Page:Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin, 579 U.S. (2016) (slip opinion).pdf/42

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the racial and ethnic makeup of the University’s under­graduate population and the state’s population prevent the University from fully achieving its mission.” Supp. App. 24a; see also id., at 16a (“[A] critical mass in Texas is necessarily larger than a critical mass in Michigan,” be­ cause “[a] majority of the college-age population in Texas is African American or Hispanic”); Fisher, 631 F. 3d, at 225–226, 236 (concluding that UT’s reliance on Texas demographics reflects “measured attention to the commu­nity it serves”); Brief for Respondents in No. 11–345, at 41 (noting that critical mass may hinge, in part, on “the communities that universities serve”). UT’s extensive reliance on state demographics is also revealed by its substantial focus on increasing the representation of Hispanics, but not Asian-Americans, see, e.g., 645 F. Supp. 2d, at 606; Supp. App. 25a; App. 445a–446a, because Hispanics, but not Asian-Americans, are underrepresented at UT when compared to the demographics of the State.

On the other hand, UT’s counsel asserted that the criti­cal mass for the University is “not at all” dependent on the demographics of Texas, and that UT’s “concept [of] critical mass isn’t tied to demographic[s].” Tr. of Oral Arg. 40, 49 (Oct. 10, 2012). And UT’s Fisher I brief expressly agreed that “a university cannot look to racial demographics— and then work backward in its admissions process to meet a target tied to such demographics.” Brief for Respondents in No. 11–345, at 31; see also Brief for Respondents