The Supreme Court, Public Education, and the Fourteenth Amendment

Abstract

In chapter 2, we saw that applying Rawlsian principles to issues of normative race policy yields an unexpected result. As far to the political Left as Rawls may fairly be said to be, strong forms of affirmative action cannot be derived from his theory, although strong forms of legislative reparations can be so derived. Yet what if we turn from public policy to the constitutional law of race, as embodied in leading relevant Supreme Court case law? What might it yield if, in light of Rawlsian principles, we examine key opinions in this area by select members of the Roberts Court?