See below for a statement from the Virginia NAACP, in response to Lt. Gov. Winsome Sears’ statement which argued that it’s “time to end the policies of college selection based on race, which is counter to equal treatment under the law.”
Virginia NAACP Expresses Opposition to Lt. Governor Sears’ Support of Ending Race Based Admissions Requirement
RICHMOND, VA – Virginia’s Lieutenant Governor, Winsome Sears, signed an amicus brief intended to roll back access to education for people of color to mid-twentieth century levels. Together with North Carolina’s Lieutenant Governor Mark Robinson, Sears asked the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn its Grutter v. Bollinger (2003) decision that allows public and private universities to consider race during admission evaluation, making for a more diverse and inclusive student body. The NAACP has been at the fore of legal battles to dismantle segregated schools and is keenly aware of historic racial discrimination that barred Black people in particular from educational opportunities. Our organization remains committed to protesting any efforts to disable educational access for minority citizens who are guaranteed equal protection under the law. As long as White supremacy exists, overturning Grutter v. Bollinger will stifle educational access for people of color. There are a myriad of factors, including the well-documented disparity in criminal justice as evidenced by mass incarceration of minorities and opportunity gaps that abound in k-12 education, that prove that racism and racial discrimination continue to plague our beloved America.
“We take serious issue with the fact that politicians elected to represent ALL members of their state would support invoking the words of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. to publicly align with those whom King would vehemently condemn. King’s mention of longing for a world where people are not judged by the color of their skin, but content of their character is to ending race-based admission requirements as teaching and contextualizing Black history is to a divisive technique—no accurate correlation,” said Dr. Amy Tillerson-Brown, chair of the Education Committee for the Virginia NAACP. “Any American who values racial equity, or opportunity, should not allow themselves to be used as pawns in the larger game of White supremacy.”
ABOUT THE VIRGINIA NAACP
Founded in 1935, the Virginia State Conference of NAACP Branches (Virginia NAACP) is the oldest and largest nonpartisan civil rights organization in the Commonwealth, overseeing over 100 NAACP branches, youth councils, and college chapters. The Virginia NAACP is focused on being the preeminent voice of Black Virginians and advocating for policies and programs to benefit Blacks and people of color. You can read more about the Virginia NAACP’s work and our six “Game Changer” issue areas by visiting NAACPVA.org.
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