Reactions to the Opinions

The Associated Press publishes reactions to today's opinions in the school segregation cases. Some examples include:

"This is a very lame excuse to tell a school system that they don't have to use race as an arbiter to help kids achieve and get a fair deal. In a world that still has the vestiges of racism, that's a ridiculous rational." - Warlene Gary, CEO of the National Parent Teacher Association.
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"Today's decision turns back the clock on equality in our schools... Today's decision is false to Brown's promise of equality, making it far more difficult for local school boards to voluntarily bring students of different races together in the classroom. Fortunately, the Court's ruling does not entirely close the door on progress, and school districts must find a way to ensure that it continues."" - Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass.
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"I'm confident the Jefferson County Public Schools leadership team will develop new guidelines for student assignment that will continue this community's commitment to diversity and educational excellence." - Louisville Mayor Jerry Abramson.
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"The Supreme Court decision in the school desegregation cases is appalling. Ever since Brown v. Board of Education, it has been settled law that the Constitution requires racially mixed schools. Today's decision turns Brown upside down and ignores decades of constitutional history. If this isn't judicial activism, I don't know what is." -Senate Majority Leader Sen. Harry Reid (D-Nev.)
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"The premise is laid for the resegregation of America and the denial of opportunity. ... Inheritance and access will not be counterbalanced by equal protection." - the Rev. Jesse Jackson.
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"It so limits what the districts can do, this decision. ... You need some mechanism to more assertively balance school enrollment." - Amy Stuart Wells, professor of sociology and education at Columbia University.
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"A majority of the court still agrees that racial diversity is a boon to education, yet every time schools reach for that goal, the Supreme Court moves the goal posts." - Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y.
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"Today's Supreme Court ruling has placed a serious obstacle in the way of achieving the vision of America first outlined in the landmark case of Brown v. Board of Education, where we see racially integrated education as the best way to reflect our great diversity, unite our nation, and make real our promise of equal opportunity for all." - Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill.
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"These decisions take away the right of local communities to ensure that all students benefit from racially diverse classrooms. Recent evidence shows that integrated schools promote minority academic achievement, and can help close the achievement gap." - Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y.
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"I believed so much in what we are doing I just felt we had to win. The goal here is to make sure all kids have access to great schools." - Kathleen Brose, president of Parents Involved in Community Schools, who sued the Seattle school district after her daughter failed to get into a highly regarded high school.