Proposal 2 challenge continues

Detnews.com
Last Updated: November 17. 2009 10:52AM
Laura Berman

Three years after Michigan voters approved Proposal 2, the constitutional amendment that ended the use of affirmative action in college admissions, lawyers are set to argue in a federal appeals court that the new law is unconstitutional.
And while you might not want to bet big on the challengers -- they lost an opening round in U.S. District Court -- their case is intriguing.
The ACLU is representing 18 students and faculty members at the University of Michigan in its lawsuit against the state of Michigan, saying that Proposal 2 violates the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment. The new law makes any effort to reinstate affirmative action laws difficult -- creating an undue burden on minorities who would benefit from such laws, they argue.
What's clear, and unsurprising, is that Proposal 2 has cut into African-American enrollment at state universities, especially at the University of Michigan, the state's most selective school. While the law hasn't had an impact on gender or some minorities, Native American and African American admissions are down at U-M and some other state universities.

Full Story: http://www.detnews.com/article/20091117/OPINION03/911170342/Proposal-2-challenge-continues