Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Representatives Ed Royce (R-Calif.), Dan Donovan (R-N.Y.), Glenn Grothmann (R-Wisc.), Pete Olson (R-Texas), and Dana Rohrabacher (R-Calif.) sent a letter to the U.S. Department of Education and U.S. Department of Justice concerning the recent complaint filed by over 60 Asian-American groups against Harvard University alleging discrimination against Asian American applicants.

"Being Asian American should not be an obstacle to receiving a top university education. It’s sad I have to make that clear in 2015. We should be encouraging and inspiring our children to excel, not telling them their academic performance and merits are less important than their ethnicity," said Rep. Royce. "I look forward to a timely response to my inquiry."

Text of the letter can be read here or below:

June 22, 2015

Catherine Lhamon
Assistant Secretary
Office for Civil Rights
U.S. Department of Education
400 Maryland Avenue, SW
Washington, DC 20202-1100

Vanita Gupta
Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General
Civil Rights Division
U.S. Department of Justice
950 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20530-0001

Dear Assistant Secretary Lhamon and Assistant Attorney General Gupta:

We are writing you regarding a recent complaint jointly filed by over sixty Asian-American associations from across the country with the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights and U.S. Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division concerning Harvard University’s continued and systematic discrimination against Asian-Americans during its admissions process.  We urge you to review their complaint with full and fair consideration consistent with applicable law, rules, and regulations, and support you taking immediate actions you deem warranted to protect Asian-American college applicants against any infringements on their constitutional rights or equal protection under the law.

We believe that a robust and extensive investigation of their complaint is necessary and could reveal that other institutions of higher education in addition to Harvard University exercise admission quotas that unambiguously and systemically limit the admission of Asian-American students, similar to the well-documented admission quotas administered in the 1920s to limit the admission of Jewish students.

The discrimination alleged by the complaint is indefensible, improper, and immoral. We must ensure that our nation’s universities are not excluding applicants for admission simply based on their race, behavior that is inconsistent with the ideals of our nation’s founding.

Please thoroughly review the material and concerns provided to you in the complaint filed on May 15, 2015, by the Coalition of Asian-American Associations. We have a continuing interest in a resolution of this complaint and look forward to learning about the results of your investigation.

Sincerely,

Ed Royce
Member of Congress

Dana Rohrabacher
Member of Congress

Pete Olson
Member of Congress

Glenn Grothman
Member of Congress

Dan Donovan
Member of Congress