A bill that would have put on the ballot a constitutional amendment to reinstate the consideration of race in California college admissions has been pulled by its sponsor, reports KQED (Photo by Nina Stawsky).
State Senator Ed Hernandez acknowledged he didn’t have the 2/3 votes needed to pass State Constitutional Amendment 5 or SCA5. Instead a commission will be formed to further study the idea.
“Given the scare tactics and misinformation used by certain groups opposed to SCA 5, we felt it was necessary to have a discussion based on facts and take the time to hear from experts on the challenges our public universities and colleges face with regards to diversity, as well as the implications for California’s workforce and our overall competitiveness in a global economy. Although I have met with, and will continue to meet with, individuals and organizations that have concerns regarding SCA 5, these Commission hearings will be yet another opportunity for people to have their voices heard.”
SCA5 sailed through the Assembly last year with little publicity. Then some members of the Asian American community concerned SCA5 would decrease the number of Asian Americans enrolled in public university launched a social media campaign calling the measure anti-Asian and discriminatory.
Opponents gathered 100,000 signatures and Assembly members Leland Yee, Ted Lieu and Carol Liu, who had originally supported the idea, asked that the State Senate vote be delayed.
You can hear reaction from the SCA5 opponents on KQED.
