Grutter at Work: A Title VII Critique of Constitutional Affirmative Action

41 Pages Posted: 10 Sep 2008

Date Written: April 2006

Abstract

This Note argues that Title VII doctrine both illuminates internal contradictions of Grutter v. Bollinger and provides a framework for reading the opinion. Grutter's diversity rationale is a broad endorsement of integration that hinges on the quantitative concept of critical mass, but the opinion's narrow-tailoring discussion instead points to a model of racial difference that champions subjective decisionmaking and threatens to jettison numerical accountability. Title VII doctrine supports a reading of Grutter that privileges a view of diversity as integration and therefore cautions against the opinion's conception of narrow tailoring. Grutter, in turn, can productively inform employment discrimination law. The opinion reaffirms principles of contested Title VII precedent and suggests how employers might use affirmative action to meaningfully integrate their workforces.

Keywords: Affirmative Action, Grutter v. Bollinger, Constitutional Law, Title VII, Employment Discrimination

Suggested Citation

Bulman-Pozen, Jessica, Grutter at Work: A Title VII Critique of Constitutional Affirmative Action (April 2006). Yale Law Journal, Vol. 115, No. 6, 2006, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1265842

Jessica Bulman-Pozen (Contact Author)

Columbia University - Law School ( email )

435 West 116th Street
New York, NY 10025
United States

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