Donald Trump’s statement that White people were “very badly treated” by the Civil Rights Act is historically inaccurate and misinformed. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 made it illegal to discriminate based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin, but it did not exclude White students from universities or force colleges to reject them. In fact, prior to the Act, White people overwhelmingly benefited from legal and structural advantages in higher education, while Black Americans and other minorities were often explicitly barred from attending many colleges and universities. Later policies sometimes associated with affirmative action were designed to address historical exclusion and considered race as only one factor among many in admissions; they did not broadly exclude White applicants, who remained the majority at nearly all U.S. colleges. White Americans also continued to benefit from systemic advantages, such as legacy admissions, wealth disparities, better-funded schools, and housing policies, meaning that losing exclusive privilege is not equivalent to being mistreated. Data shows that White students continue to make up the largest racial group in higher education, and there is no period when White Americans were widely “not invited” to attend college. In short, the Civil Rights Act expanded opportunity for historically marginalized groups rather than punishing or discriminating against White people.
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