Michigan ban on affirmative action back in federal court

CINCINNATI (AP) — About 50 protesters, many of them University of Michigan students, gathered outside a federal appeals court taking another look at the state’s ban on affirmative action in college admissions and government hiring.

The 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati was hearing arguments today. The full court last year overturned a decision by one of its three-judge panels that said the law treats minorities unfairly and is unconstitutional.

Protesters carried signs saying “Fight for Equality” and “Save Brown vs. Board of Education,” referring to the 1954 U.S. Supreme Court decision that said school segregation is unconstitutional.

Michigan voters in 2006 passed the law banning consideration of race in college admissions and public hiring. The law forced the University of Michigan and other public schools to change policies.