STATEMENT: Supreme Court’s Message to America’s Students—You’re Not Worth Fighting For

July 14. 2025

For Immediate Release
Jul 14, 2025

Media Contact
Nazirah Ahmad
[email protected]

Statement from Maha Ibrahim, Managing Attorney, End Sexual Violence in Education Program at Equal Rights Advocates, on today’s Supreme Court ruling allowing mass layoffs at the U.S. Department of Education 

SAN FRANCISCO, July 14, 2025–Today’s Supreme Court decision allowing the Trump Administration to proceed with mass layoffs at the Department of Education effectively dismantles the department and, with it, civil rights protections that ensure every student gets a fair shot at learning and access to federal agency protection against sexual assault and discrimination at school. The message the justices delivered today is that America’s students aren’t worth fighting for.

When the Department of Education is undermined, real students lose real protections. Most at risk are the rights of students who are survivors of sexual violence, students of color, LGBTQIA+ students, students with disabilities, and those from low-income families. While the administration claims that this returns power to the states, it effectively removes critical federal oversight that ensures equal education for all students, regardless of gender, race, disability status or economic background. The state you live in will determine whether you are safe at school and can access your education or not, creating a nation built on educational inequality by definition. 

This decision enables the administration to continue its campaign trying to re-segregate public spheres and services. Since Inauguration Day, we have experienced extreme executive orders slashing civil rights enforcement and attacking lawful DEI initiatives. The administration has already closed more than half of the Office for Civil Rights regional offices, the very offices where illegal discrimination in education gets investigated and addressed, and has severely cut staffing at other regional offices across the country. 

Equal Rights Advocates will continue to defend students’ rights through litigation, policy advocacy, and direct support, ensuring that attempts to dismantle crucial protections are met with fierce resistance. In the face of these attacks, we must stand strong for our students.

To request an interview with ERA experts, contact Blake Case at [email protected] or (601) 832-6079.

About Equal Rights Advocates

Equal Rights Advocates fights for gender justice in workplaces and schools across the country. Since 1974, they have been fighting on the front lines of social justice to protect and advance rights and opportunities for women, girls, and people of all gender identities through groundbreaking legal cases and bold legislation that sets the stage for the rest of the nation. equalrights.org