Recent decisions put democracy in danger

Recent Supreme Court rulings have heightened concerns for our country. The erosion of the establishment clause limits separation of church and state. Recent tragedies in Buffalo, New York, and Uvalde, Texas, produce shock over the ruling concerning guns. How could the justices not consider public health data during interpretation of constitutional law? The ruling concerning abortion shook the nation, trampling rights of women to equality, dignity and respect for private life, without discrimination. Why is there so little concern in the court for our country’s precarious stability?

Professionals from public health, law enforcement, education, medicine and journalism warn us: Danger lurks within our growing lack of boundaries and tears in our social contracts.

All professions have ethical standards that mandate practitioners be vigilant against harming the participant within the relationship. One of the American Bar Association four canons is that “a judge shall not engage in political or campaign activity that is inconsistent with the independence, integrity, or impartiality of the judiciary.” To me, this means one should not put doctrines ahead of one’s ethical obligations. Certainly not religious doctrines.

Separation of church and state is important: it helps democracy function, protects people from religious violence and allows choice in religious participation or not. Many of the anti-abortion arguments are religion-based and raise concerns about late-term abortions. But according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in 2019 almost 93 percent of abortions were at the gestational age of less than the 14th week of pregnancy and only about 1 percent after 21 weeks. When I listen intently to those wanting to outlaw abortion, I hear doctrine, not science. Don’t scientific understanding, educated decision-making and ethical bases make up the foundations of professions, including the judiciary?

As a licensed educational psychologist, I am required to undergo continuing education, with mandatory units on ethics and suicide. Warning signs for violence toward self and others share, not surprisingly, similar elements, including: substance abuse, making specific plans, agitation,