I gave the University of Alabama $26.5 million. They gave it back when I spoke out about abortion.

[Zorro]

I am proud to have been born and raised in Alabama. My family’s roots run deep in the state and, for decades, we have been honored to celebrate that heritage by supporting the University of Alabama. It’s where my father learned to practice law, which gave him the tools to succeed in America along with a strong understanding of right and wrong. Over the past 30 years, we have chosen to repay that debt and make use of our good fortune by supporting the university financially. I’ve long believed that the school served the public good by training the next generation of leaders and, last year, I made the decision to donate $26.5 million so that those leaders could flourish just as my family has.

My love for Alabama is exactly why I was so horrified to watch its lawmakers trample over the Constitution last month. The ban on abortion they passed wasn’t just an attack against women, it was an affront to the rule of law itself. Part of being an American is engaging in public debate, and we can disagree over this issue. But the courts settled this matter a long time ago: Abortion is legal. So it was shocking to see legislators ignore this and pass a bill that turned women and health professionals into criminals, and it felt important to say so publicly.

I expected that speaking out would have consequences, but I never could have imagined the response from the University of Alabama, which on Friday said it would be returning my gift and removing my name from the law school. This decision will hurt future students. Less money will be available for scholarships, and there will be fewer resources for the school to use to educate young minds and help them grow.

It has been painful to witness administrators at the university choose zealotry over the well-being of its own students, but it’s another example of the damage this attack on abortion rights will do to Alabama. The bill will not survive a court challenge, and likely will cost the state a great deal in court fees and other expenses that could be used to help its citizens. But for those who support it, that collateral damage doesn’t even merit a passing thought. Total victory must be achieved, even if it means running roughshod over people’s rights and harming students.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/i-gave-the-university-of-alabama-265-million-they-gave-it-back-when-i-spoke-out-about-abortion/2019/06/07/5d1b7082-8961-11e9-98c1-e945ae5db8fb_story.html

[50 Shades Of Blue]

1. Fuck 'em! Give it to Planned Parenthood!

[Phoenix61]

2. I'm sure there are plenty of law schools that

would be thrilled to be gifted 26.5 million dollars for a scholarship program.

[Ferrets are Cool]

3. And the fucking idiots down here are CROWING about how proud they are

of UA. It is absolutely disgusting to live around such pathetic, misogynistic asswipes.

[zentrum]

4. Announce that

....from now on you will be subsidizing individual students who have need, to got to the Univ of Alabama.

[Bernardo de La Paz]

5. The ban will probably cost Alabama at least 26.5 million in legal fees. . . . nt

[Fritz Walter]

6. Bama president: donors aren't allowed to call the shots

Since fucking when?

[czarjak]

7. That's news to T. Boone Pickens.

[3Hotdogs]

8. I am founding principle of the Ethical School of Hotdog Law.

We answer to a higher authority.


Anyways, my students can certainly use $25m.

[MadDAsHell]

9. "The courts settled this matter a long time ago" until different people are on the courts.

There's really no such thing as established law anymore. History has shown us that with the right Court makeup you can make the Constitution say anything you want it to say. And that works both ways. For a long swath of history there's no way that an American Court would have said the federal government has a right to mandate that people buy a private company's product (i.e. health insurance) just by virtue of being a breathing human being.

But let's be grateful that the court makeup changed and they do mandate such a thing today.

[BeckyDem]

10. Unreal. omg

[Novice Patriot]

11. It was a waste anyway.

I could spend days listing more deserving causes that would show a much greater return for your investment.