Kamehameha Schools
VS.
John Doe
Kamehameha Schools is a private school that educates native Hawaiians. Their admissions policy gives those of aboriginal or indigenous blood preference over those who have no Hawaiian ancestry. In June 2003 John Doe filed a lawsuit that challenged the Kamehameha Schools admissions policy. Doe claimed that the policy violated civil rights laws and unlawfully discriminated against those who were not Hawaiian by blood. In May of 2007 the John Doe case was settled outside of court for 7 million.
The admissions policy of Kamehameha Schools has been a polarizing subject, spawning debates and discussion, and most recently, lawsuits. Should an institution, whose resources derive from the assets of an individual and not from from government aid, be allowed to educate children of a dying race in attempts to undo the wrongs done to that people in the past? Or is this just another case of racial discrimination? Are past circumstances irrelevant to the goal of education, and should all individuals, regardless of heritage, be entitled to the right to an education at Kamehameha?
Photos Courtesy of Kamehameha Schools
