to use an old ruling on the book that says that Native Americans can't be separated from their children but the court struck that down in the best interests of the child. So the little girl will go back to the adoptive parents.

misspoptart · 06-26-2013, 06:57 AM

Those are all very interesting indeed, Deej. As I cannot be bothered to keep up with US politics (enough shit going on here in the Middle East/Europe as it is), I appreciate the informative update.

That native American girl one is especially interesting. How old was she?

djchameleon · 06-26-2013, 06:59 AM

I believe she is 3 or 4.

Here is an article about that case.

Baby Veronica ruling: Supreme Court rules Native American girl does NOT have to go back to biological father | Mail Online

misspoptart · 06-26-2013, 07:01 AM

I seriously disagree with affirmative action too, by the way. In high school, two students in my biology class applied to Boston College with basically the same credentials -- both overachievers, class rank 7th and 8th, extra-curricular activities, and work experience, etc -- and the 1st-generation America dude (parents moved to Maine from Albania) got accepted over the fourth-generation girl. We all knew why.

djchameleon · 06-26-2013, 07:07 AM

You know how many opportunities that the 4th generation girl is already entitled to just because she's white in her life overall? I'm sure her not getting accepted one time in her life isn't going to kill her when she can get into so many other places. Unless you believe that white privilege isn't a thing.

Also in the case above the girl couldn't even get in on her own grades when UT usually lets in so many people.

misspoptart · 06-26-2013, 07:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by djchameleon

You know how many opportunities that the 4th generation girl is already entitled to just because she's white in her life overall? I'm sure her not getting accepted one time in her life isn't going to kill her when she can get into so many other places. Unless you believe that white privilege isn't a thing.

Also in the case above the girl couldn't even get in on her own grades when UT usually lets in so many people.

I mean, the guy was also caucasian. Albanian doesn't mean black...or brown...or any other color...

He was born in America and looks/acts/behaves like any "white guy" I've ever met. The point is he could use his ethnicity and family as an added point to get him in. I believe she deserved it more, just knowing the two personally.

djchameleon · 06-26-2013, 07:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by misspoptart

I mean, the guy was also caucasian. Albanian doesn't mean black...or brown...or any other color...

He was born in America and looks/acts/behaves like any "white guy" I've ever met. The point is he could use his ethnicity and family as an added point to get him in. I believe she deserved it more, just knowing the two personally.

You believe she deserved it more but they both had pretty much the same credentials?

misspoptart · 06-26-2013, 07:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by djchameleon

You believe she deserved it more but they both had pretty much the same credentials?

Personally, he was an ******* and a binge drinker. I don't know why you're trying to spin what I'm saying; on paper, they were the same. If he wasn't also Albanian, and affirmative action-like policies weren't in place, I bet they would have at least called her for an interview and subsequently accepted her as well as or instead of him.

djchameleon · 06-26-2013, 07:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by misspoptart

Personally, he was an ******* and a binge drinker. I don't know why you're trying to spin what I'm saying; on paper, they were the same. If he wasn't also Albanian, and affirmative action-like policies weren't in place, I bet they would have at least called her for an interview and subsequently accepted her as well as or instead of him.

One misuse of the policy and you want the whole thing to be done away with and don't see any importance in having it?

I'm not trying to spin anything. I was just curious why you felt she deserved it more than he did and you told me because he was an ******* in your eyes.

misspoptart · 06-26-2013, 07:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by djchameleon

One misuse of the policy and you want the whole thing to be done away with and don't see any importance in having it?

I'm not trying to spin anything. I was just curious why you felt she deserved it more than he did and you told me because he was an ******* in your eyes.

I mean that was the premise of my whole example -- the policy exists, and people who may not have otherwise gotten in to a school are preferred simply based on their backgrounds, which has nothing to do with their character. The plan assumes that certain people get extra points for something beyond their control. It's a different kind of discrimination that I don't think should exist in America. Everyone is fighting to get into schools, there are equally disadvantaged people from every background in the country, and they all deserve a fair shot at going to the college of their choice.

And everyone, and I mean everyone who knew that guy blamed affirmative action for his acceptance. It was obvious, and even one of the teachers brought up affirmative action in class after. The guy proceeded to be a dick by bragging about how all he needed to do was "be a foreigner" and the schools were begging him to come there on full scholarships. Complete jerk.

But hey, even I got in to my college on a sort of affirmative-action policy for being from an "underrepresented state." I think those kinds of rules are just not fair.

06-26-2013, 06:57 AM	#2 (permalink)
misspoptart gimme gimme Join Date: Dec 2012 Location: istanbul Posts: 897	Those are all very interesting indeed, Deej. As I cannot be bothered to keep up with US politics (enough shit going on here in the Middle East/Europe as it is), I appreciate the informative update. That native American girl one is especially interesting. How old was she?

06-26-2013, 07:01 AM	#4 (permalink)
misspoptart gimme gimme Join Date: Dec 2012 Location: istanbul Posts: 897	I seriously disagree with affirmative action too, by the way. In high school, two students in my biology class applied to Boston College with basically the same credentials -- both overachievers, class rank 7th and 8th, extra-curricular activities, and work experience, etc -- and the 1st-generation America dude (parents moved to Maine from Albania) got accepted over the fourth-generation girl. We all knew why.