Open to Debate: Affirmative action on campus does more harm than good

Open to Debate presented a very lively debate last night at Harvard Law School ‘ ‘Resolved: Affirmative Action On Campus Does More Harm Than Good.’ Arguing for the motion were Gail Heriot, professor of law, University of San Diego School of Law and member, U.S. Commission on Civil Rights; and Richard Sander, professor of law, UCLA School of Law. Arguing against the motion were Randall Kennedy, professor of law, Harvard Law School; and Theodore Shaw, professor of law, Columbia Law School.

The debate largely focused on Rick Sander’s empirical work, which tends to show that affirmative action actually harms its intended beneficiaries. Regular readers will recall that Rick guest-blogged about this provocative work two years ago.

It was particularly striking to see this prominent debate on the Harvard Law School campus’ since, ironically, it can often seem, on elite campuses, that the very topic of affirmative action on campus is taboo.