WASHINGTON — Senate Republicans have thrown the legitimacy of the U.S. Supreme Court in doubt by ramming through an extreme judge as the next associate justice, just days before the close of the election and while more than 60 million people already have cast their ballots. The National Education Association — the nation’s largest union that represents 3 million educators, healthcare workers and public service employees — has strongly opposed the nomination of Judge Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court.
The following statement can be attributed to NEA President Becky Pringle:
“While we work together in the midst of multiple crises — a historic public health emergency, an economic fallout not seen since the Great Depression, and a social and racial justice reckoning centuries in the making — our educators, our students, our families, and our communities are reeling. Yet Senate Republicans have refused to provide COVID-19 relief that American families desperately need. Instead, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell chose to ram through an extreme nominee who threatens our very health care, our union rights, our voting rights, our civil rights and our students’ rights. We will not forget what Donald Trump and Mitch McConnell have done to stack our courts while ignoring the pressing issues of the country.
“More than 225,000 Americans already have perished from COVID, and more than 19 million workers have filed for unemployment or can’t work due to the pandemic, including over 835,0000 educators. And students, parents and their educators have been hung out to dry by the failed leadership of Donald Trump, Betsy DeVos and Mitch McConnell. Change must come to the White House and the Senate on November 3, and America’s educators are ready to make that happen.”
NEA members have expressed outrage at the Senate GOP’s misguided priorities and what an extreme Supreme Court could do to roll back healthcare laws, union rights, voting rights, civil rights and LGBTQ rights. In their own words:
“Before the Affordable Care Act, I had to pay exorbitant fees for healthcare insurance, the options were extremely limited, and the process was very cumbersome and unreliable. I constantly was afraid to use my insurance because every time I went to the doctor, I’d receive a huge bill. If it wasn’t for the ACA and Covered California, I wouldn’t be able to get medical checkups, prescriptions or just take care of myself. And yet the Supreme Court is set to hear a case next month on the ACA, and President Trump and his appointed justices have repeatedly threatened to strike down Obamacare. I fear that I could lose the only healthcare insurance I can afford as a single mother of three children and someone who has a pre-existing condition.” — Dolores Burse, special education resource teacher, Dublin, Calif.
“I successfully taught eighth graders AP Spanish language and culture for more than 30 years, but I was forced to retire two years early because of my concerns over COVID-19 and how our elected leaders were handling crisis. Our state and federal government did not have a real plan for school buildings to reopen safely or equitably, and the virus was raging in the community. Meanwhile, the Senate abandoned support for students and educators so they could take away health care from millions of people — all during a pandemic. Politicians wanted to re-start the economy even if it was at the expense of people’s lives. That was not acceptable to me.” — Ingrid Robledo, Advanced Placement Spanish language and culture, Miami, Fla.
“My union gives my colleagues and me a powerful collective voice in standing up and speaking out to ensure our students have what they needed to succeed. If it weren’t for our union, we would never have been able to start the #RedForEd movement in West Virginia that helped us secure better learning conditions for our students, and better working conditions for educators. Now the Supreme Court threatens our workers’ rights, civil rights and voting rights with adverse decisions. With just eight days from the end of the election, the Senate should have waited for the people to make their voices heard before choosing a justice who would decide the fate of workers like me.” — Debra Sloat, school bus driver, Berkeley County, W.V.
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