Date: June 25, 2001
The University of Texas School of Law produced more African-American and Mexican-American graduates combined than any other law school in the USA, with the exception of historically African-American schools such as Howard University. [1]
The 1996 decision in Hopwood ended all consideration of race in admissions to the law school. The result was that minority enrollment shrank dramatically. Black enrollment dropped more than 90% in the first year, from 38 to 4. Mexican-American enrollment dropped nearly 60%, from 64 to 26.
To understand the impact these declines have in a typical law school classroom, consider that minority students (or any other group of students) are divided among four first-year sections, twelve or more small-section first year courses, and scores of upper level courses. Without affirmative action, many classes have no African-American or Mexican-American students.
Even with affirmative action, minority enrollment at the law school had never approached minority proportions in the state's population--Texas is more than 11% Black and more than 30% Mexican-American. Without affirmative action, minority enrollment at the law school is a small fraction of the state's minority population.
With or without affirmative action, the average applicant to the law school has less than a 25% chance of admission. Affirmative action makes a difference in these chances of only 2 or 3%. With more than 4000 applicants a year, affirmative action for a hundred or so of them has little effect on everybody else.
For more information contact Professor Douglas Laycock at dlaycock@mail.law.utexas.edu.
[1] Source: American Bar Association, 1992-1998, Table C3-9899.