A group of undergraduates headed downtown to the John Joseph Moakley United States Courthouse Monday morning to watch and support eight current and former students as they testified in support of affirmative action on the eleventh day of the ongoing Harvard admissions trial. Members of The Task Force on Asian and Pacific American Studies led the outing.
Crimson photographers tagged along with the travelers, heading out from the Harvard T stop at 8 a.m. Relive the trip — and the emotional testimony — below.
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Members of Harvard TAPAS gathered to wait together for the Red Line on their way support their peers testifying in court. The group previously put out a call urging everyone to wear shirts reading “Diversitas" — a play on Harvard's motto of "Veritas."
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The students boarded the busy subway with a mission. "I would really hate for affirmative action to be eliminated," Daniel Lu '20 (right), who organized the trip, said in an interview. "So I think it's really important for us to support our peers that are testifying and putting themselves out there."
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As students clambered onto the Silver Line at South Station, some said they do not buy the arguments advanced by Students for Fair Admissions, the anti-affirmative action advocacy group that sued Harvard in 2014 over its admissions policies. SFFA is alleging in court that the College discriminates against Asian-American applicants — charges Harvard has repeatedly denid.
"I do recognize that there could be discrimination," said James Z. Gui '20, one of the students on the trip. "However, I think that the rhetoric of other minorities taking Asians’ spots is very toxic, and I really think that we should be defending affirmative action."
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Rain began to pour as students made the trek from the T station to the courthouse — located in the Seaport District of Boston. They arrived just after 8:30 a.m.
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The group of students briefly stopped to talk and take pictures in front of the courthouse. Many stayed there for most of the day, sticking around to witness every minute of the eight current and former students' impassioned testimony urging the benefits of affirmative action and the need for a diverse student body. The witnesses often drew on personal experiences — including racially charged childhood bullying, fears of Harvard's whiteness, and solace found in College affinity groups — to make their case. The Crimson spoke to several of those who testified as they left the courthouse.
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Madison A. Trice ’21 said one of the highlights of her experience testifying was seeing the extensive student support at the court trial. She added it was important to her to be able to speak about how she personally benefited from Harvard’s race-conscious admissions system.
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Thang Q. Diep’19 said the conclusion of his testimony felt like a great burden lifting off his shoulders. He said he felt stressed in the days leading up to Monday because he did not want to forget anything vital.
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Sally Chen ’19 (left) laughed outside of the courthouse shortly after testifying. Earlier in the day, Chen said she was "stressed to tears,” mainly because she felt uncertain how the media would report her words. She said that, overall, her participation in the trial made her see why it is important to care about this issue, and that she is glad she took the witness stand.
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Asked why she decided to get involved with the admissions trial, Catherine H. Ho ’21 said she wanted to highlight the different experiences Asian Americans see at Harvard. She said she believes diversity — especially racial diversity — is key to fostering learning on campus.
Correction: Nov. 1, 2018
Due to an editing error, a previous version of this photo essay included a photo that misidentified Sally Chen '19. It has been updated.
Correction: Nov. 8, 2018
Due to an editing error, a previous version of this photo essay misspelled the name of Thang Q. Diep '19. It has been updated.
