A relatively new coalition of 100 Asian American groups along with the Asian American Legal Foundation has filed a brief in the U.S. Supreme Court urging a total ban on racial discrimination in college admissions.

The coalition known as Asian American Coalition for Education has 45 likes on its Facebook page. The page includes a link to a website which appears organized around recent attempts to ban programs intended to diversify college campuses.

The names of the 100 supporting organizations are not listed in the group’s news release, but are listed in the amicus brief itself.

The coalition submitted its brief in support of the plaintiff in Fisher v University of Texas at Austin.

“We should treat all students the same based on merit, and jointly help the poor, regardless of their racial background. Only in this way, can we build a racially harmonized society and advance American education,” said Yukong Zhao, the Chair of the Organizing Committee of AACE.

Asian Americans have made education a top priority, and when Johnny doesn’t get into the school of his choice, it’s natural to blame external outside factors.

The bottom line is that there are more qualified applicants than there are openings. Tough choices need to be made. 20 percent of Harvard’s first year students are Asian Americans. That’s four times more than their general population. To argue that Asian Americans are discriminated against seems silly, in my opinion.

In May, 135 Asian American organizations came out in support of affirmative action in higher education. These groups, unlike the Asian American Coalition for Education, have a longer more established history in the Asian American community.

Newer arrivals, perhaps with less of an understanding of the historical and ongoing discrimination faced by Asian Americans and other minorities, put less of a value on diversity.

The United States is a country of immigrants from many lands. We cannot learn from each other if we do not interact with each other. We are still largely a segregated country, with many neighborhoods dominated by one ethnic group or another.

A survey taken just last year found that 75 percent of Whites do not have non-White friends. We cannot begin to change that if we do not create opportunities for different ethnic groups to interact and learn from each other.

Those who value diversity support holistic admissions. Those who don’t submit briefs against policies supporting a well-rounded student body.

(Note from the editor: An earlier version of the article incorrectly stated the names of the organizations who make up the Asian American Coalition for Education were not listed in the amicus brief. We regret the error)