{"id":1638889,"date":"2022-09-12T05:04:54","date_gmt":"2022-09-12T09:04:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1638889"},"modified":"2022-09-12T05:05:07","modified_gmt":"2022-09-12T09:05:07","slug":"google-ibm-quietly-backtrack-on-race-conscious-fellowships-in-wake-of-free-beacon-reports-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/google-ibm-quietly-backtrack-on-race-conscious-fellowships-in-wake-of-free-beacon-reports-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Google, IBM Quietly Backtrack on Race-Conscious Fellowships in Wake of Free Beacon Reports"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">26<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fgoogle-ibm-quietly-backtrack-on-race-conscious-fellowships-in-wake-of-free-beacon-reports-2%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1638889&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Google and IBM are quietly backtracking in the wake of <em>Washington Free Beacon<\/em> reports about the companies capping the number of white and Asian students whom universities can nominate for prestigious research fellowships, which required that half of each school\u2019s nominees be underrepresented minorities.<\/p>\n<p>Both companies dropped the caps after lawyers told the <em>Free Beacon<\/em> that they likely violated civil rights laws. The fellowships, which provide graduate students with generous stipends and mentorship opportunities, still ask schools to nominate a diverse pool of candidates, but no longer limit how many whites and Asians can apply.<\/p>\n<p>Just two weeks ago, Google <a href=\"https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/campus\/google-partners-with-top-universities-for-this-prestigious-fellowship-lawyers-say-the-racial-and-gender-quotas-its-imposing-are-illegal\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/campus\/google-partners-with-top-universities-for-this-prestigious-fellowship-lawyers-say-the-racial-and-gender-quotas-its-imposing-are-illegal\/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1662751120399000&amp;usg=AOvVaw3qZkrbHOwuy0y8MFYOoRvc\">insisted<\/a> its nominating criteria for the Google Ph.D. Fellowship were legal, describing them as &#8220;extremely common&#8221; and maintaining that they followed &#8220;all relevant laws.&#8221; Since then, however, the tech giant has replaced its diversity mandates with suggestions. &#8220;If more than two students are nominated,&#8221; the <a href=\"https:\/\/research.google\/outreach\/faq\/?category=phd\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/research.google\/outreach\/faq\/?category%3Dphd&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1662751120399000&amp;usg=AOvVaw0xi2hxgQGNjkjjgf3_7VVq\">new nominating criteria<\/a> state, &#8220;we strongly encourage additional nominees who self-identify as a woman, Black \/ African descent, Hispanic \/ Latino \/ Latinx, Indigenous, and\/or a person with a disability.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20220824105053\/https:\/\/research.google\/outreach\/faq\/?category=phd\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20220824105053\/https:\/\/research.google\/outreach\/faq\/?category%3Dphd&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1662751120399000&amp;usg=AOvVaw3uKpUzKSvyu0kGXv8Vcpmk\">original language<\/a> stipulated that if a university &#8220;chooses to nominate more than two students \u2026 the third and fourth nominees must self-identify as a woman, Black \/ African descent, Hispanic \/ Latino \/ Latinx, Indigenous, and\/or a person with a disability.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Original Criteria:<\/p>\n<p>Updated Criteria:<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"CToWUd\" src=\"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/12050506\/inqSxKsudWEbbPsaaeQHrF18zSm1lFCxY3HuariKdX3HVJ_r-kWiVk1FFpfcxOKMtZisE8BB7m6ejBAZcTG-VfpCmdwfXtVkwCJ69lCmxGYHzSqzmysWK6AXJkTsnb3iwBN8209jlRj7VKwrnagV6lKijDlpYAnK6zUzGxCDm8bLpYVv2EtDgRsaDg-1\" width=\"602\" height=\"59\" data-bit=\"iit\" alt=\"image\" \/><\/p>\n<p>IBM, meanwhile, quietly dropped a <a href=\"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20211207091447\/https:\/\/research.ibm.com\/university\/awards\/fellowships-faq.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20211207091447\/https:\/\/research.ibm.com\/university\/awards\/fellowships-faq.html&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1662751120399000&amp;usg=AOvVaw1OixAX5t3zTKo3dq7yivPX\">requirement<\/a> that half of the nominees for its Ph.D. fellowship program be &#8220;diversity candidates&#8221;\u2014after the <em>Free Beacon<\/em> contacted IBM for comment\u2014and <a href=\"https:\/\/research.ibm.com\/university\/awards\/fellowships-faq.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/research.ibm.com\/university\/awards\/fellowships-faq.html&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1662751120399000&amp;usg=AOvVaw0RmYI8Hz3q2faBMHJieojz\">replaced<\/a> it with a request that schools &#8220;consider a diverse slate of candidates.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>The original criteria posed legal problems for Google, IBM, and participating universities. Civil rights lawyers told the <em>Free Beacon<\/em> that the fellowships likely ran afoul of the Civil Rights Act of 1866, which bans race discrimination in contracting, and Title VI of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, which bans race discrimination at federally funded schools.<\/p>\n<p>Asked whether the company had scrapped its diversity requirement over legal concerns, a Google spokesperson, Courtenay Mencini, attributed the change to a desire to &#8220;clarify our nomination criteria,&#8221; adding that the company stands by its original statement.<\/p>\n<p>A few schools have already been hit with civil rights complaints over their participation in the Google fellowship. On August 24, emails obtained by the <em>Free Beacon<\/em> show, the Department of Education\u2019s Office of Civil Rights received complaints against <a href=\"https:\/\/www.scribd.com\/document\/588833284\/Boston-Title-IX-and-VI-Complaint?secret_password=j1nNWTM4DseEQEGYyeKJ\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.scribd.com\/document\/588833284\/Boston-Title-IX-and-VI-Complaint?secret_password%3Dj1nNWTM4DseEQEGYyeKJ&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1662751120399000&amp;usg=AOvVaw0ZY_qCA013nwAjkF_ucIJS\">Harvard University<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.scribd.com\/document\/588833290\/New-York-Title-IX-and-VI-Complaint?secret_password=YdvJX4wjp7sJlZsBgltp\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.scribd.com\/document\/588833290\/New-York-Title-IX-and-VI-Complaint?secret_password%3DYdvJX4wjp7sJlZsBgltp&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1662751120399000&amp;usg=AOvVaw2C4jUQURs1ws4pUbFwom3t\">Princeton University<\/a>, the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.scribd.com\/document\/588833284\/Boston-Title-IX-and-VI-Complaint?secret_password=j1nNWTM4DseEQEGYyeKJ\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.scribd.com\/document\/588833284\/Boston-Title-IX-and-VI-Complaint?secret_password%3Dj1nNWTM4DseEQEGYyeKJ&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1662751120400000&amp;usg=AOvVaw26cvOO3t6Kgt6woor7JW95\">Massachusetts Institute of Technology<\/a>, the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.scribd.com\/document\/588833291\/Philadelphia-Title-IX-and-VI-Complaint?secret_password=i5n4jfuliaDwM4bWD6kM\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.scribd.com\/document\/588833291\/Philadelphia-Title-IX-and-VI-Complaint?secret_password%3Di5n4jfuliaDwM4bWD6kM&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1662751120400000&amp;usg=AOvVaw1eYSqE_HfoNczbvt9Dvscj\">University of Pennsylvania<\/a>,\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.scribd.com\/document\/588833285\/DC-Title-IX-and-VI-Complaint?secret_password=DZtw3SktOMdMRGnVqrIk\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.scribd.com\/document\/588833285\/DC-Title-IX-and-VI-Complaint?secret_password%3DDZtw3SktOMdMRGnVqrIk&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1662751120400000&amp;usg=AOvVaw0Lo3FwBF79NefdM9LxvzYF\">Duke University<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.scribd.com\/document\/588833290\/New-York-Title-IX-and-VI-Complaint?secret_password=YdvJX4wjp7sJlZsBgltp\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.scribd.com\/document\/588833290\/New-York-Title-IX-and-VI-Complaint?secret_password%3DYdvJX4wjp7sJlZsBgltp&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1662751120400000&amp;usg=AOvVaw1LJjcU-PI_uu--2y-HlY9U\">New\u00a0 York University<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.scribd.com\/document\/588833285\/DC-Title-IX-and-VI-Complaint?secret_password=DZtw3SktOMdMRGnVqrIk\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.scribd.com\/document\/588833285\/DC-Title-IX-and-VI-Complaint?secret_password%3DDZtw3SktOMdMRGnVqrIk&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1662751120400000&amp;usg=AOvVaw0Lo3FwBF79NefdM9LxvzYF\">University of North Carolina Chapel Hill<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.scribd.com\/document\/588833291\/Philadelphia-Title-IX-and-VI-Complaint?secret_password=i5n4jfuliaDwM4bWD6kM\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.scribd.com\/document\/588833291\/Philadelphia-Title-IX-and-VI-Complaint?secret_password%3Di5n4jfuliaDwM4bWD6kM&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1662751120400000&amp;usg=AOvVaw1eYSqE_HfoNczbvt9Dvscj\">Johns Hopkins University<\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.scribd.com\/document\/588833291\/Philadelphia-Title-IX-and-VI-Complaint?secret_password=i5n4jfuliaDwM4bWD6kM\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.scribd.com\/document\/588833291\/Philadelphia-Title-IX-and-VI-Complaint?secret_password%3Di5n4jfuliaDwM4bWD6kM&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1662751120400000&amp;usg=AOvVaw1eYSqE_HfoNczbvt9Dvscj\">Carnegie Mellon University<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The complaints allege that these schools are discriminating based on race and sex by nominating students for the fellowship, and ask that each one apologize for the &#8220;sexism and racism it has engaged in.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Google and IBM\u2019s reversals come as other corporations face blowback for their own discriminatory policies, some of which are now the subject of major lawsuits. In the past two months alone, <a href=\"https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/latest-news\/amazon-faces-suit-over-10k-offer-made-exclusively-to-black-latinx-and-native-american-entrepreneurs\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/latest-news\/amazon-faces-suit-over-10k-offer-made-exclusively-to-black-latinx-and-native-american-entrepreneurs\/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1662751120400000&amp;usg=AOvVaw0YH9Z5IPyWEP6L5WW7Slho\">Amazon<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/topclassactions.com\/lawsuit-settlements\/employment-labor\/discrimination\/american-express-class-action-alleges-company-illegally-favors-black-employees\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/topclassactions.com\/lawsuit-settlements\/employment-labor\/discrimination\/american-express-class-action-alleges-company-illegally-favors-black-employees\/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1662751120400000&amp;usg=AOvVaw37V6IhR4awsWV_0vcqfVyH\">American Express<\/a> have both been hit by class action complaints alleging anti-white discrimination. Other companies like Coca-Cola have <a href=\"https:\/\/www.americancivilrightsproject.org\/blog\/submissions\/open-letter-on-behalf-of-shareholders-to-officers-and-directors-of-coca-cola-company\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.americancivilrightsproject.org\/blog\/submissions\/open-letter-on-behalf-of-shareholders-to-officers-and-directors-of-coca-cola-company\/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1662751120400000&amp;usg=AOvVaw22Pc4oNXE6oesUwd-zSPS7\">scrapped<\/a> race-conscious policies amid legal threats from shareholders.<\/p>\n<p>Some Fortune 500 companies are nonetheless standing by programs that many lawyers say are illegal. The <em>Free Beacon<\/em> <a href=\"https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/latest-news\/no-whites-allowed-pfizer-fellowship-flagrantly-violates-the-law-lawyers-say\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/latest-news\/no-whites-allowed-pfizer-fellowship-flagrantly-violates-the-law-lawyers-say\/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1662751120400000&amp;usg=AOvVaw19HdHDX0xlvfE8wOTulKwQ\">reported<\/a> in August that Pfizer bars whites and Asians from applying for its prestigious &#8220;Breakthrough Fellowship,&#8221; which Gail Heriot, a member of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, called a &#8220;clear case of liability&#8221; under the 1964 Civil Rights Act. When more outlets picked up the story, Pfizer followed Google\u2019s lead and insisted it hadn\u2019t done anything wrong.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;All of our actions comply fully with all U.S. employment laws,&#8221; the pharmaceutical giant <a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxbusiness.com\/politics\/pfizer-offers-breakthrough-fellowship-program-excludes-asian-white-applicants\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.foxbusiness.com\/politics\/pfizer-offers-breakthrough-fellowship-program-excludes-asian-white-applicants&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1662751120400000&amp;usg=AOvVaw1QPh3p5Q1FsWcKF7gvpEFO\">told Fox Business<\/a>. &#8220;We create opportunities for people without taking them away from others.&#8221;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Google and IBM are quietly backtracking in the wake of Washington Free Beacon reports about the companies capping the number of white and Asian students whom universities can nominate for<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":184,"featured_media":2315279,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1638889","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1638889","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/184"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1638889"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1638889\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2315279"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1638889"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1638889"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1638889"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}