April 24, 2001 - The Supreme Court has taken away one of the most effective tools for fighting race discrimination, ruling that persons suing under Title VI of the civil rights act cannot prevail by showing "disparate impact" but must prove intentional discrimination.

The ruling in Alexander v. Sandoval effectively leaves recipients of federal funding free to engage in a wide range of discriminatory practices that have been forbidden for over thirty years. The Court's decision left federal agencies free to enforce the "disparate impact" provisions of regulations passed to enforce Title VI, but barred private enforcement. Enforcement by agencies has, until now, been secondary to enforcement by private suit.

To read the full article from The Washington Post, go to http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A60171-2001Apr24.aspx.