Roe v. Wade: How education groups reacted to SCOTUS decision |
The U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade on Friday, removing the constitutional right to abortion that had been in place for nearly 50 years and setting off a chain of effects that could have wide-reaching consequences for schools, educators, and the children they serve. The 6-3 ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization will effectively ban abortions in 13 states that have passed so-called “trigger laws,” which were written to enact abortion restrictions upon the overruling of Roe. Several other states are expected to reintroduce bills that would do the same, while others move to firm up their own laws protecting abortion. On Friday, many education groups condemned the court’s decision, suggesting the opinion may be a precursor to future decisions related to LGBTQ marriage, gender equality, and birth control. The order is “another example of how, over the last few years, we have seen the same faction of politicians working overtime to reverse decades of progress on racial justice, on women’s rights, on worker’s rights, on LGBTQ+ rights, on voting rights, on our right to privacy, and on our students’ freedom to learn in our public schools,” National Education Association President Becky Pringle said in a statement. “These attacks on our freedoms are designed to do one thing—consolidate unfettered power into the hands of a few,” Pringle said. “We must stand up for all of our rights.” American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten linked the Dobbs ruling to other recent Supreme Court decisions this week, including those on states’ firearm laws and public funding for students to attend religious schools. “In the span of 24 hours, this court ruled that states can’t regulate gun owners but can regulate the bodies of anyone who can reproduce,” she said. Other groups celebrated the decision. Students for Life, an anti-abortion advocacy group, said in a statement that the ruling represented a “historic moment that will determine the fate of millions of precious children,” noting plans to push for legislation that would restrict abortion at the state level. Pro-abortion rights student activists also pledged to lobby state lawmakers. In a statement, the anti-gun-violence organization March for Our Lives called the ruling a “racist,” “classist,” attack. “We have organized before and won, and we will organize again to protect our right to be free of gun violence and choose what we do with our bodies,” it said.