Apr 23, 2024 | News, Wisconsin Family Voice
A year ago March, a number of parents of students at Sun Prairie East High School addressed the District’s school board, expressing concern about what their daughters were telling them about an incident that occurred in the girls’ locker room.
According to Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty, who got involved after a parent contacted them, after a swim class, four freshmen girls went into the girls’ locker room following a swim class and proceeded to shower in their swim suits.
The girls then saw a senior male student who is believed to have been 18 years old in the girls’ locker room. The girls say he wasn’t in their PE class. This biological male then proceeded to let them know he identified as a girl and stripped and showered in front of these young girls.
The school’s response when this issue went public was that there were conflicting stories and that, quote, “student privacy and other laws prevent the District from addressing the specific events that occurred,” and then went on to say they didn’t condone the sexes being mixed in shower rooms but also didn’t denounce what happened or take steps to pass and enforce polices that would ensure it didn’t happen again.
Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty is currently investigating this incident. And that investigation is about to become even messier than it already is.
Late last week the Biden administration, through the Department of Education issued revised changes to Title IX. This process began months ago and was held in abeyance for quite some time, in part because of public input objecting to the proposed changes. Apparently, the Department has now made its final changes. This issue actually goes back to Obama, who shortly before leaving office, issued a memo, through the Department of Education and the Department of Justice, directing all public K-12 schools and all colleges and universities accepting federal funding, to give special rights and protections to students dealing with gender confusion. When Trump became president, he rescinded the memo, which meant schools and colleges were to observe Title IX as it has been since 1973, meaning that sex as used in this law means male and female and nothing more. But Biden made a campaign promise that he would pander to the transgender agenda and turn Title IX on its head—no matter the consequences, and now he’s making good on his promise.
In the just-released Title IX revisions, sex discrimination includes discrimination based on gender identity as well as sexual orientation. That’s the set up for the rest of the changes. It’s important to understand that Title IX was authored and passed by Congress and signed into law by President Richard Nixon. These substantive, dangerous changes haven’t been authorized by Congress. They’ve been ramrodded through by a department. No court has forced these changes; they are being done by adherents to an agenda that is absolutely disastrous for our youth.
Interestingly, the one area conspicuously absent in this Title IX revision is anything that prevents K-12 schools and colleges and universities from enforcing policies that ban biological males from participating in women’s sports. Speculation is that this is not yet included because of how high-profile this issue is in this election year.
These Title IX revisions are scheduled to go into effect on August 1st. Consider the impact these regulations will have on the Sun Prairie investigation we opened with. They will give this school district and every other school district in our state all the cover they need to excuse what happened to these young girls when the 18-year-old male invaded what should be a safe, private space for them.
Education Secretary Miguel Cardona says the new rule makes, quote, “crystal clear that everyone can access schools that are safe, welcoming and that respect their rights.” Cardona couldn’t be more wrong. For the vast majority of students, our public schools will become unsafe, unwelcoming, and totally disrespecting of their rights under this illegal and ill-conceived revision of Title IX. Fortunately, Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty assures us there will be legal challenges of these changes.
I’d love to think what happened in Sun Prairie East High School last spring won’t happen anywhere else in our state, but given the culture and these outrageous Title IX revisions, no one should assume it couldn’t or wouldn’t happen in their school district. Bottom line: parents beware; your children are at risk.
Jan 9, 2023 | News, Wisconsin Family Voice
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), a taxpayer-funded federal agency, is promoting a tool for “school and district staff who are interested in facilitating a more inclusive environment for LGBTQ students” on social media.
The “LGBTQ Inclusivity in Schools: A Self-Assessment Tool” provides a general assessment for anyone to use and specific assessments for school staff. The purpose of the tool is to quickly gauge supposed inclusivity at one’s school and “enhance future work to support LGTBQ youth in schools.”
Some of the items from the assessment tool read as follows:
- “I cannot assume a student’s gender, gender identity, or sexual orientation.”
- “I use students’ chosen name(s) in all school environments, including abbreviations and pronouns.”
- “I participate in my schools’ Gay Straight Alliance/Genders and Sexualities Alliance.
- “The policy(s) in place allows students to use the bathroom/locker room which aligns to their chosen gender.”
- “The technology policies allow student access to age-appropriate LGBTQ content and information (e.g., LGBTQ-specific media, public health and education organizations, and entertainment sites).”
- “My classroom or learning space includes visual labels (e.g., rainbow flags, pink triangles, unisex bathroom signs) marking it as a safe space for LGBTQ students.”
- “I attend training and professional development focused on creating safe and supportive environments for LGBTQ students.”
- “During sexual health education lessons, I present information on all types of sex, not centering on penis/vagina penetrative sex.”
- During sexual health education lessons, I describe anatomy and physiology separate from gender (e.g., “a body with a penis,” “a body with a vagina”).
Once they respond to each of these statements, users can score themselves and their school with an “A,” “B,” or “C.” If they receive a “C,” the tool says they should “commit to change.”
The tool also offers a “collection of curated resources and tools to help schools enhance LGBTQ inclusive policies, programs, and practices.”
The CDC is meant to protect Americans from health, safety, and security threats; yet here it is promoting an unscientific political ideology that leads individuals—mostly minors—to believe lies about themselves and even seek harmful gender “transition” procedures that cause permanent damage. The agenda that the CDC is trying to advance causes serious physical, emotional and spiritual harm.
While indoctrination runs rampant in our schools, Congress needs to pass legislation to stop state governments from violating parents’ rights to protect their kids from radical gender theory. Thankfully, Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-NC) has introduced the Parental Right to Protect Act. This bill would protect parental rights by ensuring that parents are not penalized for protecting their children from gender ideology and “transition” procedures.
Last session, the Wisconsin legislature passed a parental rights bill that included this type of protection for parents and their children. Unfortunately, Governor Evers promptly vetoed the bill. Legislators are talking about bringing the bill back this session.
Regardless of whether or not Congress or Governor Evers steps up to protect children, parents must become aware of what their children are being taught in school, take action, and have difficult conversations with their children about these topics.
Here are a few resources parents can use to help guide conversations with their children:
Responding to the Transgender Issue: Parent Resource Guide by Minnesota Family Council, Family Policy Alliance, The Heritage Foundation, WOLF, and others
Talking To Your Kids About Transgender Issues by Focus on the Family
Transgender Movement, Understanding and Responding by Family Research Council
How to Talk to Your Kids About Gender by Gospel Coalition
When Harry Became Sally by Ryan T. Anderson
God and the Transgender Debate by Andrew T. Walker
Transgender: Christian Compassion, Convictions and Wisdom for Today’s Big Questions by Vaughan Roberts
Messy Grace by Caleb Kaltenbach
The Secret Thoughts of an Unlikely Convert: An English Professor’s Journey into Christian Faith by Rosaria Butterfield
Sep 2, 2022 | News, Wisconsin Family Voice
In a deeply concerning decision, a federal judge ruled that the distress someone may feel due to gender dysphoria is to be considered a disability that must be accommodated under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
Williams v. Kincaid involved an imprisoned male who identifies as a female in Fairfax County, Virginia. The man wanted to be housed with the female inmates, but the prison’s policy states that “male inmates shall be classified as such if they have male genitals,” and “female inmates shall be classified as such if they have female genitals.”
The ADA itself explicitly excludes:
“(a) Homosexuality and bisexuality
For purposes of the definition of “disability” in section 12102(2)?[1] of this title, homosexuality and bisexuality are not impairments and as such are not disabilities under this chapter.”
Therefore, the court was tasked with overcoming a major hurdle to reach their illogical conclusion. Still, the majority opinion argued that gender dysphoria was not actually a gender identity disorder. “A close parallel to their logic would be that trucks are not sedans, and therefore a ‘no cars allowed’ sign does not apply to them,” writes Joshua Arnold of the Daily Signal. This case is an excellent example of why interpretation of the law based on the original meaning of the words is so important.
In a much more reasonable dissent, Judge A. Marvin Quattlebaum asserted that the case was really a matter of statutory construction, and that the law’s text does not support the majority opinion. He wrote that “…linguistic drift cannot alter the meaning of words in the ADA when it was enacted. And at that time, the meaning of gender identity disorders included gender dysphoria as alleged by Williams … Under basic principles of statutory construction, Williams’ ADA claim should be dismissed … [W]hen the ADA was signed into law, gender identity disorder was understood to include what Williams alleges to be gender dysphoria.”
The ADA prohibits discrimination against disabled individuals in all areas of public life, including employment, education, transportation, and in public places. This means that if the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals’ decision is left to stand, anyone who identifies as transgender would be eligible to receive public accommodations in bathrooms, locker rooms, prisons, same-sex housing, and more. This clearly opens the door for abuse of the law and infringements upon religious liberty and privacy rights.
For example, religious institutions could be forced to hire individuals who do not share their respect for natural law and God’s design. Further, women could be forced to share bathrooms and locker rooms with biological men, which we’ve already seen has disastrous consequences.
While this ruling only directly covers states within the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals, the laws and ideas found within other states can certainly make their way to Wisconsin. We need to be aware of these ideas and refute them before they reach our communities.
Our rights and liberties are more important than an individual’s feelings (and individuals suffering from gender dysphoria need true help, not harmful “affirmation”), and the way that our public institutions are run needs to reflect biological realities.
Jul 7, 2022 | News, Wisconsin Family Voice
A group of 89 House Democrats introduced a “Transgender Bill of Rights” that poses serious threats to women’s sports, religious liberty, and freedom of conscience for medical professionals.
“With this resolution, we salute the resilience and courage of trans people across our country, and outline a clear vision of what we must do in Congress in order to allow trans people to lead full, happy lives,” said Rep. Jayapal (D-WA) in a statement.
The bill is riddled with gender ideology, propaganda, buzzwords and several items that are cause for concern.
First, the bill aims to “ensure that transgender and nonbinary people have equal access to services and public accommodations” and “ensure transgender and nonbinary people have the ability to provide for themselves and their families.” While these statements are concerningly vague, the Biden administration will likely use this section of the bill to infringe upon the religious freedom of faith-based businesses. It likely also means that people who “identify” as transgender would legally be allowed to use whichever restroom or facility that matches their gender identity as opposed to their biological sex.
Moreover, the bill would “promote the safety of trans and nonbinary people” and “enforce the civil rights of transgender people.” Again, these statements seem to be intentionally vague, meaning the left could use this portion of the law to grant LGBT people a number of special privileges at the expense of Christians. Plus, there is no mention of how allowing individuals to use whichever restroom or facility they choose endangers the safety of women and children.
Jayapal’s statement also notes that the bill would amend “the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to explicitly include gender identity and sex characteristics as protected characteristics and amending federal education laws to explicitly clarify that they protect students from discrimination based on gender identity and sex characteristics.”
This would impose detrimental consequences for women by redefining the term “woman” and equating gender-confused men to biological women. This means that any man who believes he is a woman would be legally permitted to compete against female athletes, and it would be illegal for sports teams to disallow members of the opposite sex to compete on their teams.
In other words, women’s sports as we know it would soon be erased. No matter how hard they train, women will know that there is nothing they can do to match the physical capabilities of the men that are unfairly competing against them.
Yet, a recent NPR poll actually found that Americans opposed biological males competing in women’s sports by a margin of 2-to-1. Thus, the “Transgender Bill of Rights” does not seem to represent the actual will of the people.
This amendment to the Civil Rights Act of 1964 would also mean that sex-segregated restrooms and facilities would be a thing of the past. Women would be forced to share locker rooms with men, violating their privacy rights and threatening their safety.
Another section of the bill aims to “expand access to gender-affirming medical care, codifying the right to abortion and contraception, [and] protecting transgender people from discrimination in healthcare.” “Gender-affirming medical care” includes “transition” surgeries that mutilate healthy bodies and injecting cross-sex hormones into adolescents who are too young to be making life-altering decisions about their bodies.
This section could also infringe upon the conscience rights of physicians by forcing them to perform harmful surgeries or offer procedures that they morally or medically disagree with. For example, if a female who believes she is a male wants a hysterectomy and breast removal, the doctor would be required to perform the surgery or face legal consequences.
While the left continues to push these procedures onto young children, countless detranstioners have come forward to tell their heartbreaking stories of how they were victimized by transgender ideologues and are now suffering from irreversible damage.
One detransitioner named Richie Herron calls the surgery “the biggest mistake of his life” and is experiencing painful complications, including incontinence, numbness and infertility. Richie’s is just one of numerous similar stories.
With this bill, House Democrats are promoting dangerous lies, bodily harm, and psychological derangement while legally erasing women.
Pray that this bill is defeated and that respect for God’s design is restored in the public and political spheres – and take action. Reach out to your representatives and make sure they know where you stand.
Jun 20, 2022 | News, Wisconsin Family Voice
Last week, President Biden announced he would sign an executive order to advance “LGBTQI+ Equality During Pride Month.”
Parts of the order are cause for concern, such as the following:
- “Addressing discriminatory legislative attacks against LGBTQI+ children and families, directing key agencies to protect families and children;
- Preventing so-called “conversion therapy” with a historic initiative to protect children from the harmful practice;
- Safeguarding health care, and programs designed to prevent youth suicide;
- Supporting LGBTQI+ children and families by launching a new initiative to protect foster youth, prevent homelessness, and improve access to federal programs; and
- Taking new, additional steps to advance LGBTQI+ equality.”
Much of the legislation is vague and lacking critical definitions. The Biden administration is clearly using euphemisms to sugarcoat its true agenda, but it’s not difficult to infer what these action points really mean.
“Addressing discriminatory legislative attacks” most likely means opposing, blocking, or undermining state laws that prohibit classroom instruction about sexually explicit material or lessons on gender identity for children without parental consent. Children are being groomed and indoctrinated with radical gender ideology in the classroom, and they desperately need legislative protection. Unfortunately, the Biden administration will likely cater to the liberal mob at the expense of vulnerable children.
This item also likely includes laws that protect women’s sports. The Wisconsin state legislature has passed vital bills that would ban biological men from unfairly competing against women. These bills were never given to the governor this session, but the authors are set to bring them back next session. Wisconsin should be able to pass these laws with a different governor – and we have that chance come November 2022 – but with Biden’s new order, Wisconsin could face threats from the federal level for doing so.
Preventing “conversion therapy” is also concerning, as it’s likely that the Biden administration is referring to faith-based counselors who provide therapy to clients who want to avoid same-sex attraction and deal appropriately with gender confusion. One counselor in the state of Washington was banned from treating clients with a faith-based approach to same-sex attraction. As our sister organization, the Family Policy Institute of Washington, explains:
“Brian Tingley is a Marriage and Family Therapist in Tacoma, Washington, and works with adults, couples, and children on a variety of topics from “gender identity” struggles to depression to marriage counseling and more. His practice employs techniques that are no different than those used by any other counselor: he listens to clients, supports them in their goals, and offers advice based on his training and knowledge.
However, many of Brian’s clients are referred to him by local churches, leading to a shared faith and belief system between him and many of his clients…The law specifically prevents conversations between counselors and clients who desire to become comfortable with their biological sex and are attempting to change certain sexual behaviors or practices. This includes clients who seek out counselors like Brian because their goal is to become realigned with their faith and have their actions and desires match the teachings of that faith.”
Under President Biden’s new executive order, this could easily happen in Wisconsin and throughout the country.
“Safeguarding health care” sounds harmless and even admirable, but it likely translates into removing freedom of conscience protections from healthcare providers who object to providing certain services for religious reasons and pushing taxpayer-funded transgender “care.”
Lastly, the White House stated that “the President’s Order charges HHS to work with states to promote expanded access to gender-affirming care.” This includes cross-sex hormones, puberty blockers, and mutilation surgeries, all of which cause irreparable harm to children. In fact, a recent study revealed that increased access to these harmful “therapies” actually leads to increased rates of youth suicide. In other words, the president is enabling child abuse.
The White House FACT SHEET announcing this EO says Biden is taking this action “to stand up to the bullies targeting LGBTQI+ people.” The “bullies” referenced here are people like you and us who believe children must be protected from this dangerous agenda and religious freedom must be respected and preserved.
If Biden moves forward with this executive order as we think he will, the religious freedom, free speech rights, and safety of children are all in danger.
Hopefully, the American people refuse to watch their rights be stripped at the behest of a woke agenda and respond to these unconstitutional measures with lawsuits. And here in Wisconsin, we have the opportunity to make serious changes for the trajectory of the Badger State this fall at the ballot box.
Jan 28, 2022 | News, Wisconsin Family Voice
The “Help Not Harm Act” was formally introduced in the legislature this week, and we believe the bill is essential for children suffering from gender dysphoria in Wisconsin. The bill is authored by Senator André Jacque and Representative Scott Allen. They are joined by two other senators and nine other representatives as co-authors and co-sponsors.
The bill helps children who are confused about their biological sex by protecting them from harmful drugs and surgeries. It prohibits physicians and healthcare providers from facilitating any gender transition procedure to minors and also prohibits these providers from referring a minor to any other healthcare provider for a gender transition procedure.
A small but growing number of children are struggling to embrace their biological sex and believe that they were born in the wrong body. What these children need is real help, not affirmation of the lies they believe about themselves. However, in recent years, politicized medical organizations have pushed for invasive, harmful forms of “treatment” that can include off-label use of puberty blockers, administration of cross-sex hormones above naturally occurring levels, and even surgery.
Research shows the vast majority of these children will eventually come to reconcile with their biological sex. Given this reality, drastic and harmful interventions with lifelong consequences are even more concerning. By offering them life-altering treatments instead of talk therapy or other means of working through their distress, we are harming rather than helping them. There are numerous stories of people who later regret these interventions but are tragically stuck living with the consequences. Why would we encourage harmful interventions with lifelong, negative consequences for children?
These treatments have been proven to cause long-term, irreversible harm to minors. According to the World Professional Association for Transgender Health, cross-sex hormone risks for biological females include irreversible infertility, severe liver dysfunction, and coronary artery disease including heart attacks, hypertension and more. The cross-sex hormone risks for biological males include irreversible infertility, blood clots, and coronary artery disease including heart attacks, Type 2 diabetes and more. These treatments violate the first duty of medicine: do not harm. Puberty blockers also come with long-term negative consequences.
We also know that surgeries and drugs do not heal a hurting heart. Research shows people pursuing transition frequently have underlying or co-occurring mental health issues. In fact, “[s] 2014 study found 62.7% of patients diagnosed with gender dysphoria had at least one co-occurring disorder, and 33% were found to have major depressive disorders, which are linked to suicide ideation.” Once again, children suffering with this disorder need help, not harm.
Time and experience have taught us that young people do not have the mental faculties to make such substantial decisions. This “Help Not Harm Act” ensures that children can access real help rather than permanent harm from surgeries and drugs.
Please contact your state representative and state senator and urge them to pass this bill. Contact information for your elected officials is HERE. (Just put your address in the area at the top right.) Too many healthcare providers are acting recklessly, violating God’s design, and prioritizing ideology over the well-being of children. We must fulfill our duty and protect these children.
