George Washington University has refused demands from leftists to fire Justice Clarence Thomas as an adjunct professor, or to cancel his longstanding Constitutional Law Seminar following the Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe v. Wade. Justice Thomas voted with the majority to allow states to protect babies from abortion.
GWU students started a petition to have him removed following the decision last week but the university released a statement Tuesday pushing back against that initiative.
“Because we steadfastly support the robust exchange of ideas and deliberation, and because debate is an essential part of our university’s academic and educational mission to train future leaders who are prepared to address the world’s most urgent problems, the university will neither terminate Justice Thomas’ employment nor cancel his class in response to his legal opinions,” the statement reads.
“Debate is an essential part of our university’s academic and educational mission,” GWU added.
“Since the recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling to overturn Roe v. Wade, we have heard from members of our community who have expressed feelings of deep disagreement with this decision,” an email from the George Washington University Provost and Law School Dean added. “We also have received requests from some members of the university and external communities that the university terminate its employment of Adjunct Professor and Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas and cancel the Constitutional Law Seminar that he teaches at the Law School.”
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George Washington Law School student and Campus Reform correspondent Tahmineh Dahbozorgi joined “Fox & Friends First”on Wednesday to react to the university’s decision.
“Of course, this has nothing to do with the law school community and has nothing to do with his teaching style or his popularity among law students,” Dahbozorgi told co-host Joey Jones. “This is just another cancel culture case motivated by emotional response to something that students just don’t like.”
“I believe a good law school is where students can engage in debate and look at each issue from all angles, because after all, we’re going to be attorneys, and we have to take either side of an issue and zealously advocate,” Dahbozorgi said. “I’m very happy that our administration has taken such a step to defend academic integrity and freedom of expression on our law school campus.”
“I am an immigrant from Iran and I came to the United States because I wanted to be engaged in a civil debate and conversation without facing repercussions from the government,” Dahbozorgi said. “And, of course, here at George Washington University, I do not want to experience being canceled or see students canceling professors, faculty members or other students just because they have opposing views.”
“So I know I’m not the only person who wants to stand against this trend of cancel culture on our campus,” she continued.
As LifeNews reported, the Supreme Court has overturned Roe v. Wade, with a 6-3 majority ruling in the Dobbs case that “The Constitution does not confer a right to abortion” — allowing states to ban abortions and protect unborn babies. The high court also ruled 6-3 uphold the Mississippi 15-week abortion ban so states can further limit abortions and to get rid of the false viability standard.
Chief Justice John Roberts technically voted for the judgment but, in his concurring opinion, disagreed with the reasoning and said he wanted to keep abortions legal but with a new standard.
Texas and Oklahoma had banned abortions before Roe was overturned and Missouri became the first state after Roe to protect babies from abortions and South Dakota became the 2nd. Then Arkansas became the third state protecting babies from abortions and Kentucky became the 4th and Louisiana became the 5th and Ohio became the 6th and Utah became the 7th and Oklahoma became the 8th and Alabama became the 9th. This week, Mississippi became the 10th and South Carolina became the 11th,Texas became the 12th with its pre-Roe law and Tennessee became the 13th.
Michigan, Wisconsin and West Virginia have old pro-life laws on the books but there is question about whether they are applicable and will be enforced.
Ultimately, as many as 26 states could immediately or quickly ban abortions and protect babies from certain death for the first time in nearly 50 years.
The 13 total states with trigger laws that would effectively ban all or most abortions are: Arkansas, Idaho, Kentucky, Louisiana, Missouri, Mississippi, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah and Wyoming.
“Abortion presents a profound moral question. The Constitution does not prohibit the citizens of each State from regulating or prohibiting abortion. Roe and Casey arrogated that authority. We now overrule those decisions and return that authority to the people and their elected representatives,” Alito wrote.
“Roe was egregiously wrong from the start. Its reasoning was exceptionally weak, and the decision has had damaging consequences,” Alito wrote. “And far from bringing about a national settlement of the abortion issue, Roe and Casey have enflamed debate and deepened division.”
This is a landmark day for the Pro-Life movement and our entire nation. After staining the moral fabric of our country for nearly 50 years, Roe v. Wade is no more.
Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan and Stephen Breyer authored a joint dissent condemning the decision as enabling states to enact “draconian” restrictions on women.
Polls show Americans are pro-life on abortion.
