Westmont, IL – Illinois Federation of Teachers (IFT) President Dan Montgomery issued the following statement after today’s devasting ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court on affirmative action in college admissions.
“As an educator and union leader, I am devastated that countless Black, Brown, Indigenous, and marginalized students will lose opportunities to pursue higher education at top universities. This harmful ruling will have lasting implications for students looking to attend institutions that seek to promote diversity and equity in their student bodies and will have detrimental effects far beyond the few universities at issue in today’s rulings.
“We cannot continue to sweep racism under the rug and pretend that our institutions are color blind. Sadly, today justices stripped thousands of students of their futures by making it acceptable for institutions to operate under exclusionary policies. Their decision seriously threatens democracy and equality and harkens back to our shameful Jim Crow past.
“As this court did with labor rights in Janus, with voting rights in Holder, and with reproductive rights in Dobbs, these affirmative action decisions cavalierly discard decades of established law. Americans are in the clutches of a rogue, radical, right-wing court detached from mainstream American legal thought and far out of touch with the beliefs of most Americans.
“Today’s decision makes it very clear why elections matter. Among other efforts, we will continue to work with our governor and legislature to revamp higher education funding so the neediest students have college access, and no students or families must endure crippling debt simply to get a college education.”