US Justice Department Drops Lawsuit Against Yale University for Its Admission Practices

The US Department of Justice dropped a lawsuit filed by the Trump administration against Yale University, claiming that the latter has discriminated against Asian American and white applicants during the undergraduate admission process.

Back in October, when the lawsuit was filed, the department, which then was led by Attorney General William Barr, said that every year, Yale university rejects the scores of Asian American and white applicants based on their race, Eurdera reports.

Yale’s case is similar to another one against Harvard University. An anti-affirmative action group had previously sued the latter, accusing of discrimination against Asian American students.

“The department has dismissed its lawsuit in light of all available facts, circumstances, and legal developments, including the November 2020 decision by the US Court of Appeals for the First Circuit rejecting a challenge to Harvard University’s consideration of race in its admissions practices,” a Justice Department spokesperson said.

Following the news, the office of Yale University’s President Peter Salovey published a letter addressing the issue.

In the letter, the President retells the challenges of last August, when the department has mistakenly alleged that Yale has discriminated against Asian American and white applicants.

According to the letter, despite the fact that Yale collaborated with the department and provided facts to prove these are misunderstandings, the latter sued university.

“I am pleased that the department has decided to drop its lawsuit and has withdrawn its notices of violation of Title VI and of noncompliance. Instead, the department will resume the compliance review that it set aside last fall in favor of litigation,” the letter reads, claiming that Yale university is open to sharing information with the department, as they are sure that the admission process is fully in line with Supreme Court’s decisions made over decades.

“Our ability to realize this shared mission relies on an admissions process that looks at the whole applicant: where applicants come from, what they have accomplished, and what they hope to achieve at Yale and after graduation,” President’s letter continues.

According to him, it is in this way how a diverse community is created, beneficial to students, staff, faculty, and the whole university community in general.

President Salovey emphasized that all groups of students coming to pursue studies at Yale are diverse and have a lot to contribute to university, country, and the whole world.

“Their stories—and their hopes and dreams—underscore the importance of our unwavering commitment to maintaining an academic environment built on a wide range of strengths and background,” the letter concluded.