The motto of Yale is “Lux et Veritas.” It means roughly “revelation and truth”; great goals for a university. The Yale Law Journal (YLJ) is releasing admissions data in the face of a pressure campaign. Activists allege blacks have under-representation at YLJ.
The numbers demonstrate the opposite. Blacks and other minority groups have over-representation. The prestigious journal is over-representing blacks relative to the student body at large. Further, blacks have over-representation relative to the general population.
The dust-up began after a YLJ editor gave his resignation. He said he felt “used and tokenized” in his position. The resignation drew statements from affinity groups at the law school. They are demanding that YLJ “prioritize anti-racism” over meritocratic selection. The controversy is playing out on a student message board. The postings review comes from the Washington Free Beacon.
The activists made no concrete demands about numeric representation. They allege “inequities” in YLJ admissions. The Black Law Students Association (BLSA) said:
“Meeting with affinity groups to present platitudes about valuing diversity in the admissions process is insufficient… The Journal must commit to fundamental changes to its governance structure, admissions policy, submission plan, and slating that will ensure this perpetuation of racism does not ever happen again.”
The numbers tell the story
The election of Blacks and Hispanics for membership to YLJ is at a higher rate than their white counterparts. Further, the membership rate for blacks (61%) is higher than that of any other ethnic group.
The admissions statistics show demands for diversity persist even when minority representation exceeds population distribution. In this case in relation to the student body at large. They also show the activists making those demands do so when the underlying data are not on their side. The YLJ did a release of its 2020 admissions last Friday.
The Journal consistently ranks as the top law review in the country. Its alumni include three current Supreme Court justices. It also boasts top members of the Biden administration. Journal articles often wield outsize influence in legal debates. Becoming a Journal member involves a gauntlet of tests. It also requires essays on citation rules and legal scholarship. And then there is a “diversity statement.” Fewer than 40% of applicants make the cut.
To combat that racism several group leaders agree. YLJ should embrace political activism. It should use its entrenched power to mitigate the impacts of white supremacy and classism. It should also “prioritize anti-racism” over its traditional “gatekeeping function.” This is plainly Marxist double speak.
Tokenization is what the missives effectively advocate
Blacks comprise 16% of YLJ admits, and Latinos 14%. Respectively they make up just 7% and 11% of the student body. Increasing the share of these groups on the YLJ would make it less representative than it currently is.
Data suggests the law school already has an aggressive affirmative action program. Activists are demanding its beneficiaries receive yet another leg up at the school’s top journal. Yale does not publish the racial breakdown of its Law School Admission Test scores. In 2004 only 29 blacks scored above 170 on the test nationwide. This from the Journal of Blacks in Higher Education. Yale’s median LSAT is 173.
It is difficult to find data on admissions rates by race. In 1969, the admissions rate for black applicants at Yale Law School was 50%. This compares to an overall acceptance rate of just 10%. The 10% figure has remained constant over the years. Given the persistent racial gap in LSAT scores, it’s almost certain the admissions rate for blacks is much higher than for most other groups.
The emphasis on identity over scholarship is not unique to the YLJ. It affects every aspect of the law school.
“People are very willing to throw out words like ‘bigoted’ and ‘racist’ whenever it suits their narrative,” a student told the Free Beacon. Following the Kavanaugh confirmation, “there was a crusade against civility as an oppressive mode of engagement.”
This crusade has had academic costs
Seminars taught include: “Is That Racist?: Theory and Methods for Diagnosing and Demonstrating Racism”; “Intervening in the Criminalization of Youth and Queer and Trans Individuals: Seminar and Practicum”; and “Critical Race Theory.”
But the roots of Yale Law School’s identitarianism arguably date back much further. In 1969 Macklin Fleming made a prediction. He said his alma mater’s affirmative action policies would spiral out of control. It now appears he was correct.
Fleming wrote in a letter to the dean, “Demands will be made for elimination of competition, reduction in standards of performance, adoption of courses of study which do not require intensive legal analysis, and recognition for academic credit of sociological activities which have only an indirect relationship to legal training… These unhappy prospects flow from the abandonment of an objective system of admission based on intellectual aptitude.”
The road to hell is paved with good intentions. Sow the wind; reap the whirlwind Yale. Lux et Veritas … Revelation and Truth…