(ProsperNews.net) – A federal appeals court has placed a temporary injunction on a business grant program that prioritizes firms owned by black women. In a 2-1 decision, the 11th US Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the Strivers Grant Contest was “racially exclusionary” due to its policy of awarding contributions of $20,000 to businesses with at least 51% black female ownership.
The decision reverses an earlier ruling by US District Judge Thomas W. Thrash, who refused to block the initiative following a request by the American Alliance for Equal Rights.
Edward Blum, founder of the American Alliance for Equal Rights, said his organization is “gratified” that the court recognized the illegality of race-based business initiatives and agreed with its argument that such a program violates the Civil Rights Act of 1866, which prohibits racial discrimination in contractual arrangements.
The sole dissenting voice, however, was Judge Charles R. Wilson, who said the Civil Rights argument was a perversion of the intent of the legislation, given that it was written to prevent the exclusion of black people from commerce.
Fearless Fund, the organization that oversees the grant contest, said it intends to fight and has hired prominent civil rights attorneys who argue that the grants are not contracts and are not therefore covered by the civil rights argument. The lawyers claim the funds are donations, and thus protected by the First Amendment.
US courts are increasingly striking down arrangements that provide advantages to black people. Since the Supreme Court prohibited racial considerations in college admissions – thereby overturning so-called “affirmative action” – challenges to race-based programs have increased.
Dan Morenoff, executive director of the American Civil Rights Project, said that while the Supreme Court ruling did not apply to businesses directly, it was “A helpful reminder that no employment program seeking a racial balance for its own sake can comply with our laws.”
His organization has mounted several successful legal challenges against corporate policies that favor specific racial groups.
Copyright 2023, ProsperNews.net
