The residency program allegedly violates the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment as well as the Civil Rights Act
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The University of Nebraska-Lincoln has been hit with a federal civil rights complaint over a race-exclusive residency program for film students.
On Monday, the Equal Protection Project (EPP) of the Legal Insurrection Foundation filed a complaint with the U.S. Department of Education over the University of Nebraska's Black Public Media residency program.
The complaint, filed by the Equal Protection Project alleged that the Black Public Media residency program at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln illegally discriminates on the basis of race. (University of Nebraska)
President of the EPP William Jacobson told Fox News Digital that the law "has been clear for decades" and that "universities may not even take race into account to advance diversity objectives."
"While the law has been clear for decades that racial discrimination in education is unlawful, after the Supreme Court's Harvard decision there can be no doubt that universities may not even take race into account to advance diversity objectives," Jacobson said. "Yet, that is exactly what the U. Nebraska-Lincoln program does, it reserves a spot on program teams for Black students in order to foster diversity, creating a disadvantage and lessening of opportunities for others."
The program's purpose is "to serve Black filmmakers, artists, and creative technologists – given the well-documented, low numbers of Black filmmakers, executives and artists working in the tech industry and the high cost to acquire specialized equipment … and training on emerging technology equipment and software."
Under the program's "FAQ" section on its website, it says that the program seeks "to develop the talent of producers of color" and "seek[s] projects in which a person of African descent is in a key creative position" such as "writer, director, and producer roles."
The EPP alleged that the university violates the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment as well as the Civil Rights Act wit their annual program.
According to the University of Nebraska website, the Black Public Media residency is for "black filmmakers, creative technologists and artists who need access to emerging technology, studio time or workspace." (University of Nebraska)
The civil rights complaint argues that since the University of Nebraska-Lincoln receives federal funding it is required to follow Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which bans discrimination on the basis of race.
"There is no 'Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion' exception to the anti-discrimination laws and the Equal Protection guarantee in the 14th Amendment," Jacobson added.
The EPP's action against the University of Nebraska-Lincoln follows a civil rights complaint against the State University of New York at Buffalo’s School of Law for its Discover Law Undergraduate Scholars Program and the University of Minnesota's Multicultural Summer Research Opportunities Program.
The complaint alleges that the program is "race-exclusive" and therefore illegal in light of the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent ruling striking down race-based affirmative action in admissions. (University of Nebraska)
"EqualProtect.org stands against all racial discrimination, regardless of who is targeted and who allegedly benefits. U. Nebraska-Lincoln purports to live up to this value in its own anti-discrimination policies, but it needs to walk the walk, not just talk the anti-discrimination talk."
The University of Nebraska-Lincoln and the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.
Sarah Rumpf-Whitten is a writer on the breaking news team for Fox News Digital. You can reach her on Twitter at @s_rumpfwhitten.
