State Says University Uses Pictures Illegally

The University will be forced to go to court if it is to continue requesting photographs with freshman application forms.

The Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination has issued a directive under the Fair Educational Practices Act ordering Harvard College to stop requesting the photographs. The Office of Admissions has failed to comply with the directive, claiming that the pictures were not used for discrimination.

Assistant Attorney General Samuel H. Gaffer ruled last Dec. 20 that "A request for photographs before the student is admitted . . . is an unfair educational practice under the Fair Educational Practices Act."

The Act, passed in 1949, states, "It shall be an unfair educational practice for an educational institution . . . to cause to be made any written or oral inquiry concerning the race, religion, color, or national origin of a person seeking admission." Harvard usually has requested photographs from applicants to all sections of the University.

Before taking legal action, the Commission waited for confirmation of its stand by the Attorney General's office. The confirmation was received too late to affect applications for the Class of 1962.

University Has Next Move

Dean Bender has stated that the University's next action is in the hands of the Corporation. The Corporation may either decide to comply with the directive, or it may take the case to court.

Bender claimed that prohibiting the use of photographs is meaningless, since all applicants are interviewed. He added that "the issue is whether the State is going to infringe upon the proper freedom of institutions to manage their own affairs within the law."