BOISE, Idaho — Idaho's unique abortion laws have attracted another lawsuit, with six professors and two teacher's unions claiming that a 2021 abortion act violates their rights to free speech.
The law in question is the No Public Funds for Abortion Act, which seeks to eliminate the use of state funds to promote abortion. However, the educators believe the restrictions to be vague, making it unclear if some educational material or classroom topics will put teachers at risk of violating the limits.
This has caused professors to alter the content of their courses to omit materials out of fear that the NPFAA criminalizes their speech.
The case memorandum released by the Idaho Federation of Teachers includes that "even where professors have chosen to retain certain materials, discussions, or assignments on abortion, they teach with the fear that they will be criminally prosecuted for fulfilling their academic duties."
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This lawsuit follows a decision last week which saw Federal Judge B. Lynn Winmill rule that Idaho Attorney General Raúl Labrador is not able to seek criminal punishment for medical providers who refer patients to legal abortive care outside of the state.
