The National Education Association approved a new “business item” expressing support for abortion access during its annual conference in Houston.
“[T]he NEA will include an assertion of our defense of a person’s right to control their own body, especially for women, youth, and sexually marginalized people,” the resolution states. “The NEA vigorously opposes all attacks on the right to choose and stands on the fundamental right to abortion under Roe v. Wade.”
The NEA is the largest teachers’ union in the U.S. with more than 3 million members. It collected nearly $400 million from American educators in 2018, according to federal labor filings. The union is also one of the most politically active in the country, spending $70 million on politics and lobbying in 2017 and 2018. Nearly all of the union’s political action committee spending went to Democrats during the midterm cycle, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.
The resolution, known as New Business Item 56, takes direct aim at the Trump administration.
“The most misogynistic forces, under Trump, want to abolish the gains of the women’s rights movement,” the business item later states. “Women’s leadership is essential for any successful egalitarian movement and therefore must be protected.” – READ MORE