Cite as: 532 U. S. 275 (2001)
Stevens, J., dissenting
Court makes three distinct, albeit interrelated, errors. First, the Court provides a muddled account of both the reasoning and the breadth of our prior decisions endorsing a private right of action under Title VI, thereby obscuring the conflict between those opinions and today's decision. Second, the Court offers a flawed and unconvincing analysis of the relationship between §§ 601 and 602 of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, ignoring more plausible and persuasive explanations detailed in our prior opinions. Finally, the Court badly misconstrues the theoretical linchpin of our decision in Cannon v. University of Chicago, 441 U. S. 677 (1979), mistaking that decision's careful contextual analysis for judicial fiat.
I
The majority is undoubtedly correct that this Court has never said in so many words that a private right of action exists to enforce the disparate-impact regulations promulgated under § 602. However, the failure of our cases to state this conclusion explicitly does not absolve the Court of the responsibility to canvass our prior opinions for guidance. Reviewing these opinions with the care they deserve, I reach the same conclusion as the Courts of Appeals: This Court has already considered the question presented today and concluded that a private right of action exists.1
1 Just about every Court of Appeals has either explicitly or implicitly held that a private right of action exists to enforce all of the regulations issued pursuant to Title VI, including the disparate-impact regulations. For decisions holding so most explicitly, see, e. g., Powell v. Ridge, 189 F. 3d 387, 400 (CA3 1999); Chester Residents Concerned for Quality Living v. Seif, 132 F. 3d 925, 936-937 (CA3 1997), summarily vacated and remanded, 524 U. S. 974 (1998); David K. v. Lane, 839 F. 2d 1265, 1274 (CA7 1988); Sandoval v. Hagan, 197 F. 3d 484 (CA11 1999) (case below). See also Latinos Unidos De Chelsea v. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, 799 F. 2d 774, 785, n. 20 (CA1 1986); New York Urban League, Inc. v. New York, 71 F. 3d 1031, 1036 (CA2 1995); Ferguson v. Charleston, 186 F. 3d 469 (CA4 1999), rev'd on other grounds, ante, p. 67; Castaneda v. Pickard, 781 F. 2d 456, 465, n. 11 (CA5 1986); Buchanan v. Bolivar, 99
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