Parents Involved in Community Schools v. Seattle School District No. 1

Summary

The Court held that Seattle and Jefferson County violated the Equal Protection Clause by relying on individual students' racial classifications to make school-assignment decisions. Applying strict scrutiny, the Court concluded that the districts' interest in racial diversity was not compelling in the relevant elementary- and secondary-school context and that the plans were not narrowly tailored because they pursued racial balancing through blunt, mechanical classifications without adequately considering race-neutral alternatives. The Court also held that the challenges were justiciable because the plaintiffs faced a sufficient risk of future race-based assignment decisions and voluntary cessation did not moot Seattle's program. Justice Breyer, dissenting, would have upheld the plans as permissible integration efforts, while Justice Kennedy, concurring in part and in the judgment, would have permitted race-conscious general policies but not individual racial classifications of students.