This page contains a chronological record of some of the major events surrounding the passage of California Proposition 209 and other Affirmative Action news. The news section is subdivided by year: 1997 | 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006
This page was last revised August 3, 2006. (AAD Home Page)
A Chronological Record of News and Events Related to Affirmative Action
News and Announcements: 2005
December 21, 2005 : In a harshly worded order, the Michigan Court of Appeals late Tuesday ordered a proposed constitutional amendment banning affirmative action put on the November 2006 general election ballot. See article Preference Ban Makes Ballot
December 15, 2005 : The Board of State Canvassers voted 2-1, with one member not voting, to certify the so-called Michigan Civil Rights Initiative for the November 2006 ballot. It takes three votes to certify. The meeting was disrupted by an opposition group, By Any Means Necessary, which recruited students from high schools in Detroit and from Oak Park High School to swarm the meeting and keep the board from voting. See article Students Disrupt Election Vote
December 5, 2005 : The American Association for Affirmative Action (AAAA), an association of equal employment opportunity (EEO), diversity and affirmative action professionals founded in 1974, announced serious reservations about the emerging record of Judge Samuel Alito, nominated to serve as an Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. See article American Association for Affirmative Action Announces "Serious Reservations" About Supreme Court Nominee Samuel Alito
November 1, 2005: In Michigan , a constitutional amendment banning racial preferences in university admissions and government hiring was ordered on next year's statewide ballot by an appellate court Monday. See article Affirmative Action Vote Sought - Appellate Court: Citizens Should Decide on Ballot Whether Race Should Be Factor in Hiring, Admissions
October 25, 2005: Rosa Parks, a black seamstress whose refusal to relinquish her seat to a white man on a city bus in Montgomery, Ala., almost 50 years ago grew into a mythic event that helped touch off the civil rights movement of the 1950's and 1960's, died yesterday at her home in Detroit. She was 92 years old. See article Rosa Parks, 92, Founding Symbol of Civil Rights Movement, Dies
October 13, 2005: Ninety five percent of Hispanic young people and 80 percent of African-American young people in Florida not currently enrolled in college said they would have been more likely to attend college if they had better information about how to pay for it. See article New Poll Shows Lack of Awareness About Financial Aid Is a Barrier to College for Florida 's Minorities
September 20, 2005: The Labor Department has temporarily suspended government requirements that its contractors have an affirmative action plan addressing the employment of women, members of minorities, Vietnam veterans and the disabled if the companies are first-time government contractors working on reconstruction in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. See article Contractors Get Affirmative Action Exemption
September 5, 2005: President Bush nominated John G. Roberts, Jr., as the 17th Chief Justice of the United States. See article Bush Nominates Roberts for Chief Justice
September 4, 2005: With a second vacancy to fill on the Supreme Court, President Bush is much more likely to turn to a minority or woman to be his nominee, Republicans and former White House officials said today. See article Speculation Grows About Minority or Woman Nominee
September 3, 2005: Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist died Saturday evening of thyroid cancer, ending a 33-year Supreme Court career during which he oversaw the court's conservative shift, presided over an impeachment trial, and helped decide a presidential election. His death creates a rare second vacancy on the nation's highest court. He opposed affirmative action. See article Chief Justic Rehnquist Dies of Cancer
September 3, 2005: The freshman class of 2009 at Syracuse University is nearly 24 percent students of color, up from 17 percent for last year's freshman class. See article Syracuse Diversity Comes After Much Work
September 1, 2005: The Michigan State Police issued a statement yesterday denying that it had labeled members of two Michigan activist groups, including affirmative action advocacy group BAMN, as terrorists. See article State Police Deny Labeling Michigan Groups as Terrorists
September 1, 2005: According to a report released yesterday from the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, Judge John G. Roberts, Jr., has been "hostile" to civil rights and, if confirmed to the U.S. Supreme Court, would move to undo decades of hard-fought civil rights gains. In an analysis of documents from the National Archives and the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, the report concludes that Roberts helped shape the Reagan administration's anti-civil rights policies concerning voting, affirmative action, housing, and employment. See article NAACP Legal Fund Attacks Roberts as Civil Rights Opponent
August 31, 2005: The Global Organization of People of Indian Origin (GOPIO) has opposed Fijian Prime Minister Laisenia Qarase's upcoming visit to India, slamming him for denying fundamental rights to Indians in his country. The organization has said that Qarase initiated an affirmative action program for the indigenous community "which blatantly discriminates against the people of Indian origin," contrary to international standards established by the UN. See article Indian Diaspora Body Opposes Fiji Leader's India Visit
August 29, 2005: The ACLU today released an FBI document that designates affirmative action advocacy group, BAMN (Coalition to Defend Affirmative Action, Integration, & Immigrant Rights and Fight for Equality By Any Means Necessary), as potentially "involved in terrorist activities." See articles FBI Document Labels Affirmative Action and Peace Groups as Terrorists and FBI, Michigan Police Tag Peace Group, Affirmative Action Group, and Others as "Terrorist"
August 30, 2005: According to newly disclosed archival documents, Supreme Court nominee John G. Roberts, Jr., advised the Reagan administration's attorney general that "it makes eminent sense" to seek legislation permanently barring the use of employment quotas to redress discrimination and prohibiting the busing of students to foster the integration of schools. See article Roberts Memo Urged Laws Prohibiting Busing, Quotas
August 29, 2005: See opinion article Democratic Deal-Makers Once Again Sell Out Blacks
August 26, 2005: After the Michigan Board of State
Canvassers refused to certify the anti-affirmative action MCRI petition
for the 2006 Michigan elections, MCRI has brought a suit against them
in state appeals court. State Attorney General Mike Cox, who publicly
supports the MCRI petition, is supposed to "defend" the Board of State
Canvassers's decision in the case. Operation King's Dream filed on
Wednesday to intervene into the lawsuit as a co-defendant. See Motion to Intervene
and Brief in Support of Motion at BAMN (Coalition to Defend Affirmative Action, Integration, & Immigrant Rights and Fight for Equality By Any Means Necessary)
August 26, 2005: Malaysia bills itself as a model of peaceful multiculturalism, but despite nearly half a century of nationhood, the races that make up its population have never been further apart. An affirmative action plan known as the New Economic Policy, which for two decades from 1970 gave ethnic Malays a range of advantages, has been widely criticized and seems to have done little to improve race relations. See articles Malaysia Agonizes Over Race Policy, 35 Years On and Malaysia's Races Live Peacefully -- But Separately
August 25, 2005: See article Indian Government, Judiciary at Loggerheads over Affirmative Action
August 22, 2005: Recommendations from a new report from the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights (USSCR) "seem to indicate the Commission's intent to eliminate equal opportunity and affirmative action programs," Americans for a Fair Chance (AFC), a project of the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights Education Fund, said in a critical rebuttal to the USCCR's findings. See article New USCCR Report Called "Back-Door" Approach to Weaken Affirmative Action Programs
August 19, 2005: The hunt is on for a missing file folder from Supreme Court nominee John Roberts' work on affirmative action more than 20 years ago during the Reagan administration. See article Officials Hunt for File from Roberts
August 18, 2005: Supreme Court nominee John Roberts criticized state efforts to battle sex discrimination, calling programs promoting affirmative action and comparable worth "highly objectionable" in his legal advice to President Reagan. See article Roberts Knocked Affirmative Action
August 2, 2005: As a young aide to Attorney General William French Smith in the early 1980s, Supreme Court nominee John Roberts embraced the conservative Reagan administration's efforts to limit judicial power and certain civil rights remedies, according to memos released on Tuesday. See articles Robserts Helped to Rebut Rights Criticism and Top Court Nominee Supported Reagan Policies
August 2, 2005: A federal appeals court today struck down the Kamehameha Schools' century-old Hawaiian preference admissions policy, saying it violates federal anti-discrimination law. See article Court Rules Against Kamehameha Admissions
August 2, 2005: Gene R. Nichol, the new president of the College of William and Mary, plans to launch a program to recruit and retain lower-income students. See article W&M Head Wants School to Be More Open
July 30, 2005: A week after a state elections board deadlocked over whether to put a measure banning some affirmative action programs on the fall ballot, a senator said Friday he is working on a bill to take away the panel’s powers. See article Senator Wants to Move Ballot Duties to Secretary of State
July 28, 2005: Long before the United States Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against the city, citing civil rights violations, the Pontiac Fire Department and its union had been in talks to eliminate a controversial affirmative action policy from its collective bargaining agreement, officials said. See article Pontiac stands behind affirmative action policy
July 26, 2005: See op ed piece Call It What You Want, Affirmative Action Is Still Cheating
July 25, 2005: The overseeing board for the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights wants to abolish the regulation that requires each state committee to reflect the diversity of its community. New rules could additionally eliminate the percentage of minorities expected on a state advisory committee, also known as a SAC. See article Civil Rights Group Faces Rift Over Diversity
July 20, 2005: Backers of the Michigan Civil Rights Initiative, a proposed state ban on the use of race and gender in public hiring and university admissions, are headed back to court, after a state elections panel Tuesday failed to approve their petitions which sought to place the issue before voters in November 2006. Only one member of the four-person Board of State Canvassers voted to certify the Michigan Civil Rights Initiative proposal, despite the submission of more than 500,000 signatures collected earlier this year. The other board members said they were uncomfortable over allegations the MCRI petition circulators had misled a significant number of those who signed the petition. See articles Board Stalls Affirmative Action Petition and Affirmative Action Opponents Lose Petition Bid, Plan Appeal
July 19, 2005: Bush nominates John G. Roberts to the Supreme Court.
July 19, 2005: The Michigan State Board of Canvassers deadlocked (2-2) July 19 in its consideration of certification of the so-called “Michigan Civil Rights Initiative” (MCRI), which has been championed by affirmative action opponent Ward Connerly. The question of certification will now be determined by the Michigan Court of Appeals, which is expected to rule on the issue in the coming weeks. See article Board Stalemates on Signatures; Anti-Affirmative Action Ballot Initiative Moves to Courts
July 18, 2005: A legal brief, filed with twenty-two affidavits, seeks to have the state Board of Canvassers invalidate petitions supporting the Michigan Civil Rights Initiative, alleging that the signature collectors, many of whom were paid per name, committed fraud. See article Petitions Spark Fraud Charges
July 14, 2005: Delegates to the 96 th Annual NAACP convention voted to support the efforts of civil rights groups and organizations in Michigan to oppose efforts to amend the Michigan constitution to end affirmative action. See release NAACP Passes Michigan Affirmative Action Resolution during 96th Annual Convention
July 12, 2005: Arthur Fletcher, often referred to as the “father of affirmative action,” passed away. See article Fletcher, "Father of Affirmative Action"
June 21, 2005: As the nation approaches the two-year anniversary of the Grutter v. Bollinger Supreme Court decision upholding the consideration of race as one of many factors in higher education admissions, advocates in support of affirmative action say that threats to the policy still persist. On the eve of this historic anniversary, the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights Education Fund/Americans for a Fair Chance (LCCREF/AFC) is releasing a new report, "Anti-Affirmative Action Threats in the States 1997-2004" detailing the persistent threats to affirmative action in the country. See article Two Years After Grutter, Threats to Affirmative Action Still Strong
June 17, 2005: The U.S. Commission on Civil Rights (USCCR) voted June 17 to delete regulatory requirements that its State Advisory Committees (SACs) “be reflective of the different ethnic, racial, and religious communities within each State and the membership shall also be representative with respect to sex, political affiliation, age, and disability status.” See article USCCR Votes to Remove Minority Representation Requirement for State Advisory Committees
June 15, 2005: Kentucky governmental offices fell short of their 10 percent minority employment goals in the last half of 2004, according to newly released data from the governor's office. They plan to take a variety of steps to recruit minorities and rectify the situation. See article Kentucky State Agencies to Rethink Minority Hiring Goals
May 28, 2005: The city continues to violate the state law that prohibits the use of race and gender preferences in awarding contracts, incurring "unnecessary risks and costs," according to a report by San Francisco's civil grand jury. See article San Francisco - Grand Jury Says City Violating Prop. 209
May 24, 2005: The legislative session in Texas concluded on May 24 without the House and Senate reaching agreement on proposals to modify a state law guaranteeing students in the top 10 percent of their high school class automatic admission to any state public university. See article Lawmakers Leave Texas Admissions Law Intact
May 20, 2005: Records released under a court settlement late Wednesday show that Proposition 54, affirmative action opponent Ward Connerly's unsuccessful ballot initiative, was funded largely through donations from a handful of wealthy individuals to Connerly's nonprofit group, the American Civil Rights Coalition (ACRC). See article Connerly Campaign Contribution Lawsuit Settled, Proposition 54 Backers Disclosed
May 17, 2005: The most comprehensive review ever performed of UC Berkeley admissions found little support for criticisms that some students are accepted because of ethnicity or other nonacademic factors. See article Berkeley - Ethnicity Called Tiny Factor in Admissions
May 13, 2005: California lawmakers improperly and unconstitutionally adopted legislation two years ago that violated the state's ban on race-based preferences, a Sacramento Superior Court judge ruled Thursday. See articles Judge: Law Violates Prop. 209 and Sacramento - State's 'Outreach' Law Ruled Unconstitutional
April 22, 2005: When George W. Bush, then governor of Texas, signed legislation in 1997 that automatically admitted to a public university the top 10 percent of graduates from each high school in the state, he hailed it as a race-neutral way to diversify enrollment. Now many in Texas, including the current governor, Rick Perry, a Republican, are questioning whether the class-rank law is still needed. No fewer than 12 bills have been introduced in the Legislature this year to repeal or amend the law, including measures to cap automatic admissions at a certain share of the entering class or to limit the benefit to the top 5 percent of high-school graduates. See article Class-Rank Plan Faces Trouble in Texas
April 15, 2005: Robert J. Birgeneau, who was inaugurated today as the chancellor of UC Berkeley, said his most significant challenge will be trying to boost the "egregiously" low enrollments of African American and Latino students at his campus. See article UC Berkeley Chancellor Inaugurated
April 8, 2005: UC Berkeley's new chancellor, Robert Birgeneau, sounded the opening priority for his administration Thursday by issuing a call to action on a student diversity crisis at the highly ranked university. Citing the drop in under-represented minorities on campus, especially African Americans, Birgeneau called for research into refining admissions standards and finding the best ways to create a more multicultural campus. See article Berkeley - Cal Chancellor Warns of Diversity Crisis; Birgeneau Blames Prop. 209 for Decline
March 17, 2005: Eliminating affirmative action in Michigan would have a significant negative impact on women, according to speakers at a state-wide summit held on March 11. See article Hundreds of Women in Michigan Discuss Effects of Ending Affirmative Action
March 11, 2005: The National Institutes of Health has been quietly overhauling several of its diversity-oriented grant programs, largely to avoid lawsuits accusing it or its grantees of discriminating against white or Asian-American researchers. See article NIH Opening Minority Programs to Other Groups
February 23, 2005: Recent reports show that Ward Connerly's anti-affirmative action campaign in Michigan continues to receive most of its funding from out-of-state donors. Meanwhile, a new poll shows that support for the measure has dwindled. See article Michigan Initiative Mostly Funded by Out-of-State Donors
January 31, 2005: In a ruling issued January 27, U.S. District Court Judge Patrick J. Duggan rejected more than two-thirds of the legal fees requested by the attorneys who brought the affirmation action lawsuits against the University of Michigan. See article Judge Rejects Majority of Fees Sought by Plaintiffs
January 28, 2005: While other colleges around the nation were affirming or reinstating race-conscious admissions policies in response to the U.S. Supreme Court's June 2003 decisions in two affirmative-action cases involving the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, Texas A&M's president, Robert M. Gates, broke away from the herd and announced that his institution would find other means to enroll more minority students. Mr. Gates came under intense criticism for his decision, but by last fall his university had set itself apart in another respect: While many other colleges, including some staunch advocates of race-conscious admissions, were suffering declines in their minority enrollment, Texas A&M's numbers were way up. See article A New Route to Racial Diversity
January 19, 2005: Congressman Jesse Jackson, Jr., calls on the Chicago City Council to hold hearings on affirmative action abuse. See press release Jackson: "Daley Threatens Affirmative Action Nationally"
January 18, 2005: See op-ed Why Affirmative Action Is Necessary
January 7, 2005: A forthcoming law review article by UCLA professor Rick Sander is causing a big stir in the legal academic community. Sander's piece in the Stanford Law Review argues that race-based affirmative action as practiced by American law schools during the past 30 years actually ends up hurting the group--African American law students--it is most intended to help. See article Race-Based Affirmative Action Admissions
January 6, 2005: Ward Connerly's Michigan Civil Rights Initiative (MCRI) campaign submitted signatures today in an attempt to qualify an anti-affirmative action initiative for the November 2006 ballot. See article Connerly Turns in Signatures for Michigan Anti-Affirmative Action Ballot Initiative
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