Source: Guttmacher Institute The Center for Reproductive Rights has been representing Kate Cox in an emergency lawsuit asking for a temporary restraining order on Texas abortion bans in order to terminate her pregnancy. Just this morning, a judge granted their request to allow Cox access to the reproductive healthcare that she needs, without fear of […]
ACLU Brings Legal Challenge to Tennessee’s Discriminatory Aggravated Prostitution Law
Image by succo from Pixabay The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) filed against the state of Tennessee in Memphis last week on behalf of four individuals who have been convicted of Aggravated Prostitution and required to register as “violent sex offenders” for their entire lives. The ACLU also filed on behalf of OUTMemphis, the state’s […]
Supreme Court lets businesses discriminate against a protected class for the first time in history
Photo by Ian Taylor on Unsplash In 2017, the Supreme Court heard a case about a bakery owner who refused to create a cake for a gay wedding. The Court ruled that the cake represented free expression, so the Colorado Anti-Discrimination Act (CADA) could not force the owner to sell a cake for the couple’s […]
Democrats reintroduce legislation to expand the Supreme Court, set term limits
AP/J. Scott Applewhite The Supreme Court ended its term with decisions that challenged precedent and rolled back rights for the environment, Black and Latino college applicants, same-sex couples, and student loan borrowers. With a 6-3 conservative majority, the Court is making its highest rate of conservative decisions since 1931.Two of its Justices have violated ethics […]
Supreme Court strikes down affirmative action
AP Photo/Gerry Broome In a 6-3 decision, the Supreme Court ruled against race-conscious admissions programs. In both cases — Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard and Students for Fair Admissions v. University of North Carolina — college admissions programs considered race as one of many factors in determining an application’s value. The Court ruled that […]
Supreme Court explicitly rejects independent state legislature theory
Photo by Ian Hutchinson on Unsplash Voting rights activists around the country are celebrating as the Supreme Court released their decision for the Moore v. Harper case, ruling that state legislatures do not have the authority to set election rules outside the constraints of state constitutions. This is the second time this month we have seen a pro-democracy victory, where the Supreme […]
Will SCOTUS Uphold Domestic Abusers’ Right to Own Guns?
Photo by Claire Anderson on Unsplash It has now been a year since the Supreme Court issued its first major gun decision in over a decade. In New York State Rifle and Pistol Association v. Bruen, the Court ruled that the constitutionality of gun control laws can no longer be determined solely by state interests. […]
Biden’s student debt relief plan hangs in the balance
Photo by Unseen Studio on Unsplash The Supreme Court is expected to announce a decision on the constitutionality of President Biden’s student loan forgiveness plan in the next few weeks. Biden’s original debt relief plan would have canceled up to $20,000 for the millions of borrowers struggling with student loans across the country. The program […]
Afghan lawyers and judges are being persecuted by the Taliban. It threatens Afghan women, the justice system, and the rule of law.
The dangers facing Afghanistan’s judicial system began immediately after the Taliban takeover of the government in Afghanistan and has only been intensifying in the past nearly two years. In recent days, the threats and the persecution of the former judicial system employees have intensified even further, raising alarm among human rights organizations. The Taliban’s blatant […]
Supreme Court rules to protect the Voting Rights Act
Photo from Aurora Samperio/NurPhoto via ZUMA Press In a surprising win for voting rights and racial justice, the Supreme Court voted last week to reaffirm a decades old precedent prohibiting racial gerrymandering. The decision centered around Alabama’s legislative districts, where a Republican led redistricting plan would result in White voters becoming the majority in six […]
Supreme Court Erodes Separation of Church and State
At his last game as the Bremerton High assistant football coach, Joseph Kennedy led a prayer at the 50-yard line that had spectators jumping over the fence to join him on the field. This was after the school district told him to stop holding public prayers and right before they fired him. Kennedy sued, arguing […]
Ketanji Brown Jackson: Making History
Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson was confirmed as the United States’ 116th Supreme Court Justice by a 53 to 47 vote in the U.S. Senate today. She will be seated as a Justice on the Court after Justice Stephen Breyer retires, which is expected this summer after the end of the Court’s current session. “Ketanji Brown […]
Texas Supreme Court Ends Federal Court Challenge to State’s Abortion Ban
The all-Republican Texas Supreme Court on Friday ruled that abortion providers can’t sue state officials to block Senate Bill 8, which bans abortion at roughly six-weeks with no exceptions for rape or incest. The unanimous decision closed the narrow pathway to challenge the law left open by the U.S. Supreme Court last December after the […]
Supreme Court Issues Another Procedural Blow to Texas Abortion Advocates
This Thursday, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled against Texas abortion providers again in the on-going legal battle over the state’s controversial six-week ban, S.B. 8. This week’s decision was made regarding the issue of sending the case back to the original trial judge, an attempt by abortion advocates to move their challenge to the law […]
Supreme Court Delivers Another Blow Against Abortion Rights
Last Friday, the U.S. Supreme Court refused to block a clearly unconstitutional abortion ban in Texas, leaving in place S.B. 8, which bans most abortions after six weeks of pregnancy. The Court’s ruling substantially narrows options to challenge the law in federal court, and there is no fast option for a Texas Supreme Court ruling […]
The Supreme Court Must Not Reward Anti-Abortion Violence
by Christian F. Nunes and Eleanor Smeal Political violence as a tool for achieving political goals is on the rise, particularly when it comes to abortion. We’ve seen this before with S.B. 8 in Texas, a law that codifies vigilante anti-abortion extremism, and we’re seeing it again with the Mississippi abortion ban case, Dobbs v. Jackson […]
New Poll Shows Strong Majority of Americans Support Upholding Roe v. Wade
A new Washington Post-ABC News poll found that Americans, by a large majority, think that the Supreme Court should uphold Roe v. Wade, and, by a similar margin, oppose SB8, the Texas abortion ban that was implemented in September. According to the poll, 60 percent of Americans say that Roe should be upheld, and 75 […]
Texas’s Six-Week Ban Has Been In Effect for Over Two Months. Is There an End in Sight?
by Roxy Szal for Ms. magazine With a lack of Supreme Court action to block the most restrictive abortion ban in history, Texas abortion advocates are looking to a district court for relief. On Wednesday, a state district judge heard arguments from abortion providers and advocates to block enforcement of Texas Senate Bill 8, the most […]
Supreme Court Hears Challenges to Texas Abortion Ban
On Monday, the Supreme Court heard two procedural challenges to SB8, Texas’s six-week abortion ban that was enacted on September 1. The Court heard both United States v. Texas and Whole Woman’s Health v. Jackson, both challenging the law. US Solicitor General Elizabeth B. Prelogar argued that the law is unconstitutional and that if upheld, […]
Supreme Court Will Hear Texas Abortion Ban Case November 1
On Friday, the Supreme Court said that they will not block Texas’ SB8, a near-total abortion ban, but will review the law on November 1st. The justices said that they will rule on whether the Justice Department and abortion providers can sue in federal court over the law, which was designed specifically to avoid judicial […]
