California Passes Reparations in College Admissions, Despite Prop 209

The California legislature passed a bill last week that would provide reparations to descendants of slaves in the form of college admissions — despite Proposition 209, which forbids the use of race in college admissions.

The bill, AB 7 , provides that California State University, the University of California, independent institutions of higher education … and private postsecondary educational institutions … may consider providing a preference in admissions to an applicant who is a descendant of slavery.” It applies to anyone “who can establish direct lineage to a person who, before 1900, was subjected to American chattel slavery.”

Proposition 209, passed in 1996 and reaffirmed by California voters in 2020, bans the use of race in college admissions and for other public purposes. Supp