The Civil Rights Act is being violated by Urbana-Champaign's scholarships, which discriminate against certain groups based on their diversity.

The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign is being sued for 42 "illegal" scholarships that "discriminated" against applicants, according to a law professor who helped push the complaint. The professor stated that it is "crystal clear" that these scholarships violate the Civil Rights Act.

The Equal Protection Project, a civil rights organization affiliated with the Legal Insurrection Foundation, filed a complaint alleging that the scholarships in question violate either Title IX or Title VI.

"Cornell Law School professor and founder of the Legal Insurrection Foundation William Jacobson stated to Planet Chronicle Digital that it is evident that these actions violate the Civil Rights Act. He explained that for some of them, they use terms such as "minority," and to make it clear that this term is a racial and color designation, he included the school's definition of "minority.""

The scholarships seem to indicate a "systemic issue" with the university "overlooking discrimination."

"Jacobson stated to Planet Chronicle Digital that the university had a diverse range of discrimination, with men, women, Blacks, and Whites being discriminated against in different directions. He emphasized that it was a real diversity of discrimination and raised questions about what was happening at the university. He believed that the university could not have been unaware of the discrimination, given the large number of people involved."

The preferential scholarships convey a message to students not to apply.

"According to federal law, discrimination is the harm caused. If you establish a barrier based on race or sex, you have harmed people. For instance, a store with a sign "No Blacks allowed" is illegal and causes harm. It doesn't matter if someone tries to enter the store and is turned away by erecting the barrier."

Jacobson stated that the purpose of the complaint is to put an end to discrimination and for the Department of Education to offer alternatives to students who were excluded from applying for preferential scholarships.

"Perhaps the school should increase the number of awards for a previously discriminatory scholarship to provide more opportunities for those who were excluded, even if it comes at a cost, as a fair remedy."

In most cases, schools modify their eligibility requirements when presented with a clear complaint demonstrating a legal violation.

He stated that our initial hope is that the University of Illinois would modify the eligibility criteria for these scholarships to make them accessible to everyone, recognizing the significant issue they face.

Planet Chronicle Digital did not receive a response from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign when requested for comment.