Roe v. Wade after 45 years:

Despite recent controversies, NEA/AFT increase funding of Planned Parenthood

David Schmus
Executive Director
Christian Educators

After 45 years and over 60 million abortions since Roe v. Wade, there has been progress in efforts to protect the innocent lives of unborn children in America, including court rulings that have allowed states to put greater restrictions on abortion, and campaigns like 40 Days for Life fighting spiritual battles in prayer to close down abortion clinics.

How are educators involved in this struggle? In 2015, horrific allegations about Planned Parenthood selling the body parts of aborted babies for profit led me to research whether or not public schools teachers’ union dues were part of the story. Sure enough, I found that almost $800,000 found its way from the National Educators Association (NEA) to Planned Parenthood during the 2014 election cycle.

There has been another another election cycle since then, and I was curious whether the NEA was continuing to send money to causes which many educators find objectionable.

What I found was that not only has the funding of Planned Parenthood continued, but has actually increased!

Teachers unions, like the NEA or American Federation of Teachers (AFT), often do not make contributions directly to Planned Parenthood, rather they disguise support by donating money to groups like Priorities USA or America Votes. These organizations and their super PACs spread that money around to further an often immoral political agenda, including support for abortion.

However, I was shocked to discover that in 2016, the AFT dispensed with this disguise and sent $350,000 of teachers union dues directly to Planned Parenthood!*

Consistent with previous practices however, there were still plenty of disguised contributions. During the 2016 election cycle, the NEA took the union dues of educators and sent just over $1 million to Priorities USA, and another $768,000 to America Votes (The NEA was America Votes’ largest contributor). The American Federation of Teachers (AFT) sent an astonishing $2.5 million to Priorities USA.

What did Priorities USA and America Votes do with this money? Once again, Planned Parenthood was a major recipient. Priorities USA sent them $2,291,790, and America Votes contributed $170,000.

Think about it this way: During the 2016 election cycle, teachers union dues contributed just over $4.25 million to a specific pool of money, and out of that pool Planned Parenthood received just shy of $2.5 million. And that doesn’t even count the $350,000 that AFT sent directly! Once again, union dues paid by teachers who love children are being funneled to an organization that not only violently ends their lives, but apparently has made profit off their body parts.

So despite the 2015 controversy, the following election cycle saw even more of hard-working teachers’ union dues go to Planned Parenthood.

If you are a pro-life Christian educator who belongs to the NEA or AFT, you have options. Consider membership in Christian Educators as an alternative. You will be protected by professional liability insurance, job action protection, and an organization that stands behind you with a Biblical worldview, all for typically a fraction of the cost of union membership. And very importantly—none of your money will go to political candidates or organizations.

Would you join me in praying for God’s help to end the taking of innocent human lives through abortion in our nation?

*Credit: Center for Responsive Politics