Trump Administration Abandons Obama Guidelines on Affirmative Action

The Trump administration has abandoned the Obama administration’s affirmative action policies and will now urge schools to “adopt race-blind admissions standards,” The New York Times reports. The Justice Department rescinded seven policy guidances from the Education Department’s civil rights division on Tuesday as part of the effort. The current administration said it “strongly encourages the use of race-neutral methods,” ditching Obama era policies that encouraged schools to consider race in admissions. The Supreme Court has limited the ways that schools can consider race, but has not banned the practice. “The executive branch cannot circumvent Congress or the courts by creating guidance that goes beyond the law and—in some instances—stays on the books for decades,” a Justice Department spokesperson told the Times.