Demand Congress pass the Judiciary Act!
The American Humanist Association is proud to join the broad and growing coalition of organizations calling for the explicit expansion of the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) by advocating for the passage of the Judiciary Act of 2023 (H.R. 3422 / S. 1616), sponsored by Congressional Freethought Caucus member Representative Hank Johnson (GA-4) and Senator Ed Markey (MA), respectively.
The Judiciary Act simply increases the number of SCOTUS seats from nine to thirteen, accounting for the thirteen federal circuit courts. Historically, the number of seats on the Supreme Court has been adjusted seven times over the course of our nation’s history. Indeed, there is no constitutional mandate on the number of justices on the high court.
The invalidation of over fifty years of precedent with regards to federal abortion protections via the Dobbs decision in June 2022 cleared up any doubt about the destructive intentions of the conservatives on the Supreme Court. Recent devastating decisions have gutted affirmative action, legalized more explicit discrimination against LGBTQIA individuals, and decimated student debt relief. Regardless of any future progress, any law that would positively impact the issues that matter to humanists will almost certainly fail to get past a 6-3 majority for generations. It is for this reason that Congress must act expeditiously to expand the Supreme Court to thirteen seats.
Act now: urge your elected officials in Congress to pass the Judiciary Act!
The current Court majority has aligned itself with the political far right, overturning decades-old precedent, ignoring bedrock constitutional principles, and legally codifying an extremist world view. At the same time, several justices have been accused of ethical violations while serving that call their objectivity and fairness into serious question. As a result, public confidence in the Court has plummeted, and the Court is increasingly viewed as a partisan institution rather than a fair-minded arbiter of issues and an even-handed defender of constitutional rights.
The takeover of the high court has caused a significant breakdown in trust in the judiciary for good reason, and the consequences of the decisions of a reactionary Supreme Court will effectively block progress for generations. The need to transform the judiciary could not be more critical or timely to our fledgling democracy. The only way to stop the agenda of the Christian nationalists who hold a majority on the Supreme Court is to remove them from the majority.
Thank you for standing up for democracy.
