Government

Supreme Court ends affirmative action in colleges

The Supreme Court ruled Thursday that colleges can no longer explicitly consider an applicant’s race in the admissions process.

Why it matters: The ruling forces colleges to rethink long-standing features of the admissions process and likely jeopardizes diversity on campuses nationwide.

Driving the news: The Supreme Court ruled 6-3 against the admissions processes at Harvard and the University of North Carolina.

• The court sided with nonprofit Students for Fair Admissions (SFFA) who argued that the Constitution forbids the use of race in college admissions and that the universities’ current application process discriminates against white and Asian American applicants.

The big picture: The Supreme Court has held up race-conscious college admissions programs twice in the past 20 years, including in 2016 when the SSFA brought a case against the University of Texas.

• Affirmative action programs have already been nixed in nine states and each has seen a significant drop in minority enrollment.

Moving forward: Universities across the country issued statements solidifying their commitment to diversity on their campuses.

• Reginald DesRoches, president of Rice University in Houston said “the law may change, but Rice’s commitment to diversity will not.”

• President Biden proposed a workaround to the new law, saying colleges should take into account the adversity a student has overcome when considering applicants.

Business & Economy

U.S. stock markets closed mixed on Thursday (S&P +0.5%, Nasdaq 0.00%, Dow +0.8%)

The Sriracha hot sauce shortage is causing a surge in secondary prices, with 28 oz bottles reaching as high as $60 on sites like eBay. The company hasn’t been able to keep up with demand for the last two years as droughts in Mexico have killed off pepper crops.

Overstock.com will change its name to Bedbathandbeyond.com after buying the bankrupt company’s brand and intellectual assets earlier this week.

World

Protestors are burning cars, garbage, and buildings in France after a police officer shot and killed a 17-year-old boy at a traffic stop on Tuesday. 

Dozens of people have stormed the Swedish embassy compound in Iraq after a Quran - the holy book of Muslims - was burned during a demonstration outside a mosque in Sweden on Wednesday. 

The Canadian wildfire season is now the worst on record with firefighters battling 483 active blazes across the country. 20m acres (8.1m hectares) have been burnt - 21 times above the average over the last decade.

US News, Politics, & Government

There are now 75,000 homeless people living in Los Angeles, a 9% increase from last year.

The Supreme Court ruled in favor of a Christian postal worker who quit his job because he was denied requests to take off work on Sundays. The ruling could make it easier for employees to ask for work accommodations based on religious beliefs.

Donald Trump is suing E. Jean Carroll for defamation, saying that she owes him money after continuing to insist she was raped after a jury declined to agree.

Sports & Entertainment

New York Yankees pitcher Domingo German threw a perfect game - no hits and no walks - in an 11-0 win over the Oakland A’s. It was the 4th perfect game in team history and the first in the league since 2012.

Former World No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki announced that she will return to professional tennis after three years away.

Netflix is opening a restaurant called Netflix Bites on June 30 in Los Angeles. The pop-up will feature chef creations from shows “Chef’s Table,” “Iron Chef,” “Is It Cake?”, and “Drink Masters.”

Science, Health, & Tech

Virgin Galactic completed its first commercial space flight on Thursday. If you want to grab a seat on a future trip, it will cost you $450,000.

Researchers in Barcelona are trying to “trick nature” by creating an artificial womb to help extremely premature babies continue to develop. So far, animal fetuses have stayed alive for 12 days during testing.

The World Health Organization’s cancer research arm will announce that aspartame sweetener is a possible carcinogen.

A handbag smaller than a grain of salt sold for $63,000 at an online auction.

A man cut down 32 of his neighbors trees. Now, he’s facing a fine of at least $32,000.

U.S. home price growth over the past 50 years. 

Scientists turn astronaut urine and sweat into clean drinking water.