Since we officially launched the joint administrative complaint process against Harvard University in mid-February, we have received enthusiastic support from Asian-American communities. Within six weeks, more than thirty Asian-American organizations have signed the complaint and more are considering joining.  It will become the largest joint action organized by Asian-American communities in our pursuit of equal education rights for our children.

The complaint has also led to a lively discussion within Asian American communities. Here we’d like to take this opportunity to address some most frequently asked questions.

Question 1: Why do Asian American students need to pursue education at Harvard and other elite schools? Is it necessary?

Answer 1:  Not everybody has the talent and qualifications to attend at Harvard and other elite schools. However, for talented and qualified Asian American students, we should support them in pursuing Harvard University and other elite schools. According to an article published by The Century Foundation, 42% of US political leaders, 54% of top business leaders are from 12 top American universities. For our children's future, and to make Asian-Americans more meaningfully contribute to the future of our country, Asians must fight for the equal rights to attend these universities.  Asians should not just be America's skilled labor; we should create significant impact to help build America into a better society. Achieving our children's equal education rights in America’s top universities will help this vision come true.

Question 2: Harvard University is a private university.  Why does it need to comply with the laws on racial equality?

Answer 2: Any citizens and institutions in the United States must observe the US Constitution. In addition, Harvard University has filed an Amicus Brief in the Fisher vs. University of Texas case, in which Harvard stated: Because Harvard University accepts a large amount of federal government funding, it should comply with relevant laws and Supreme Court Decisions on racial equality and college admissions (i.e. Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Fourteenth Amendment of the U. S. Constitution).

Question 3: Will the complaint cause the entire campus at Harvard and other universities to be Asian, therefore losing diversity?

Answer 3: No. Take the example of the University of California and Caltech, whose admissions processes do not take race into account, Asian students' percentage is still well below 50%. Universities should achieve diversity primarily by a balanced evaluation of student’s credentials, not by using racial quota.  

Question 4: Does this complaint intend to totally eliminate the Affirmative Action, ignoring the educational opportunities for children from disadvantaged communities?

Answer 4: No. This is because:

·         At first, we want to eliminate the severe racial discrimination against Asian-American applicants. Even with current laws, Asian-American applicants are the most discriminated (more than the White, who are also punished by Affirmative Action). We want to eliminate this discrimination.

·         Secondly, we hope the racially based Affirmative Action can be stopped because it is unfair and creates racial tension. It favors well-off African American and Hispanic applicants over Asian or White American applicants with poor or similar economic conditions.  Moreover, it creates a mismatch problem for a lot of African-American and Hispanic students who were admitted into the university unprepared and later failed academically, their lives interrupted. Race-based Affirmative Action is just some politicians’ cheap shot to appease disadvantaged communities because they do not want to make real efforts to address the issue of low education attainment in disadvantaged communities. It has been implemented for more than 60 years but failed to close the educational gap between racial groups. Studies have shown it has generated opposite results in African American communities. (please read the book Please Do not Help Us)

·         Asian-Americans generally support Affirmative Action in college admission if (1) it is based on an objective evaluation of applicants’ economic conditions, (2) its implementation would not significantly undermine American meritocracy, and (3) it is effective in improving the education quality of disadvantaged communities. This approach will benefit low income students directly.

Question 5: Will the complaint cause tension with African-Americans and Hispanic Americans?

Answer 5: We are making efforts to eliminate this misunderstanding. First, we support the economic conditions based Affirmative Action. African-Americans and Hispanics will get more benefits than Asians get from it; Secondly, the complaint cited a number of examples of how Asian-Americans show concern about education, share successful educational experiences with other racial groups, and provide financial assistance to disadvantaged communities. Asian Americans have legitimate rights to protect our constitutional rights. On the other hand, when NAACP filed complaint against New York specialty high schools and call for Silicon Valley workforce diversities, when Hispanic lawmaker in California proposed ​​SCA5 to limit Asian American college enrollment, they were never concerned about tension with Asian-Americans.

Question 6: Just eliminating the race-based Affirmative Action will not lead to total equality because the Ivy League schools also use legacy status and sportsmanship to favor other candidates, why do we want to fight?

Answer 6: Ivy League’s legacy and sports programs cannot explain the fact that while Asian American applicant pool has doubled over the last two decades, their admission rates stay at 14-18%. We want Ivy League schools to totally eliminate the severe discrimination against Asian-Americans based on existing laws and if possible, taking out racial consideration. Since their legacy status and sports programs do not favor Asian Americans, we have stronger reason to fight.

Question7: Why do Asian-Americans need to take action NOW?

Answer 7: First, Asian-Americans are currently less organized and politically weak. Studies show that Ivy League schools have been discriminating against Asian-Americans for decades. It is a shame that most Asian- American organizations have been largely silent on this issue though Asian-Americans have all the reasons to fight for our educational rights. It is fortunate that Mr. Blum has taken the initiative to sue Harvard University. But some media even claimed that Mr. Blum’s lawsuit does not represent Asian-Americans’ interests. At this critical moment, Asian-Americans cannot afford to be passive about their own interests. If we miss this opportunity, it will be very difficult in the future for Asian Americans to raise millions of dollars to launch a lawsuit to defend our own interests.  Secondly, race-based Affirmative Action initiatives are increasingly becoming a major hurdle for Asian-Americans who believe they can pursue their American dreams by hardworking. Recently, Silicon Valley has become a race-based diversification target (not merit-based). Filing this complaint is a concrete step to reverse such an unhealthy trend.

Question 8: My organization is a non-profit, non-political organization, can we join?

Answer 8: Yes. This initiative is to protect your member families' civil rights, not a political act to support any party or politician. It shall be protected by our constitutional right of Freedom of Speech. When NAACP filed complaints on educational issues, many non-profit, non-political organizations joined.

Question9: What kind of efforts do we need to make in order to join the Complaint?

Answer 9: This is an administrative complaint, not a lawsuit. After its submission, the investigation of Harvard University will be conducted by the Department of Justice or the Department of Education. What your organization needs to do are: 1) review the complaint document, 2) make independent decision on whether or not to join in, and 3) if yes, sign the Complaint;  Please see more details from the  websites of

Department of Education:  http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/docs/howto.html  

Department of Justice: http://www.justice.gov/crt/complaint/#three

Question 10: Our organization leaders are concerned about their privacy. Can you keep their signature page confidential?

Answer 10: Yes. We have specifically inquired of the Department of Justice (DOJ) and Department Education (DOE). We have obtained the oral consent from DOJ and written notification from DOE that we can keep the signature pages confidential. We will only disclose your organization’s name in public, not the signing person’s information.  

Please join in this complaint. Thirty-three Asian American organizations have joined in the administrative complaint. They will be able to proudly tell their children that they have participated in the fight for their descendants’ equal rights. How about you?

The Organizing Committee

Contact: Yukong Zhao    Email: yukong.zhao@outlook.com

               Jack Ouyang     Email: jack.ouyang@Chineseequality.org