9th Circuit Upholds School Segregation in Hawaii

Fox News | 1/20/07

[pabianice]

Breaking on Fox News... a panel of 15 judges on the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled 8-7 that Hawaii's Kamehameha School may give students with Hawaiian ancestry preference for admission. This overturns a three judge panel of the court first ruling that this is unconstitutional. Hawaiian legislators were shown arguing that "Hawaii is unique" and requires this sort of reverse racism "to right past wrongs." Fox indicates that this is almost certain to be appealed to SCOTUS.

[ApplegateRanch]

There is also the question of whether a Congressional enactment can regulate purely intrastate commerce. I'm not sure that anyone has raised that, though.

Under the ever broadening definitions, it could fall under Interstate Commerce...

Some of the food in the cafeteria is from Mainland sources?

Some of the faculty, staff, and administration are hired from out of state?

Their books and supplies, including the library books, are mostly obtained, directly or indirectly, via Interstate Commerce, and are an integral portion of the institution's operations?

The money they use to pay salaries and bills; and that they accept for tuition, comes from mints on the Mainland, and/or substantially from sources engaged in Interstate Commerce?

And that money passes through banks engaged in Interstate Commerce?

Isn't EVERYTHING Congress wants to regulate somehow construed as "Interstate Commerce"?

[valkyrieanne]

'm sure there is some sort of state action--maybe a state subsidy, or something. Otherwise, there is no issue.

The issue is that in the early 1980s, the US Supreme Court ruled that private schools that practice racial discrimination can lose their federal tax exempt status. They would have to pay income taxes (which would about destroy most private schools. Ref: Bob Jones University v. United States, 1983)

The school was founded by the last queen of Hawaii as a desperate measure to preserve Hawaiian culture and ethnic identity. This is a unique situation. IMO the court did the right thing to rule in the school's favor. Native Hawaiians have a right to their own culture and language in a *private* school set up specifically to pass these traditions on.

[valkyrieanne]

in other words, bob jones university could have retained their admissions policies, they just couldn't do that and retain their tax exempt status?

Hi, oceanview - that's correct. Private schools are perfectly free to set up race policies in admissions. They just have to pay income tax (probably at the corporate rate, don't know for sure.) Most private schools couldn't function without their tax exempt status.

What is interesting to me is whether or not the federal court decision is challenging that previous US Supreme Court ruling. If it works for the Hawaiians, I don't see why it wouldn't work for anyone else in terms of the application of any new rulings.