April 4, 2023

From the desk of Wendy Wixom:

Our last Issue Update filled you in on our recent experience at the United Nations’ Commission on the Status of Women meetings.  As noted previously, we didn’t think we were going to have a CSW event this year, and last minute, the opportunity became available to host an hour and a half event at the Nigeria House.  Our UFI team worked quickly and did a great job on an event titled “Technology: A weapon or a tool?  Creating a healthy digital culture”.  We have since finalized the video of the event and wanted to share it with you.  I think you’ll enjoy hearing a voice that is counter to what you hear in the media, today, and especially at the UN!

This week’s Issue Update is a fabulous article by Shannon Wixom, taking a closer look at a disheartening, yet becoming a more common, practice in today’s world.  Shannon shares examples from the United States and around the world and closes with some great suggestions for all of us. We know you are well informed and prepared to be a respectful and civil voice for good.  Be bold.

With gratitude for all you do,

Wendy Wixom, President

United Families International

 

Our “You Can Sue Me Later” Society

By Shannon Wixom

My daughter came home from a church youth activity recently and told me she had won a bag of candy from the bowling alley for having the coolest shirt. Then she mentioned that one of the girls had stolen some of her candy rather than ask her to share. “You can sue me later,” the girl teased my daughter.

“You can sue me later” perfectly encapsulates a disturbing trend in our society, wherein corporations and governments punish first, ask forgiveness later, and then only if required by a court of law.

Arbitrary and Capricious

Let’s look at a clear example of this practice with the recent court “win” of a group of pro-life pregnancy crisis centers in New York. Here’s the story in a nutshell: In 2020 New York created a “nondiscrimination” law that would force the center to hire and retain pro-abortion advocates, which runs contrary to the center’s First Amendment right to hire people according to their pro-life beliefs. The pregnancy center’s only recourse was to sue the state. The lawsuit was shut down by a lower court, and finally, in an appeal to the 2nd circuit court, the center was able to have the dismissal reversed. The process took almost three years, and the current ruling merely reverses the dismissal of this lawsuit, so the NY law that contradicts constitutional law remains in place.

This case has been labeled a “win” by pro-life advocates, but is it really a win? Wouldn’t a real win have been to strike down a state law that runs counter to our constitutional rights? Yet the New York legislature and governor signed such a contradictory law into place. Did they know it would go against constitutional rights, that it would force businesses like the Emergency Mother Care (EMC) Frontline Pregnancy Centers to either conform to the new law, stop practicing, or take the state to court with an expensive and lengthy lawsuit? It’s a question worth considering.

If they did know what they were doing (and they should have known given they had sworn to uphold the laws of the land), then they were acting “arbitrary and capricious”. Black’s Law Dictionary defines this term as “[a] willful and unreasonable action without consideration or in disregard of facts or law.” Lawyer Morgan Philpot notes, “America was built upon the principle of law that we would not do things that were arbitrary and capricious.” That’s why he also said this of the current state of affairs in the United States: “The law has become the dark arts.”

When the only recourse to uphold our constitutional rights is to spend a lot of time and money to “sue” a business or government entity (or respond to a lawsuit against us), then the only ones who “win” are the corporations or governments who tried to enforce the contrary laws, as well as the lawyers involved, who get richer the longer the process is drawn out.

Bullying in the Name of Anti-Discrimination

It is shocking how frequently people and businesses today are bullied in the name of anti-discrimination policies or laws that clearly violate original constitutional laws/rights. The person or business targeted must either forfeit their rights or choose the long, expensive and exhausting process of court battles, appeals and lawsuits – where the process becomes the punishment. Here are some other well-publicized cases:

You might remember Jack Philips, the baker in Colorado who spent years in courts, eventually having his case heard before the Supreme Court, all to defend his right to bake custom cakes as his conscience dictated. A Daily Signal article reported: “In the 7-2 ruling in his favor, the high court said the Colorado Commission of Civil Rights, which had ruled against Phillips, demonstrated ‘clear and impermissible hostility’ toward the baker and cake artist’s Christian belief that marriage is the union of one man and one woman.” And yet, even after all that time, money, and a “win” in the highest court of the land, he is still under attack today, this time by the trans community.

Another famous case is the high school football coach who was fired for silently praying on the field. It took seven years for Joseph Kennedy’s case to make it to the Supreme Court and a ruling that determined, like Jack Philips, that “Bremerton School District actually violated Coach Kennedy’s First Amendment rights.” He has only recently been reinstated to his old job.

Or what about Charlene Carter, the Southwest flight attendant who was fired in 2017 for posting her pro-life beliefs on social media? Fast forward five years and a lengthy lawsuit where she has now been awarded a substantial settlement via a Federal judge for her wrongful termination due to her beliefs about abortion.

Recently there was a young police officer named Jacob Kersey who was forced to resign for stating his beliefs on marriage via social media. As an article from First Liberty, the law firm now representing Jacob, relates: “Beyond being outrageous and dystopian, the city’s actions are illegal. Federal law prevents Americans from being punished by their employers for expressing their religious beliefs. The law is clear: Employers cannot retaliate against employees because of their religious beliefs and practices. What’s more, they may not create a work environment that is hostile toward religion and must protect employees from harassment.” Jacob’s case has only just begun. His lawsuits and appeals could take years to resolve.

A Common Thread

Did you notice what all of these cases have in common? They all had their First Amendment rights violated. In the United States, our first and most famous amendment provides that Congress “make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting its free exercise.” It protects freedom of speech, the press, assembly, and the right to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. Yet corporations and governments have clearly been attacking these rights through a back door.

A Daily Signal article explains this further:

“The United States has signed multiple international agreements asserting that the right to freedom of religion and to “manifest” that belief “either alone or in community with others in public or private” is a fundamental human right. Congress had unanimously declared that the ‘right to freedom of religion undergirds the very origin and existence of the United States’ and ‘is a universal human right and fundamental freedom.’

The Declaration of Independence states that securing such rights is the very purpose of government. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, to which the U.S. is an original signatory, affirms the duty of governments to protect these rights by law.

And yet, today in the United States, it takes rank bigotry—expressed in public by government officials—to get some action to protect religious freedom.”

This is our day, where right is called wrong, and wrong is called right. Our government and institutions have been hijacked by ideologies that are diametrically opposed to the original, God-given liberties our country was founded upon.

The Same Strategy is Also Used to Silence People in Other Countries

Not only are people being punished unlawfully in the U.S., but this is happening in other countries as well. You might recall Isabel Vaughn-Spruce, a woman in the U.K. who was arrested for silently praying (her charges were later dismissed, and then she was arrested again for the same thing).

“Only three weeks ago, it was made clear by the court that my silent prayers were not a crime. And yet, again, I have been arrested and treated as a criminal for having the exact same thoughts in my head, in the same location,” Vaughan-Spruce said in a statement. “The ambiguity of laws that limit free expression and thought – even in peaceful, consensual conversation or in silent, internal prayer – leads to abject confusion, to the detriment of important fundamental rights. Nobody should be criminalized for their thoughts.”

The day after Isabel’s second arrest, Britain’s House of Commons approved legislation to create “buffer zones” around abortion facilities which would prohibit a wide range of behavior, including silent prayer. In other words, they have now voted to make legal actions illegal.

Another famous international case is Päivi Räsänen, the Swedish former MP, who was charged with incitement against a minority group for social media posts in 2019 and a 2004 pamphlet called “Male and Female He Created Them.” The investigation took three years and a ruling in March of 2022 that dismissed all charges against her, unanimously saying, “It is not for the district court to interpret biblical concepts.” The opposition has filed an appeal, and her case continues to drag on.

Last year Mexican Congressman Gabriel Quadri was convicted by the highest court in Mexico for what was deemed a “gender-based” political offense for mis-gendering another lawmaker. Quadri had voiced his beliefs on social media regarding trans ideology. The Specialized Regional Chamber determined that, “the expressions analyzed were intended to deny the identity of trans women, thus they violate the right to identity, which is in turn a form of denial of equal dignity, thus the tweets are discriminatory.” So voicing concern that men who “identify” as women are taking away opportunities from real women is now considered “discriminatory.” Currently ADF International is seeking justice for Gabriel.

We Know It’s Bad, But What Can We Do?

The examples I’ve listed above are only the tip of the iceberg. More people are being censored, fired, fined or forced to resign than we read about in the news. We know it’s bad, but what can we do?

First, knowledge is power. If we stick our heads in the sand and refuse to learn about what’s going on, we will never be a force for good. Second, our voices matter. Whether it’s signing a petition, creating a wave of protests on social media, or writing an article for an uplifting organization like United Families International, we all have the power to make our voices heard. Third, who we vote into office matters, as well as holding them accountable for their actions. We can do that by contacting their offices, reminding them of who they are supposed to be serving, and if we need to, voting them out of office when the time comes.

My fourth and final suggestion is the most important one. We must teach the rising generation of truth. UFI created the Homefront Project for that very purpose: to help families and communities navigate the muddy waters of today’s ideologies and determine what is true. We must also teach our youth what our rights really are, and who they come from (hint, it’s not our government, it’s God). Lastly, we need to help them learn to discern between truth and error, and instill in them a desire to stand for truth. It’s a heavy call, but I’m up for it. How about you?

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Shannon Wixom is the Newsletter Coordinator for United Families International. She earned a B.A. in International Business from Westminster College in 2000 and put aside career aspirations in 2002 to become a full-time mother. Shannon has since felt there is no more rewarding calling than raising her four wonderful children with her husband.