Plyer v. Doe, 457 U.S. 202 (1982)
Historical Setting In 1977, Texas statutes were passed that allowed the state government to pull funding from schools that had undocumented children attending the school. The law was later revised and a part of the Texas Education Code, that stated schools could deny enrollment to these undocumented children. This was argued up to the Supreme Court due to the state’s approval to deny a group of school aged children the opportunity to attend free public school. The plaintiffs were the undocumented children, and the defendant was the Superintendent and Board of Trustees for the school district. The case was argued on December 1, 1981, decided on June 15, 1982, and then reheard. The case was ultimately denied …show more content…
The state argued that is was ultimately saving the government funding, for funding was provided for every student enrolled in school. They also added that a law had already been broken by the children, and their families, entering the country illegally or lacking proof of being a citizen. The plaintiffs side was that the children should not be held responsible for the actions of their parents, and that their enrollment in school would not alter their citizenship status. They argued that their denied enrollment was against the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th amendment.
Court’s Decision The court decided in favor of the plaintiffs. The fact that a group of school aged children were being denied educational opportunities was in fact against their 14th amendment rights. It is also plausible that these children will not be deported, or earn their United States citizenship. Ultimately, their enrollment in school will only be beneficial to them down the line, and will not hinder the state in any way. If denied the right to education, it would be ensuring that they remain in a lower socio-economic class. The state also has no power when it comes to classifying aliens.