For 20 years, government-run and government-funded universities have couched their affirmative action programs in the framework of “diversity.” That’s because, in the 2003 Grutter decision, the Supreme Court ruled that the University of Michigan could keep up its race-conscious admissions criteria because pursuing a diverse student body is a valid state interest.

There’s some real sense to that. I’ve written about how, in a discussion, diversity of background and experience (both of which are connected to race) can enhance learning.