NEA President responds to U.S. Supreme Court Decision in Mahmoud Case

WASHINGTON — Today, the U.S. Supreme Court imposed burdensome new requirements on educators and public schools that will undermine their ability to provide students with an inclusive education that reflects the real-life diversity of students and identities in our nation’s public schools and communities. The National Education Association filed an amicus brief with the U.S. Supreme Court in Mahmoud v. Taylor, in which NEA argued, among other things, that a decision like this will hamstring efforts to give students a full, engaging, and inclusive public education. The Court’s decision will have a chilling effect on students and public education for generations to come.

The following statement can be attributed to NEA President Becky Pringle: 

“Today the U.S. Supreme Court willfully discounted and ignored the expertise of trained professionals in the classroom. This decision could have a chilling effect on students for generations to come and could lead to more educators self-censoring, shelving books and lessons, and preventing some already marginalized students from being seen and acknowledged. In the end, students are the ones who pay the price for censoring what books they can and cannot access and read. Educators know that students can’t learn when they do not feel welcomed, seen, or valued.

“Educators know all students—no matter who they are or what gender they identify with—deserve access to an inclusive public education. By creating new, unnecessary legal rules that burden hardworking educators and disrupt their ability to teach, the Court is effectively inserting itself into the day-to-day education decisions about what students can learn and what educators can teach.

“The Court’s ruling is a direct attack on our democracy. Public education is founded on the core educational principle of engaging students on a broad range of ideas, allowing them to explore new perspectives, and learn to think for themselves. Students deserve nothing less than to feel supported and valued on that journey, in particular our LGBTQ+ young people and families, who often feel marginalized and excluded.

“Censoring the books and resources students can access puts limits on their freedom to grow, learn and contribute to society. Everyone deserves to see themselves and their lived experiences in books—at our schools and in our libraries. Books are like mirrors and windows. They reflect what we observe and know about the world in which we live and help us understand lives that are different from our own. The Court does students a disservice by limiting access to these opportunities.”

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The National Education Association is the nation’s largest professional employee organization, representing more than 3 million elementary and secondary teachers, higher education faculty, education support professionals, school administrators, retired educators, students preparing to become teachers, healthcare workers, and public employees. Learn more at www.nea.org.