A law firm changed the criteria for its diversity fellowship after the activist behind the cases that led to the Supreme Court striking down affirmative action filed a lawsuit challenging its race-based eligibility requirements, the Washington Free Beacon first reported.
Morrison & Foerster removed references to race and sexual orientation in its “Keith Wetmore IL Fellowship for Excellence, Diversity, and Inclusion” fellowship on Aug. 30 — just eight days after a group founded by conservative activist Edward Blum filed the lawsuit — opening the program to any student with a “demonstrated commitment to promoting diversity, inclusion, and accessibility,” the Beacon reported. The American Alliance for Equal Rights, founded by Edward Blum, the same activist who formed the Students for Fair Admissions non-profit group that sued Harvard and the University of North Carolina over race-based admissions policies, filed lawsuits against Morrison & Foerster and Perkins Coie on Aug 22., alleging the firms’ diversity fellowships both violate the Civil Rights Act of 1866.
The fellowship’s eligibility criteria previously required “membership in a historically underrepresented group in the legal profession, including racial/ethnic minority groups and members of the LGBTQ+ community,” according to the lawsuit. The criteria defined this as “specifically African American/Black, Latinx, Native Americans/Native Alaskans, and/or members of the LGBTQ+ community.”
WASHINGTON, DC – OCTOBER 31: Proponents for affirmative action in higher education rally in front of the U.S. Supreme Court before oral arguments in Students for Fair Admissions v. President and Fellows of Harvard College and Students for Fair Admissions v. University of North Carolina on October 31, 2022 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
“Morrison has been racially discriminating against future lawyers for more than a decade,” the lawsuit stated. “The firm’s Keith Wetmore 1L Fellowship for Excellence, Diversity, and Inclusion excludes certain applicants based on their skin color.” (RELATED: Biden Admin Urges Colleges To Continue To Racially Discriminate Following Supreme Court Ruling On Affirmative Action)
The American Alliance for Equal Rights also sued Democratic law firm Perkins Coie for its diversity fellowship, which is restricted to “students of color,” “students who identify as LGBTQ+,” and “students with disabilities,” according to the lawsuit.
Before suing the law firms, Blum’s group sued Fearless Fund Management, a venture capital firm, for a grant program open only to black women.
Morrison & Foerster did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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