The 3 - December 15, 2024

This week's edition of The 3, highlighting three stories of relevance to the Christian community, concentrates on a settlement that attorneys for three teachers made in a Virginia school district with authorities, exempting them from violating their consciences by using gender-identity "pronouns" and keeping that information from parents.  Also, it has been reported that the results of a federal study from almost a decade ago on gender treatments and procedures that presume to help young people struggling with gender identity were hidden because the results did not match the agenda of the lead researcher. And, Idaho's pro-life law, which went all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court following a challenge by the federal government, which claimed that it violated federal law, was heard by a federal appeals court.

VA school district settles with teachers challenging gender-related policies

The school board in Harrisonburg, Virginia decided to place outrageous restrictions on teachers in the area of gender.  The Alliance Defending Freedom website says:

Previously, in a series of on-the-job trainings related to the school board’s nondiscrimination policy, the board directed teachers to “immediately implement” these practices: (1) to ask students’ “preferred” names and pronouns; (2) to always use them, even when contrary to a student’s sex; and, (3) to do so without notifying parents or seeking their consent. And the nondiscrimination policy threatened discipline—including termination—for noncompliance.

In 2022, three teachers filed a lawsuit challenging the policies, saying that they violated "the Virginia Constitution’s Free Speech Clause, the Virginia Religious Freedom Restoration Act, and other legal provisions by compelling them to speak a message to which they object."

Now, ADF, which represented the teachers, and the Harrisonburg City School Board have announced a settlement.  The website notes:

In the order resolving the case, the school board agreed that Deborah Figliola, Kristine Marsh, and Laura Nelson do not have to ask students to share their pronouns and the teachers need not necessarily use pronouns inconsistent with students’ biological sex. The school district also acknowledged that it “does not support hiding or withholding information from parents” and it will continue to inform staff that similar religious accommodations are available to employees.

So, while religious accommodations do exist, based on the terms of the settlement, it appears the school board will continue to require teachers, unless they take the steps to object on religious grounds, to participate in the use of gender identity pronouns without parental permission.

Doctor who commissioned study on gender treatments sandbags report because it did not support her claims

A study, funded by tax dollars, was commissioned almost a decade ago to study the issue of what is mislabeled as "gender-affirming care," which means the mistaken notion that certain treatments and surgical procedures can bring about a, well, "sex change."  It's an affront to God's created order and endangers the health of young people who have been duped to think this can actually occur. 

So, this doctor conducted a study. The Standing for Freedom Center at Liberty University published a piece recently tracing its history, stating that Dr. Johanna Olson-Kennedy, described as "one of the loudest proponents of so-called gender-affirming care," who leads the Center for Transyouth Health and Development at the Children’s Hospital in Los Angeles, "launched a 'multimillion-dollar federal project' to measure whether puberty blockers improved the “mental health” of transgender minors. Her 'hypothesis' was that blockers would ease depression, anxiety, and suicidal thoughts. She enrolled 95 kids around age 11, handed them the drugs, and tracked them for two years."

This was 2015. Her findings, as of last Thursday, still have not been released.  The article says:

Because, as the New York Times put it, her “hypothesis does not seem to have borne out.” Olson-Kennedy has since buried the results, arguing that the data would be “weaponized” in today’s political debates.

Translation: “The science” didn’t back her preferred outcome, so she suppressed it, even though taxpayers have already coughed up nearly $10 million to bankroll this study through the National Institutes of Health.

Now Olson-Kennedy is facing pushback...for instance, 

Amy Tishelman, a clinical psychologist at Boston College, told The New York Times that while she understands concerns about the data being “weaponized,” it’s “really important to get the science out there.”

And, a patient of Olson-Kennedy, has filed a lawsuit on the basis of "medical negligence."

In retrospect, plenty of money could have been saved by adopting the findings of the Cass study out of the U.K., where this type of so-called "care" is being re-evaluated and reduced, according to the Standing for Freedom Center article, which notes:

The landmark Cass review, for example, concluded that the support for “gender-affirming care” is “remarkably weak.” Dr. Hilary Cass, the lead author, specifically rebuked the pediatric medical community for “misleading the public” and “doubling down” on shoddy research.

As the article points out, the Cass study was cited by U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito in the recent oral arguments concerning Tennessee's ban on these procedures and treatments for young people.   

Idaho pro-life law goes before federal appeals court

Idaho lawmakers passed the Defense of Life Act several years ago, which, according to LifeNews.com, protects the lives of women and their unborn children, preventing doctors from performing abortions unless necessary to save the life of the mother or in cases of rape or incest.

 The article, published last week, states:

The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals heard oral arguments Tuesday in United States of America v. State of Idaho.

The Office of the Idaho Attorney General, with the assistance of attorneys from Alliance Defending Freedom, is urging the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit to stop the Biden administration from misusing federal law to override Idaho’s Defense of Life Act.

In 2022, the Biden administration challenged the law, and that challenge went all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, which sent it back down to a lower court for further litigation. The administration had maintained that the state could use EMTALA "...and pay private hospitals to violate Idaho’s protections for life. But as the attorneys explain, the federal government cannot pay private parties to circumvent state law."

The article points out that...

...no conflict exists between EMTALA and Idaho’s law as both seek to save lives. In June, the U.S. Supreme Court sent the case back to the 9th Circuit for further consideration. Idaho filed its opening brief in September and received broad support in favor of upholding its law.

“Taking EMTALA for what it actually says, there is no direct conflict with Idaho’s Defense of Life Act,” attorneys representing the Idaho Legislature wrote in court filings earlier this month.

The state said: "Nothing in EMTALA requires physicians to violate state law. And nothing in Idaho law — whether in EMTALA-covered circumstances or beyond — denies medical care to pregnant women..."

Regarding the Supreme Court's earlier non-decision, Mat Staver of Liberty Counsel is quoted as saying, “This order means that the case returns to the Ninth Circuit, which had ordered that the appeal of the preliminary injunction be decided by the full court on an expedited basis without any further briefing. The abortion ban currently remains in place in Idaho, except for those in emergency room situations.”

The 3 - December 8, 2024

This week's edition of The 3, with three stories of relevance to the Christian community, includes another step forward for an assisted suicide bill in the British Parliament.  Also, the attorney general of Missouri is squaring off against the nation's largest abortion provider regarding the provisions of a Constitutional Amendment that narrowly passed in November's election that establishes a "right" to abortion in the state.  And, there was another court victory recently regarding the legality of Good News Clubs in public schools in Hawaii.

Assisted suicide bill clears hurdle in British Parliament

A bill that would allow assisted suicide has passed a critical vote in Parliament in the U.K.  The BBC reported that:

The bill, introduced as a private members' bill by MP Kim Leadbeater, passed its second reading with a vote of 330 to 275. That doesn’t mean it will become law just yet. Instead, the legislation can now stand up to further interrogation and could undergo amendments.

Those against the bill have argued that it lacks safeguards. Others fear that it can be used as a coercive measure against people experiencing abuse. Proponents, on the other hand, believe it offers “common sense” and a compassionate death for people who are terminally ill.

The website also notes:

The bill will now go to committee stage, where a detailed examination will takes place. MPs can table possible amendments to the legislation during this stage.

It's set to face further scrutiny and will be taken to a vote in both the House of Commons and the House of Lords, meaning any change in the law would not be agreed until 2025 at the earliest.

It will become law only if both the House of Commons and House of Lords agree on the final wording in the document.

On the Wednesday prior to the vote, WORLD Magazine stated:

Ecumenical organization Christian Concern on Monday published a statement condemning the bill and calling on lawmakers to vote against the measure. The organization plans to rally on Friday outside Parliament to protest the bill and to discuss the dangers of assisted suicide and euthanasia.

WORLD also related in that late November article: "The Catholic Bishops of England, Wales, and Scotland issued a statement earlier this month calling for better palliative care and more compassion for those who are dying, rather than assisted suicide."

That article described the provisions of the bill:

The measure would allow citizens over the age of 18 who live in England or Wales to end their lives with the help of a medical practitioner. Patients would be required to have the mental capacity to give informed consent, be expected to die within six months, and make two signed and witnessed declarations expressing their wish to die. Two doctors would also be required to evaluate the patient and say he or she is eligible, and a High Court judge would need to rule each time a person requests to end his or her life. The measure does not say which drug would be used to end the patient’s life.

Missouri abortion amendment not final word, AG says

Just over half of Missouri voters passed an amendment that reportedly establishes a "right" to abortion in the state's Constitution.  But the Attorney General and some lawmakers don't see it as an absolute guarantee of the availability of abortion in the state.

The Higher Ground Times, in an article released shortly before the scheduled resumption of abortions by Planned Parenthood in the state last week, reports:

The day after the Nov. 5 election, Planned Parenthood filed a lawsuit seeking to overturn two dozen laws described as “medically unnecessary restrictions targeted at abortion providers,” such as requiring that only doctors perform abortions and that they have admitting privileges at nearby hospitals.

The article referred to a hearing that was held last week, in which Planned Parenthood was asking for a temporary injunction to allow abortions to resume. 

The Attorney General, Andrew Bailey responded; the article says that he "acknowledged that Amendment 3 made five state laws barring abortion unenforceable, but said that the remaining statutes 'simply regulate abortion providers but do not prohibit abortion.'”

The article says: 

Amendment 3 squeaked by with 51.6% of the vote in the Nov. 5 election, making Missouri the first state with a ban on abortion except in emergencies to approve an abortion-rights amendment following the Supreme Court’s June 2022 decision overturning Roe v. Wade.

Pro-life advocates held special events at five Planned Parenthood clinics last week; Higher Ground Times states:

The Life Coalition held five simultaneous press conferences Tuesday at Planned Parenthood locations in Missouri arguing that the lawsuit would “block safety laws currently protecting women in this state.”

“We call for all of these safety standards to stay intact,” said Brian Westbrook, executive director of Coalition Life, outside the Planned Parenthood affiliate in St. Louis.

“If they are overturned, we call on people of the state of Missouri and our legislature to reenact these safety standards to make sure that women do not go into a place like this and leave in an ambulance headed to the hospital,” he said.

The AG and Planned Parenthood squared off in court last week; Fox 4 in Kansas City said the judge heard "a motion in this case that addresses the defendants standing which will determine the validity of said defendants listed in this case, giving those entities until Saturday, Dec.14, to file a response to this suit."

Hawaii directed to allow Christian programs to operate in schools

Child Evangelism Fellowship has an outstanding program through which students are allowed to attend Christian programs in public schools - it's called Good News Clubs, and there was an issue recently in the state of Hawaii, where certain officials were attempting to block the CEF outreaches from meeting.

CBN.com reports:

Liberty Counsel, the Christian legal advocacy firm representing Child Evangelism Fellowship, announced in late November its client received a permanent statewide injunction, allowing the Good News Clubs — a weekly extracurricular gathering during which 5- to 12-year-old kids learn Bible lessons, recite memory verses, sing praise songs, and play games — to operate in every school district in Hawaii.

The article notes:

In January, Liberty Counsel filed a lawsuit against Aloha State education officials after four school districts on the islands blocked the Christian clubs from meeting on public campuses. In the legal complaint, attorneys argued that, by affording school access to secular groups while prohibiting faith-based meetings, district officials were violating the First and 14th Amendments to the U.S. Constitution.

The CEF received a preliminary injunction over the summer, ordering the Hawaii Department of Education as well as the six elementary schools named in the complaint to allow — just like any other club — the Good News Clubs to meet on school property. Then, on Nov. 19, a broader permanent injunction ensured the clubs have the right to meet on any public school campus in Hawaii.

Liberty Counsel touts at its website that it has never lost a case concerning Good News Clubs.  The article at CBN.com states that the issue of the legality of these clubs to meet was decided by the U.S. Supreme Court in a 2001 case, stating:

...in Good News Clubs v. Milford Central School, the justices ruled 6-3 the school violated the First Amendment rights of Good News Club participants by preventing after-school meetings on campus.

The 3 - December 1, 2024

This week's edition of The 3, with three stories of relevance to the Christian community, includes an Alabama library's attempt to run afoul of new state standards by allowing objectionable books to remain in a section of the library making them more accessible to children.  Also, the State of Tennessee is preparing to argue before the U.S. Supreme Court this week regarding the legality of legislation banning dangerous treatments and surgeries for minors wishing to change their gender.  Plus, the new Department of Government Efficiency is considering ending taxpayer funding of abortion through Planned Parenthood.

Alabama library alters rules on removing certain objectionable books

The Alabama Public Library Service has set parameters for its affiliates governing the placement of material within the library, taking precautions to prevent material that would be inappropriate for children from being readily available to them.

1819 News reported recently: 

Libraries must create policies to govern juvenile sections and protect youth from sexually explicit or inappropriate material. Libraries must have written guidelines to ensure minors do not come into contact with obscene materials and there must be library cards for minors under the age of 18 that require parental approval before checkout.

But, according to the article, in Fairhope, Alabama, there has been an attempt to bend the rules; it states:

Clean Up Alabama claims Fairhope Library director Tamara Dean has “rejected repeated requests to remove materials from the children’s sections of the library that contain disturbing content — such as sexual assault, drug abuse, pedophilia, child trafficking, and graphic depictions of gender transitioning.”

The article noted:

Fairhope Library Board of Trustees chairman Anne Johnson claimed the board created new rules to comply, but she said they tried to “loosen the language” so the rules weren’t so restrictive.

1819 News goes on to say:

An example of a book available in the library’s children’s section is “Parts and Hearts” by Jensen Hillenbrand. The book explains to children how “transitioning” with medication and surgery can make people healthier.

The book was challenged and remains in the juvenile non-fiction section of the library. Dean wrote in response to the challenge that the book is meant to educate on a sensitive topic and she said the book is exempt by the APLS board for educational purposes.

Really?  APLS Board Chair John Wahl said he is not aware that the book is exempt.  A Clean Up Alabama e-mail sent out recently said:

In their justification, the Fairhope library asserts that the APLS board granted the exemption of educational materials. Even if the dubious claim of Parts and Hearts being educational were true, no such exemption exists in the current APLS guidelines. The exemption in the code is ONLY for religious, history, anatomy and biology texts. These books fall outside of those categories.

That e-mail also states that Fairhope library Board chair Johnson "also claims that the book Grown, which graphically depicts abuse and sexual assault, is 'entirely appropriate' for minors."

Tennessee law banning transgender treatments and surgeries to be argued December 4

This Wednesday is a key date for not only Tennessee, but perhaps other states, as well, such as Alabama, which have passed laws to protect children from gender change therapies and surgeries.  The Tennessee Lookout website has noted:

The Supreme Court has scheduled oral arguments for Dec. 4 in the case challenging Tennessee’s law banning gender-affirming care for minors brought by three young people and their families.

The state law — which took effect on July 1 of last year — bars Tennessee doctors and nurses from providing medical care — including puberty blockers, hormones and surgeries — to transgender people under 18.

The article relates this information:

A federal court in Tennessee initially blocked the law in April. But, the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals overruled that decision last year, allowing the law to go into effect while the Biden Administration appealed.

Alliance Defending Freedom filed a friend-of-the-court brief in the case. ADF Senior Counsel and Vice President of Appellate Advocacy John Bursch is quoted on the ADF website as saying:

“Relying on bad science, activists and the Biden-Harris administration have pushed these harmful medical procedures across the country and even taken steps to prevent state legislatures from regulating these procedures. These procedures have devastated countless lives, which is why countries that were previously leaders in so-called ‘gender affirming’ care are reversing course and curtailing these experimental efforts to permanently alter children’s bodies. We urge the Supreme Court to affirm the lower court’s ruling that Tennessee is free to implement laws that follow the best science available in protecting vulnerable children from high-risk medical procedures.”

DOGE proposes to defund Planned Parenthood and other progressive organizations that receive taxpayer funding

For years, pro-life organizations have been critical of the federal government's role in proliferating abortion by funding the nation's largest abortion provider, Planned Parenthood.  On the Friday before Thanksgiving, I featured part 1 of a two-part conversation with Seth Gruber, who has chronicled the life and philosophy of Planned Parenthood founder Margaret Sanger.  More of that conversation is coming up on the Tuesday edition of The Meeting House on Faith Radio. 

Now, it seems like the Department of Government Efficiency may be looking into taxpayer funding of abortion. The Washington Stand reported recently that Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy "...outlined their vision for the forthcoming Trump administration’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) in an op-ed for The Wall Street Journal..., specifically underscoring plans to enact a host of policies long supported by pro-life advocates and government efficiency experts alike."  They wrote:

“DOGE will help end federal overspending by taking aim at the $500 billion plus in annual federal expenditures that are unauthorized by Congress or being used in ways that Congress never intended, from $535 million a year to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and $1.5 billion for grants to international organizations to nearly $300 million to progressive groups like Planned Parenthood...

The article notes: "Planned Parenthood received $699.3 million in taxpayer funding...and carried out 392,712 abortions in its 2022-2023 fiscal year, according to its most recent annual report.

Mary Szoch, director of the Center for Human Dignity at Family Research Council, said: “It was beautiful to see that Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy have recognized that using American taxpayer dollars to fund the killing of unborn children is a complete waste of money. It is inefficient on so many levels — including that it robs Americans of future generations of children. I look forward to seeing the other areas DOGE recognizes as a waste of taxpayer dollars; this first announcement signaled that rebuilding a culture of life is part of taking back America.”

Tony Perkins, FRC President, highlighted several areas of what he called "good news." These include, according to the article:

• Defund Planned Parenthood.
• Defund international [organizations] at odds with our interests.
• Defund PBS/NPR.
• Mass rescissions of unconstitutional regulations that exceed the authority of the Executive branch.
• Return the federal workforce to the office five days a week, which “would result in a wave of voluntary terminations that we welcome.”

Kristan Hawkins, President of Students for Life of America (SFLA), posted on social media:“Taxpayers should not be forced to fund abortion. If President Trump’s goal is to end federal involvement in abortion, we must start by defunding & debarring Planned Parenthood.”