Leaders of civil society and the educational sector described as an “inconsistency” a recent decision by the Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation (SCJN), which invalidated an article of the Education Law of the State of Nuevo León (Mexico) on the teaching of the beginning of life “from conception”.
On August 22, the Plenary Session of the SCJN, the highest judicial body in Mexico with powers of the Constitutional Court, ruled in favor of an unconstitutionality action promoted by the National Human Rights Commission (CNDH) against article 7, section XII, of the Education Law of Nuevo León.
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It is article states that one of the purposes of education is “to raise awareness about respect for life, from conception to natural death.”
When presenting the draft sentenceMinister (Magistrate) Javier Laynez Potisek, argued that the text of the article of the Education Law of Nuevo León has the “pretension of indoctrinating boys, girls and adolescents in a single conception of life, with a view to preventing or inhibiting them from “make free decisions about your body and your sexual and reproductive health.”
According to Laynez Potisek, the definition of the beginning of life “is not a neutral message and seeks to impose an ideology or a particular conception.”
The Political Constitution of the state of Nuevo León establishes that in that territory “the right to life that every human being has is recognized, protected and protected. ‘From the moment of conception he enters under the protection of the Law and is considered born for all corresponding legal purposes, until his natural death.’”
“They are promoting the culture of death”
Carlos Leal, a pro-life and pro-family politician from the state of Nuevo León, considered that one of the main battles is the “cultural” one, and warned: “if we do not teach our children from a young age to respect life, we would continue with a culture of death as we have it at the moment.”
Leal assured that “the Supreme Court is now taken over by culture.” woke and they are promoting the culture of death.”
Since state law defends life and criminalizes abortion, he said, it is understandable that local regulations teach “respect for life.”
From the SCJN, he criticized, “they mention that religious themes are being promoted” by teaching respect for life from conception. However, he assured, religion “has nothing to do” with state regulations, and warned that the ministers of the SCJN seem to be unaware of “the scientific issue.”
The Congress of Nuevo León must now begin the legislative process to vote for or against the repeal of the articles of the Education Law that seek to “raise awareness about respect for life.”
Leal is pessimistic about the legislation that will be approved in the state Congress: “the vast majority of the deputies who entered the current legislature in the state of Nuevo León and in the federal legislature are progressive.”
“A total incongruity” in the face of violence in Nuevo León
Yuli Mendoza García, representative of the National Union of Parents (UNPF), described the SCJN’s decision as “a total inconsistency,” because in a context where Nuevo León faces high rates of homicides and violence, it is “important that that awareness of respect for life through education.”
Since Andrés Manuel López Obrador assumed the presidency, on December 1, 2018, 7,024 homicides have been recorded in Nuevo León and 196,230 throughout the country until June 30 of this year, according to the report. MX: War in Numbers, prepared by the T-ResearchMX agency. With these figures, the report places the state in number 10 for homicide numbers in Mexico.
Mendoza García emphasized that it is important to develop attitudes “of solidarity in individuals to create awareness” among all students, so that they recognize “that all life deserves respect, from the one in a mother’s womb to that of our neighbors.”
Diego López Colin
I am a graduate of Journalism at the Carlos Septién García School with experience in religious institutional communication. Since 2016 he has written for digital media and, since 2018, I have reported the most important news about Catholic events in Mexico for the EWTN news channel. He has been ACI Prensa correspondent in Mexico since 2023.