The Supreme Court began its October 2021–22 term under the shadow of looming reform: a presidential commission to study a restructuring of the judiciary and a bill in the House to add four seats to the bench. But the justices and their right-wing backers had little reason to worry. The court’s term ended last week not only with no change to the status quo, but with the court’s six-three conservative majority going all in on reactionary rulings.

The justices ended the constitutional right to an abortion, eased gun regulations in the wake of yet another mass shooting in an elementary school, stripped the Environmental Protective Agency (EPA) of power to address environmental concerns as the planet warms to dangerous levels, and tore down the wall between church and state.

A review of the term reveals a captured court with a fail-safe number of votes to fulfill conservative policy objectives by curtailing constitutional and statutory rights through right-wing interpretations. Left unchecked, the court will use its newfound power to reshape the law, dismantling past rights while striking down past progressive initiatives to ensure a more unjust future.