Massachusetts Officials Condemn Ruling

Presidential candidate Vivek

G. Ramaswamy ’07 also celebrated the end of affirmative action, which he referred to as “the single greatest form of institutional racism in America today” in a tweet. Massachusetts elected officials have echoed Biden’s denunciation of the Court’s decision.

Senator Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) eviscerated the deci- ity,” he added. In a joint statement, more than 100 elected officials, leaders at higher education institutions, and organizers — including Massachusetts Governor Maura T. Healey ’92, Lieutenant Governor Kim L. Driscoll, and Attorney General Andrea J. Campbell — wrote that Massachusetts will “continue to break down barriers conservative majority” of the Supreme Court for its decision.

“We fully reject the court’s worldview & recommit to the vital work of building a more just & equitable society for all our communities,” she wrote in a tweet.

Cambridge City Manager YiAn Huang ’05 said in an interview that the ruling would hinder diversity programs at Harvard and other Cambridge universities and could set a precedent for challenges to Cambridge’s equity initiatives.

“If you look at the work that the city is doing on a variety of equity issues, there are real policies that are looking at historical disparities and how we might remedy those,” he said. The ruling, he continued, means it will be “harder to make progress on some of the underlying racial inequities that we’re seeing.” about how Harvard’s race-conscious admissions policies have treated Asian American applicants as a single broad category. “I feel torn because, fundamentally, I think the ruling is flawed, and yet at the same time, I think that the admissions policy does need examination and critique,” he said. “I do think the administration is fairly aware of that.”

Cambridge Mayor Sumbul Siddiqui was similarly disappointed at the decision.

“In Cambridge, we have worked tirelessly to ensure that all students, regardless of their background, feel empowered in our private and public institutions,” she wrote in a statement. “Following this decision, I understand it is crucial that we remain dedicated to dismantling barriers to higher education.” sion at a Thursday press conference in Boston. “The Supreme Court of the United States is stomping on the dreams of our young people,” Markey said. “The Supreme Court majority may think that they are blind to race, but what they are truly blind to is inequal- to higher education.”

“Today’s decision, while disappointing, will not change our commitment to these students. We have an imperative to make sure our schools reflect our communities,” they wrote. Boston Mayor Michelle Wu ’07 also condemned the “ultra

On May 8, Cambridge signed onto the Commonwealth Development Compact, an agreement tying public and private real estate development to diversity, equity, and inclusion criteria. Such criteria can include the involvement of minority-owned businesses and minority investors, which could soon be challenged on constitutional grounds.

Huang also expressed concern

In his address, Biden called for continued efforts to protect diversity on college campuses in spite of the Court’s decision.

“We cannot let the decision be a permanent setback for the country,” he said. “We need to keep an open door of opportunities.” samuel.goldston@thecrimson.com yusud.mian@thecrimson.com