CATHOLIC LEAGUE ON CHRISTIAN NATIONALISM

DANGEROUS BALLOT INITIATIVE IN NEW YORK

There is a ballot initiative in New York State this November that is downright dangerous.

Bill Donohue wrote a lengthy rebuttal and it is now available online in English and Spanish.

It is also published in booklet form, in both languages. We are doing a mass mailing to our allies across the state. Most will get a digital copy; they can print it in booklet form if they have Adobe.

It is being widely distributed in the state not only to Catholics, but to non-Catholics as well. We will mail the booklet to approximately 1,200 Catholics, 120 Hispanic groups, 120 Jewish groups, 100 Muslim groups and 120 conservative groups.

Thanks to the support of New York Archbishop Timothy Cardinal Dolan it is being placed in the hands of all New York bishops and many others.

This should be of interest to non-New Yorkers as well. If these activists succeed with their extremist agenda in New York, they will bring their proposal to other states.

On Election Day, November 5, voters in New York State will cast their ballot for Proposition One. It would amend section 11 of article 1 of the New York State Constitution in two ways: Paragraph A would offer equal protection before the law to eleven new demographic categories; Paragraph B would revise the legal meaning of discrimination.

Prop One is being promoted as a pro-equality initiative. In reality, it is a huge stealth campaign. Those behind Prop One have a very different agenda. Their real goal is to undermine parental rights, eviscerate religious liberty and legalize selective discrimination.

Currently, the New York State Constitution says that no one can be subjected to discrimination on the basis of race, color, creed or religion. Paragraph A of Prop One would add the following demographic categories: age, sex, gender identity, gender expression, and reproductive healthcare and autonomy. Paragraph B justifies reverse discrimination. The implications are dramatic.

Please read our assessment of Prop One. And please alert your family and friends to it. It the most deceitful and dangerous initiative ever introduced. It needs to be defeated.

PROBING CATHOLIC-RUN INDIAN BOARDING SCHOOLS

Bill Donohue

On June 14, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) issued a report on boarding schools for Native American children, some of which were run by the Catholic Church. From 1869 to the 1960s, the government removed thousands of these children from tribal lands and placed them in boarding schools. The express purpose was to assimilate them into American society.

There were more than 500 of these schools, more than 80 of which (16 percent) were Catholic-run. According to an investigation by the Washington Post (WaPo) at least 122 priests, sisters and brothers who were assigned to these schools were later accused of sexually abusing these children.

The report by the USCCB and the report issued by the Washington Post agree on some matters but differ on others. The bishops’ report includes an apology for inflicting a “history of trauma” on Native Americans, but the findings of the newspaper’s probe are much more critical.

The WaPo report was based in interviews with more than two dozen Indian board school attendees who claimed they were abused physically, sexually or emotionally in these boarding schools, three-fourths of which were run by the government. Oral histories, court documents, lawsuits, diaries, correspondence and the like were examined.

WaPo says it relied on information taken from the ProPublica database. This is the same organization that was mentioned by Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito when he was setup by a left-wing woman posing as a conservative; she surreptitiously taped him. He named ProPublica as the source of the hit jobs, mentioning their efforts to smear his Catholic colleague, Clarence Thomas.

I have had my own problems with ProPublica. In 2020, it issued a report, jointly done with the Houston Chronicle, that contended that the Catholic Church did not keep tabs on priests that it threw out of the priesthood. Guilty as charged! As I said at the time, neither does the media or any other organization. So what? Perhaps ProPublica expects the Church to stalk its dismissed employees.

But for the sake of argument, let’s say the methodology is acceptable. What exactly did WaPo find? Serious questions are extant.

The report cites a Department of Interior report from 2022 that investigated conditions in government-run boarding schools; it did not probe the ones operated by the Catholic Church. That report mentioned the word “Catholic” twice, both times in passing, having nothing to do with abuse.

More important, the timeline of the investigation under review extends back to 1869, so the kind of record keeping that lends itself to conclusive results is simply impossible. The WaPo report, which claims “pervasive” abuse in Catholic-run boarding schools, readily confesses that “lists of accused priests are inconsistent and incomplete, and many survivors have not come forward. Others are aging and in poor health, or, like their abusers, have died.”

Instead of admitting that this is a clear shortcoming, the journalists conclude this means that “the extent of the abuse was probably far worse.” Really? Let’s face it—they could have come to a very different conclusion. Precisely because the record-keeping was found wanting, it is hard to know the truth. It is even possible that good data would reveal how small this problem was. But such considerations would have gotten in the way of their narrative.

WaPo cites Rev. Mike Carson, who worked on this issue for the bishops, and he “also noted a likely dearth or records.” Similarly, Interior Secretary Deb Haaland acknowledges that given the situation, “I doubt that you could find a lot of Catholic records or federal government records about abuse and neglect toward the students.” Even in cases where, for example, the Jesuits kept tabs on alleged cases of abuse, WaPo quotes them as saying the list “does not imply the claims are true and correct or that the accused individual has been found guilty of a crime or liable for civil claims.”

There are other problems that should have given the journalists pause. In several parts of the report, they admit that the alleged victims whom they spoke to “kept secret” what happened. That being the case, how can Church officials be blamed? Indeed, after detailing one case of alleged abuse, they write that “It is unclear whether church officials were aware of the abuse at St. Mary’s at the time.”

Then there is the issue of the accused denying that they committed the offense. For instance, Sr. Sigfrieda Hettinger denied in 2015 that she abused a boy decades ago. “I loved them all. I never hurt them at all. I never touched them at all.” She died in 2016 at age 87. Was she telling the truth or lying? We don’t know. But in such cases, fairness dictates that we have to assume she was innocent.

There is another issue that needs to be addressed, one that is not discussed by the WaPo authors. They cite a Jesuit priest, Rev. Edmund J. Robinson, who was a serial offender. Could it be that a small number of priests were responsible for a disproportionate number of cases?

We know from the John Jay studies on this issue nationwide that between 1950 and 2002, 149 priests (3.3 percent) who had more than ten allegations of abuse were responsible for abusing 2,960 victims, thus accounting for 26 percent of all the allegations. As I said in my book, The Truth about Clergy Sexual Abuse: Clarifying the Facts and the Causes, this means that “a very small percentage of accused priests are responsible for a substantial percentage of the allegations.”

The same may be true in the case of the Indian boarding school story.

Moreover, WaPo journalists offer no comment on something that should have concerned them. Why is it that when the federal government commissioned a study of this issue in 1928, this report “chastised the schools for the mistreatment and malnourishment of students,” but never said a word about physical or sexual abuse? Was it a cover up? Or was there nothing to report? It seems plausible that a probe that took notice of “mistreatment” would have cited serious cases of abuse.

The credibility of the WaPo authors is seriously undermined by their decision to cite the Catholic Church’s legacy of abuse in Canadian boarding schools for indigenous peoples. That story has positively been proven to be a hoax. It does not help their cause to say that Pope Francis apologized for what happened—he did so before the story was proven false.

In 2021, the Catholic Church was accused of creating “mass graves” for indigenous children in the residential schools. But it didn’t take long before it was totally debunked. In 2022, Jacques Rouillard, professor emeritus in the Department of History at the University of Montreal, questioned, “After seven months of recrimination and denunciation, where are the remains of the children buried in the Kamloops Indian Residential School?”

A second round of accusations emerged in the summer of 2023 when excavations of the “mass grave” began. In August, the National Post reported that “No evidence of human remains has been found during the excavation of a Catholic church basement on the site of a former Manitoba residential school.” Again, the body count was zero.

There is also the matter of the scope of the WaPo investigation. Why didn’t they investigate the boarding schools run by the government? After all, they operated most of them. Are they content to rely on the Department of Interior study? Similarly, they mention that several Protestant denominations also operated these schools. Why were none of them probed?

As I have pointed out many times, wherever adults regularly interact with minors, unfortunately we find abuse. So why is it that time and again, the public schools get a pass, Hollywood gets a pass, etc.? Why is it always the Catholic Church that is the source of investigation? Isn’t this religious profiling? And wouldn’t that suggest that bigotry is at work?

By contrast, the USCCB report has two mentions of “violence” and six mentions of “abuse,” but none have anything to do with wrongdoing on the part of the Church.

The bishops’ report rightfully cites heroes such as Dominican Fr. Bartolomé de Las Casas, the sixteenth century defender of human rights for Indians, and St. Junípero Serra, the eighteenth century missionary who was canonized by Pope Francis for his courage in calling out colonizers for their mistreatment of Native Americans.

There is not a single person, from any other religion, who did more to champion the rights of Indians than these two priests.

The bishops’ report does not sanitize anything. It admits that many Native Americans feel abandoned by the Church, citing a “lack of understanding of their unique cultural needs.” Hence, the apology. But the report also notes the “joy,” as well as the “sorrow,” that so many experienced. It also makes note of the many wonderful priests and nuns who did yeoman work among indigenous Catholics.

The motive to assimilate Native Americans was noble, though looking back it from today’s vantage point it may seem overbearing. But it is important to acknowledge, as the bishops’ report does, that in places like Alaska, “many Church-run boarding schools were created to shelter youth who were orphaned during epidemics or whose parents were experiencing illness or dire poverty and could not care for them.”

Moreover, “Many Native alumni of those boarding schools who are still living today express gratitude for the care and educational opportunities they received from the men and women religious who administered mission schools.” Similarly, it bears noting that many of these indigenous peoples “willingly embraced the Gospel when missionaries offered it to them.”

In fact, many tribes “requested Catholic missionaries.” Let’s also not forget that “Many early Indigenous converts to Catholicism faced persecution and even martyrdom for their belief, either within their own communities or from others outside their communities.”

We shouldn’t have to rely on Catholic sources to highlight the great work done by the missionaries. This is a matter of history, not religion. But the animus against the Church today is palpable, especially in elite quarters.

It is important that the truth be told. The WaPo report contains some disturbing information, and undoubtedly instances of abuse occurred. But when the data are incomplete, it’s time to tap the brakes and not come to condemnatory conclusions.

The issue of abuse must also be put in context. If corporal punishment was commonplace at the time, why should we be horrified to learn that it existed in Catholic institutions? It must also be asked how common was abuse within the Native American community? Not to ask questions like these reveals a bias, thus further undercutting the credibility of those pointing fingers.

I am sending a letter, and this commentary, to the Senate Indian Affairs Committee. They are interested in having a federal commission do a more thorough investigation of the assimilative polices of Indian boarding schools. It’s time they raised issues that seem to have escaped the WaPo journalists, as well as many others.

Biden Admin LGBT Imperialism

For PDF version, click here.

The following report examines the efforts undertaken by the Biden administration to advance the LGBT agenda around the globe. It begins by exploring the overarching policies that Biden has pursued. It then catalogs how these aims have played out in specific regions.

White House

On February 4, 2021, President Biden issued a memorandum NSM-4 on “Advancing the Human Rights of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer and Intersex Persons Around the World.” Significantly, it was given a “national security memorandum” number making it of an even higher importance.

In Biden’s speech on September 21, 2021, to the 76th session of the United Nations General Assembly, he said, “We all must defend the rights of LGBTQI individuals so they can live and love openly without fear, whether it’s Chechnya or Cameroon or anywhere.”

President Biden’s Executive Order 14075, “Advancing Equality for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, and Intersex Individuals,” instructed the Secretary of State, together with the Secretary of the Treasury, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, and the Administrator of United States Agency for International Development (USAID), to create a plan to combat “conversion therapy” around the world.

State Department

Secretary Antony Blinken said, “We are engaging around the world in cultural diplomacy. We’re engaging in also making sure that we’re doing what we can to help protect the rights of marginalized groups, including notably the LGBTI+ community which in so many countries around the world is under threat, and many cases under growing threat.”

Under Blinken’s leadership, the State Department has observed International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia; Coming Out Day; Spirit Day; International Pronouns Day; Intersex Awareness Day; Intersex Day of Solidarity; and Ace week (celebrating those with asexual-spectrum identities). Additionally, the State Department has participated in Pride Month celebrations around the world. Numerous bureaus and embassies hosted and participated in wide-ranging Pride events creating social media toolkits that were shared with all embassies and consulates.

Scores of U.S. embassies flew Pride or Progress flags. Several of the host nations still protect traditional values, and therefore, the American effort could be viewed as a form of imperialism, foisting these degenerative values on these countries. Examples of this include: the Holy See, Angola, Azerbaijan, the Bahamas, Bahrain, Belize, Bermuda, Bulgaria, Burma, the Central African Republic, Chad, China, Comoros, Côte d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast), Curacao, Czech Republic, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Estonia, Eswatini, Fiji, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Hungary, India, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Kuwait, Laos, Latvia, Lithuania, Madagascar, Mauritius, Moldova, Montenegro Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Nepal, Northern Macedonia, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, San Marino, Serbia, Seychelles, Slovakia, South Korea, Sudan, Tanzania, Thailand, Timor-Leste, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Uganda, the United Arab Emirates, and Vietnam.

Each year, the State Department releases its Country Reports on Human Rights Practices, known as Country Reports. These 195 Country Reports evaluate in detail the human rights record of every country in the world as perceived by the State Department. Beginning in 2022, 67 countries were criticized under the category of “Involuntary or Coercive Medical or Psychological Practices Specifically Targeting LGBTQI+ Individuals.” Additionally, The Country Reports identify 154 countries as having inadequate “legal gender recognition.” In other words, the State Department considers it a potential human rights violation if other countries do not easily facilitate changing the sex designation on official documents or name changes for someone who identifies as the opposite sex. Examples include: Albania because its law does not “guarantee the individual’s right to self-determination of gender,” the Central African Republic because “the constitution defines marriage as ‘the union between one man and one woman,'” Kazakhstan because “some families and private religious practitioners engaged in prayers and religious ceremonies intended to alter the sexual orientation or gender identities of LGBTQI+ individuals,” Madagascar because “individuals cannot self-identify in their official documents,” Malaysian because the law “does not recognize LGBTQI+ individuals, couples, or their families,” and Nicaragua because “the law curtailed the rights of LGBTQI+ households by defining families as necessarily headed by a man and a woman.”

In September 2021, President Biden appointed Jessica Stern as the administration’s LGBTQI Special Envoy. In her time at the post, she has traveled to 22 different countries to advance the LGBT agenda globally. In 2022, she attended a Pride parade in Lithuania where she celebrated the number of children she saw in attendance. She spoke with civil society organizations about removing “gender markers” from the national ID system and denouncing conversion therapy in Brazil.

In 2021, the State Department issued “Memorandum on Advancing Human Rights of Lesbian, Gay Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, and Intersex Persons Around the World.” The memorandum calls for the department to “lead a standing group, with appropriate interagency representation, to help ensure the Federal Government’s swift and meaningful response to serious incidents that threaten the human rights of LGBTQI+ persons abroad. When foreign governments move to restrict the rights of LGBTQI+ persons or fail to enforce legal protections in place, thereby contributing to a climate of intolerance, agencies engaged abroad shall consider appropriate responses, including using the full range of diplomatic and assistance tools and, as appropriate, financial sanctions, visa restrictions, and other actions.”

In 2022, the State Department’s Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor solicited “new proposals for programming to support the human rights of LGBTQI+ persons, with a focus on LGBTQI+ inclusive democracy, and particularly marginalized populations including lesbian, bisexual and queer women and transgender, intersex and other gender diverse persons, as well as under-resourced regions.”

United States Agency for International Development (USAID)

A January 2023 USAID report, “Integrating LGBTQI+ Considerations into Education Programming,” recommended training educators to use appropriate pronouns and changed reference to mother or father to “parent/parent” or “parent/guardian.” Other parts of the report called for the abolition of school policies that are “based on the gender binary,” including dress codes or prohibitions against “long hair or long nails for some students.” Additionally, the report states “Ensure that education officials do not reveal a student’s sexual orientation or gender identity without the student’s permission – even to the student’s family.” Furthermore, USAID drew on resources provided by the anti-Catholic Southern Poverty Law Center to craft this report.

In August 2023, USAID’s “LGBTQI+ Inclusive Development Policy,” states, “USAID affirms and celebrates lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and intersex (LGBTQI+) people and all people of diverse sexual orientations, gender identities and expressions, and sex characteristics as integral parts of every society.”

Peace Corps

“In June 2021 Peace Corps’ Europe, Mediterranean, and Asia Region hosted (with the support of the Office of Overseas Programming and Training Support) hosted a LGBTQI+ support and non-discrimination webinar for 21 posts, during which Peace Corps North Macedonia presented on best practices for supporting Transgender Volunteers and Peace Corps Thailand presented on best practices for placing and supporting same-sex couple Volunteers.”

National Endowment for the Humanities

Between October 1, 2020, and September 30, 2023, the United States has issued more than 1,100 grants to fund the LGBT agenda around the world. Many of these grants are administered by the National Endowment for the Humanities.

One of these grants gave $1 million to Outright Action, an LGBT activist organization, working in Nigeria, South Africa, Uganda, Ukraine, the Philippines, Iran, and China.

Another project that received funding was translating the “Homosaurus” into Spanish. The “Homosaurus” is a thesaurus of LGBT terms such as “anonymous sex,” “aromantic porn films,” “pederasts,” “children’s sexuality,” and “gay children.” Additionally, the “Homosaurus” defined “fetishes” including “ephebophilia” (a reference to being attracted to people aged 15 to 19) and “Hebephilia” (attracted to children aged 11 to 14).

Sub-Saharan Africa

In 2021, the U.S. Embassy in Mauritius awarded a grant to a prominent LGBT organization “to establish a public research space promoting the wellbeing and integration of the LGBTQI+ community.”

In August of 2021, the U.S. Embassy in Angola hosted “an informal roundtable discussion between a congressional delegation led by U.S. Representative Karen Bass and members of Angolan civil society which included representatives from Angolan LGBTQI+ organizations.

On November 29, 2021, Botswana’s Court of Appeals upheld a lower court’s decision to strike down a law that forbade “carnal knowledge of any person against the order of nature.” U.S. Embassy staff attended the November 29 decision and the October 12 Court of Appeals hearing on the case. The Embassy also coordinated a statement with the UK, EU, Australia, France, and Germany celebrating the decision and congratulating activists for their “long but successful struggle.”

In 2022, the U.S. Mission to Botswana offered a grant opportunity called “Beyond Decriminalization: Expanding LGBTQI+ Rights in Botswana.” The grant would provide $300,000 to “carry out a program to promote greater social acceptance of LGBTQI+ persons, including among influential religious groups and traditional groups (our italics).”

In May of 2022. the U.S. Embassy’s Deputy Chief of Mission (DCM) to Zimbabwe conducted a press interview discussing the Department’s Human Rights Report and the importance of International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia, and Biphobia. The DCM emphasized “the growing recognition of LGBTQI+ human rights and said all should live their lives authentically and without fear.” The embassy also featured an excerpt of the interview on social media.

In July of 2022, the U.S. Ambassador to Benin participated in a reception “to elevate the importance the United States places on the defense and protection of human rights – in particular LGBTQI+ inclusion.”

In 2023, after the Ugandan parliament passed a bill restricting homosexual conduct, “according to Ugandan news outlets, U.S. officials threatened to withhold funds used to treat 1.4 million Ugandans living with HIV/Aids. That would include withholding $400 million annually that goes toward life-saving anti-retroviral drugs.”

In August of 2023, State Department LGBT Envoy Jessica Stern traveled to Mauritius where she participated in a “conference for LGBTQI+ human rights defenders from throughout Africa, as well as scheduled meetings with civil society, officials from the Government of Mauritius, and likeminded international partners.”

In 2023, LGBT Envoy Stern also traveled to South Africa where she “outlined some key areas on which she’s focusing her efforts, including decriminalising homosexuality, legal gender recognition, intersex rights, ending LGBTQI+ violence, and fighting against conversion therapy practices.” During her trip she spoke in favor of using U.S. diplomatic power to change LGBT laws particularly in Africa saying that “it becomes really important that the US government uses our political power to fight sodomy laws, fight for legal gender recognition, and fight gender-based violence, but also that we put our money where our mouth is – and that means increasing our financial support for LGBTQI+ advocacy everywhere.”

In February of 2024, the U.S. State Department announced that it would consider withholding funding and aid from Ghana in response to the passing of anti-LGBTQ legislation. The law would prohibit the forming or funding of LGBTQ+ groups with offenders potentially being sentenced to three years in jail. In a statement, State Department spokesman Mat Miller said the bill “would certainly have a chilling effect on foreign investment and tourism in Ghana,” noting that “should the bill pass, it would potentially have ramifications on U.S. assistance.”

During the Biden administration, the U.S. Embassy in Cabo Verde has remained in regular contact with the Cabo Verde National Commission for Human Rights and Citizenship (CNDHC) through the final phase of its “LGBTI Citizenship Project.” The aim of this project is “to draft legislation to prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation as well as gender identity, race, color, origin, ethnicity, religion, national origin, age, disability, health, and immigration status.”

Middle East and North Africa

In June 2021, the U.S. Embassy in the United Arab Emirates flew the LGBT Pride Flag in recognition of Pride Month. This caused a backlash in the country. The former director of Dubai’s finance department called the move “very disrespectful” and a senior Emirati official referred to the flag flying as “[rubbing] it in our faces.”

In 2021, after the U.S. Embassy in Bahrain flew the Pride Flag, “Bahraini [Member of Parliament] Ahmed Al-Dumstani published a copy of a joint statement signed by 21 lawmakers that calls for a government response to the US embassy’s rainbow flag display. The statement describes the rainbow flag as a ‘blatant provocation against Bahraini society’ and ‘a violation of international and diplomatic relations.'”

In June of 2022, the official Twitter account of the U.S. embassy in Kuwait posted an image of a Pride Flag with a pro-LGBT message. Kuwaiti officials accused the embassy of violating international conventions that require diplomats to “respect the laws and regulations of the receiving state.” The Kuwaiti Foreign Ministry summoned the top U.S. diplomat and sent a memo to the U.S. Chargé d’Affaires James Holtsnider requesting that “the embassy…respect the laws and regulations in force in the State of Kuwait and the obligation not to publish such tweets.”

USAID’s Middle East and North Africa partnered with Civil Society Organizations “to create a toolkit to enhance security protections for organizations working with key populations — including gay men and other men who have sex with men, people who use drugs, sex workers, and transgender people — on HIV programming. LGBTQI+ organizations from across the region have used the toolkit to assess their strengths and areas for growth, and to organize, plan, and strategize for resilient health programming and rights advocacy.”

During the Biden Administration, the U.S. Embassy in Algeria worked to promote “quarterly LGBTQI+-focused roundtables with like-minded diplomatic missions.”

During the Biden Administration, the U.S. Embassy in Jordan, initiated a quarterly dialogue with other like-minded missions. This partnership established an ongoing dialogue and agreed on principles of engagement and information sharing regarding LGBT issues.

Asia

In November of 2021, Special Envoy Jessica Stern participated in the U.S.-Vietnam Human Rights Dialogue “to raise challenges on the promotion of human rights of LGBTQI+ persons in Vietnam, as well as highlight areas of progress and potential cooperation to further advance human rights protections,” including drafting a “gender affirmation law to ensure legal gender recognition and amendments to the Marriage and Family Law to provide same-sex couples property and inheritance rights.”

During the Biden administration, the United States Embassy in Uzbekistan has “consistently raised the issue of decriminalization [of same-sex activity] with the government and continues to look for ways to make progress on this sensitive issue.”

One potential human rights violation noted in the Kazakhstan Country Report was “some families and private religious practitioners engaged in prayers and religious ceremonies intended to alter the sexual orientation or gender identities of LGBTQI+ individuals.”

Europe

In June 2021, 2022, and 2023 the Pride flag was displayed outside of the U.S. Embassy to the Holy See.

In September 2021, the U.S. embassy in Portugal gave $10,000 to fund a film festival called “Queer Lisboa.” This is an LGBT film festival held in Portugal that featured drag queens and depictions of incest and pedophilia. At the time, Chargé d’Affaires Kristin Kan said she was “very happy” to support this film festival as “part of our Diversity, Equality and Inclusion efforts.”

In 2022, the United States Embassy in North Macedonia “provided a small grant to an LGBTQI+ organization to host a series of workshops/discussions with the LGBTQI+ community, allies, and state institutions on recognizing and mitigating discrimination.”

In 2022, the United States Embassy in Albania announced that it will partner with The Justice Department’s Office of Overseas Prosecutorial Development, Assistance and Training (OPDAT) “to train victim coordinators on LGBTQI+ rights, inviting prominent representatives from the LGBTQI+ community as well as representatives from the Institution of the Commissioner on Protection from Discrimination. The Albanian law ‘On Protection from Discriminations’ does not specifically include LGBTQI+ persons.”

In 2022, the State Department also wished to partner with OPDAT to amend criminal law in the Baltic states. In Estonia and Lithuania, they aimed to include gender identity as a protected class. Meanwhile, in Latvia, they planned to make sexual orientation and gender identity into a protected class.

Latin America and the Caribbean

NGOs and churches from Caribbean countries have pushed back against the display of Pride flags, asserting in a joint statement that flying Pride flags at embassies “represents gross disrespect and an assault upon the consciousness of our societies.”

When the United States Embassy in Jamaica flew the Pride flag, it led to protests. One sign read “Stop cultural imperialism”; protestors also called the flag “an insult to our country.”

HARRIS AND TRUMP ON RELIGIOUS LIBERTY

[For the PDF version, click here.]

Harris’ Religious Liberty Record

On February 14, 2021, Biden signed an executive order reestablishing the White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships. The Biden-Harris administration claims that this office is intended to promote partnerships between the White House and religious and secular organizations to better serve people in need. These accomplishments fall into eight categories: safeguarding the right to practice faith without fear and other aspects of religious freedom; expanding opportunity; responding to disasters; helping Americans with mental health and substance use problems and preventing suicide; improving maternal and child health and addressing hunger and nutrition; welcoming refugees, including Ukrainians and Afghan allies, and new Americans; protecting the environment; and promoting protection and recovery from COVID-19.

Safeguarding the right to practice faith without fear and other aspects of religious freedom

In response to the war between Israel and Hamas, the Biden-Harris administration has undertaken several programs to protect Jewish and Muslim communities in the United States.
The Biden-Harris administration hosted the first-ever White House United We Stand Summit on countering hate-motivated violence. Although the summit briefly included discussions about attacks on houses of worship, its focus was more on discrimination against minorities and LGBT individuals.
Biden announced the establishment of a new interagency policy committee (IPC), led by Domestic Policy Council and National Security Council staff, to increase and better coordinate efforts to counter antisemitism, Islamophobia, and related forms of discrimination and bias in our country. As its first order of business, the President directed the IPC to develop a national strategy to counter antisemitism. Second Gentleman of the United States Douglas Emhoff, Ambassador Susan Rice, Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, and Ambassador Deborah Lipstadt held a roundtable meeting with diverse Jewish stakeholders on the alarming spike in antisemitism in the United States.
Through the Protecting Places of Worship Interagency Policy Committee (IPC), the Biden-Harris administration coordinated efforts to support the safety and security of places of worship. On the tenth anniversary of the attack on the Sikh Temple in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, the IPC announced an initial set of steps to protect places of worship and congregants, and IPC leaders participated in memorial events at the Sikh Temple. Under the IPC’s leadership, products such as the Threats Against Houses of Worship Highlight the Importance of Religious Community Outreach were updated, the first Protecting Places of Worship Week of Action was held, and a network promoting peer-to-peer learning for faith leaders launched.
In Fiscal Year 2022, the Biden-Harris Administration implemented a nearly 40% increase in funding – from $180 million to $250 million – in the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Nonprofit Security Grant Program (NSGP), which provides support for increasing the physical security of nonprofit organizations, including houses of worship and other religious affiliated entities. In his Fiscal Year 2023 budget proposal, President Biden called for $360 million for this program. The omnibus spending package for fiscal year 2023 funded this program at $304 million. Ultimately, the administration provided technical assistance to more than 10,000 faith-based and community leaders on taking action to protect places of worship, including by providing information on the Non-Profit Security Grant Program and sharing the Mitigating Attacks on Places of Worship publication. This included “diverse faith leaders” and provided protection to Tribal Nations and their citizens, including the President’s designation of the Camp Hale – Continental Divide National Monument, the Bears Ears and Grand Staircase Escalante National Monuments, and an interagency Sacred Sites Memorandum of Understanding Protected places sacred that creates a framework through which agencies can better protect Tribal sacred sites.
The Biden-Harris administration reestablished the Faith-Based Security Advisory Council, which offers advice and recommendations to the DHS Secretary on matters related to protecting houses of worship, preparedness, and enhanced coordination with the faith community.
The Biden-Harris administration advanced new rules which it claimed protected the religious liberty protections for beneficiaries of federally funded social services, such as job training and job search assistance, academic enrichment opportunities, and housing services. The new rules require federal grantees that administer social service programs with the federal government to adhere to new regulations. In reality, this created new burdens for faith-based providers and reversed key reforms by the Trump administration that made it easier for faith-based providers to compete for federal grants.
The Biden-Harris administration held listening sessions with Muslim, Jewish, and other faith-based, civil rights, and educational organizations on concerns related to anti-Semitism, Islamophobia, and related forms of discrimination and bias. Additionally, the administration promoted a new Fact Sheet: Protecting Students from Discrimination Based on Shared Ancestry or Ethnic Characteristics, which describes ways this protection covers students who are or are perceived to be Jewish, Christian, Muslim, Sikh, Hindu, Buddhist, or of another religious group. Further, the administration hosted a webinar on how pre-K-12 schools can prevent and address bullying against students because of their actual or perceived religious affiliation.

Expanding opportunity

The Biden-Harris Administration launched the Thriving Communities Program, a program aimed at ensuring that disadvantaged communities have the technical tools and organizational capacity to compete for federal aid and deliver quality infrastructure projects that enable neighborhoods to thrive. As part of this program, direct support is provided to governmental, non-profit, philanthropic, neighborhood and faith-based organizations to collectively plan for, design, and deliver community-driven transportation projects.
The Biden-Harris administration partnered with faith and community leaders to enroll people in eligible households in the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP). The ACP helps ensure that eligible households can afford the high-speed internet and devices such as computers, smart phones and tablets.
The Biden-Harris administration fostered partnerships among businesses, community-based organizations, and faith leaders through roundtables in all 50 states to promote job creation, economic growth, and equity at the local level. Lists of Department of Commerce programs and services relevant to communities’ needs were shared at these roundtables, including information on small business loans, export promotion assistance, climate resilience support, and increased community access to data and technology.
The Biden-Harris administration met with over 150 faith-based and community organizations seeking to partner with USAID.
The Biden-Harris Administration conducted capacity-building and grant-writing trainings for faith-based and neighborhood organizations in cities such Tallahassee, Florida; Atlanta, Georgia; and Detroit, Michigan.

Responding to disasters

Following the shootings at Tops supermarket in East Buffalo and Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, Biden-Harris staffers worked with local faith and neighborhood leaders on responding to needs and developed guides to relevant federal resources for these leaders. Some of the assistance provided included offering over 1,000 residents access to resources such as school supplies, nutritious food, mental and behavioral health resources, assistance for substance use disorders, and COVID-19 vaccinations. Likewise, the Biden-Harris administration’s faith-based office claims it provided assistance, including the Resource Guide for LGBTQ+ Organizations and Service Providers, following the shooting at Club Q in Colorado Springs. Additionally, they provided a fact sheet with resources for Asian-American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islanders communities in the aftermath of mass violence, including the despicable attacks in Monterey Park and Half Moon Bay, California.
Biden-Harris administration provided training for faith and community leaders on preventing human trafficking in disasters and updated the Faith-Based Community Leaders Awareness Guide in English and Spanish.

Helping people struggling with mental health and substance use problems and preventing suicide

The Biden-Harris administration provided training to 45,000 faith and community leaders on the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline and on emergency mental health services, created a Youth Mental Health Toolkit, developed and shared a PSA featuring African American clergy, and updated the Practical Toolkit for Preventing Drug Overdose and Supporting Recovery in Faith and Community Settings and translated the toolkit into Spanish.
The Biden-Harris administration hosted fourteen suicide prevention webinars for faith-based and community organizations that focused on the Department of Veterans Affairs S.A.V.E. training.
The Biden-Harris Administration offered technical assistance during Mental Health Awareness Month to thousands of faith and community leaders from rural and underserved communities on the resources available to address behavioral health, farm stress, and prevent suicide.

Improving maternal and child health and addressing hunger and nutrition

The Biden-Harris administration held three regional events in Philadelphia, Houston, and New York City to highlight ways faith and community leaders can get involved in addressing concerns about maternal and child health.
The Biden-Harris administration hosted a series of webinars on workplace protections for new and expecting mothers. Workers, worker advocates, employers, and other stakeholders were provided with information on federal laws that protect pregnant workers from discrimination, provide time off for the birth or adoption of a child, and ensure nursing workers can take breaks to pump breast milk while at work.
The Biden-Harris administration included community and faith-based organizations in the first White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health in over 50 years and in the development and implementation of the National Strategy on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health.
The Biden-Harris administration moved to make kosher and halal foods more available to nutrition assistance customers, including by engaging with faith institutions, food banks, and other external stakeholders.

Welcoming refugees, including Ukrainians and Afghan allies, and new Americans

The Biden-Harris administration supported the launch of the Welcome Corps by connecting faith and community leaders with this new service opportunity for Americans to welcome refugees. Together, sponsor groups welcome refugee newcomers by securing and preparing initial housing, greeting refugee newcomers at the airport, enrolling children in school, and helping adults find employment.
In coordination with Operation Allies Welcome, the Biden-Harris administration continued a webinar series for faith and neighborhood organizations on supporting the resettlement of Afghan allies in the United States.
The Biden-Harris administration partnered with community and faith leaders in support of Uniting for Ukraine, an innovative approach to provide a safe and orderly process for displaced Ukrainians who have been impacted by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine to come to the United States with the support of a sponsor. Also, Biden sent Easter greetings to Ukrainian American Christians, giving thanks for the extraordinary unity and resolve we are seeing around the world in support of Ukrainians and promising to continue to stand with the people of a free and democratic Ukraine.
The Biden-Harris administration connected leaders of secular and religious nonprofit organizations with the Task Force on New Americans, a body that coordinates the federal government’s efforts to ensure that lawfully present immigrants, including refugees, receive the support they need.

Protecting the environment

On August 13, 2024, the Biden-Harris White House hosted a meeting of more than a dozen faith leaders to discuss how faith-based organizations can benefit from and support the administration’s climate agenda. Officials highlighted that houses of worship are eligible to use Direct Pay, a provision of the Inflation Reduction Act that helps tax-exempt entities use federal clean energy tax incentives by issuing payments in equal value to tax credits. This is to encourage nonprofits to proactively pursue clean energy projects.
The Biden-Harris administration made it easier and more efficient for congregations to reduce pollution, including by launching a new webpage featuring 18 EPA programs with tools and resources for congregations, updating the ENERGY STAR Action Workbook for Congregations, and facilitating webinars with nonprofit partners on Inflation Reduction Act-funded grants through the Efficiency Materials Pilot Program for Nonprofits.
The Biden-Harris administration convened over 400 faith and community leaders to foster dialogue and partnerships on climate smart agriculture, climate smart commodities, and ways to help historically underserved communities.

Promoting protection and recovery from COVID-19

As part of a “Year of Action” working with civil society on COVID-19 response efforts, USAID awarded $1.5 million in technical support and capacity-strengthening services to three USAID Missions to implement activities that engage and strengthen the capacity of local faith-based and community organizations to assist in COVID-19 response.
The Biden-Harris administration connected faith and community-based organizations with two initiatives to promote academic recovery in the wake of the COVID-19 crisis: The National Partnership for Student Success (a public-private partnership with AmeriCorps and the Department of Education) to recruit, screen, train, support, and engage an additional 250,000 caring adults in roles serving as tutors, mentors, student success coaches, wraparound service coordinators, and post-secondary transition coaches; and the Engage Every Student Initiative, which is working to ensure that every student who wants a spot in a high-quality out-of-school-time program has one.
In 2022, AmeriCorps invested in thousands of nonprofit, faith, and community-based organizations across the nation addressing COVID-19 pandemic response, economic opportunity, and environmental conservation, among other critical needs. This includes a $580 million investment through the AmeriCorps State and National program, the largest investment in agency history supported by AmeriCorps’ historic $1 billion American Rescue Plan investment from the Biden-Harris Administration.

Trump’s Religious Liberty Record

During President Trump’s term in office, he promoted many important faith-based initiatives. The following list highlights his major achievements on this front:

January 23, 2017—President Trump reinstated and expanded the Mexico City Policy, which blocks funding for international organizations that perform or promote abortion. The new policy, known as Protecting Life in Global Health Assistance (PLGHA), covered $8.8 billion in family planning and global health funds given to organizations abroad that do not perform or promote abortion.
February 22, 2017—Trump’s Department of Education (ED), in conjunction with the Department of Justice (DOJ), rescinded President Obama’s guidance that required public schools to allow students who identify as transgender to use the bathrooms and showers of their choice.
May 4, 2017—President Trump signed an Executive Order promoting free speech and religious liberty (known as the “Religious Liberty Executive Order”). This order made religious liberty an administration priority and required all federal agencies to take action to protect it. The order also addressed conscience protections, forthcoming guidance from the DOJ, and religious liberty in the context of free speech.
August 25, 2017—President Trump announced changes to the Obama administration’s Department of Defense (DoD) policy that had allowed military personnel to serve even if they openly self-identified as transgender. (A DOD study found the Obama administration’s policy to be detrimental to military readiness, lethality, and unit cohesion.)
September 7, 2017—Trump’s DOJ filed an amicus brief with the Supreme Court defending the religious freedom rights of baker Jack Phillips in Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission. This filing is representative of other DOJ actions in defense of religious freedom that took place throughout the Trump administration.
October 6, 2017—Trump’s DOJ issued guidance and an implementing memo (as instructed by the Religious Liberty Executive Order) to all federal agencies explaining religious freedom law and how religious liberty must be protected. This guidance laid out a broad defense of religious liberty based on multiple statutes and provided each federal agency with guidelines for protecting religious liberty.
October 6, 2017—Trump’s Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) proposed two regulations to deal with the Obamacare “HHS contraceptive mandate” that had violated conscience and religious liberty for years. These new regulations exempted organizations with moral or religious objections to purchasing insurance that includes coverage of contraceptives and abortion-causing drugs and devices.
January 16, 2018—The DOJ filed an amicus brief with the District Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia on behalf of the Archdiocese of Washington, D.C. The Archdiocese had wanted to promote a religious message during the Christmas holiday but had been denied advertising space within the District’s public transit system.
January 18, 2018—The DOJ filed an amicus brief with the U.S. Supreme Court in Espinoza v. Montana Department of Revenuedefending the First Amendment rights of parents and students who attend a religious school to participate in a private school scholarship program.
January 18, 2018—HHS announced a new Conscience and Religious Freedom Division within its Office of Civil Rights (OCR). This new Division was established to enforce federal laws that protect conscience rights and religious freedom.
January 19, 2018—HHS issued a new proposed regulation on conscience protections related to abortion. Specifically, the regulation proposed implementing 25 laws that protect pro-life healthcare entities against discrimination by federal agencies – or state or local governments receiving federal funds – due to their objections to participating in abortion, sterilization, and other morally objectionable procedures.
January 19, 2018—The Center for Medicaid and CHIP Services (CMCS) rescinded an Obama administration letter that restricted states’ flexibility in removing abortion providers from federal healthcare programs if they did not meet the state’s qualification standards.
January 24, 2018—Sam Brownback was confirmed as U.S. Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom. President Trump demonstrated the administration’s commitment to the issue of religious freedom by choosing Brownback, someone with gravitas and experience in this area.
March 23, 2018—The White House and the DoD issued a new policy allowing existing personnel to remain in the military while preventing those diagnosed with “gender dysphoria” or who had undergone gender transition surgery from joining the military. Those who were transgender and stable for 36 months were allowed to join so long as they served in accordance with their biological sex.
April 26, 2018—Mike Pompeo was confirmed as Secretary of State. In choosing Pompeo for this position, President Trump chose someone who cared deeply about religious liberty and would make its advancement a priority.
April 30, 2018—During a press conference with Nigeria’s president, President Trump raised the issue of religious freedom and the killing of Christians in that country—bringing attention to an issue that other government officials had largely neglected.
May 8, 2018—President Trump signed an Executive Order establishing a White House Faith and Opportunity Initiative. The order directed agencies that didn’t already have a Center for Faith and Opportunity Initiatives to designate a Liaison for Faith and Opportunity Initiatives.
May 11, 2018—The Federal Bureau of Prisons updated its Transgender Offender Manual to say that offenders’ housing status was to be designated by biological sex and that gender identity would rarely be an appropriate way to designate offenders’ housing.
May 22, 2018—HHS issued a new proposed regulation reversing the Title X family planning regulations implemented by President Clinton. The proposed regulation would restore the separation of abortion services from the federal Title X family planning program, which President Reagan first implemented. The proposed regulation would also ensure parents are more involved in minors’ decisions to obtain services from Title X clinics.
June 13, 2018—The DOJ announced the Place to Worship Initiative, designed to increase enforcement and public awareness of the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUPIA). This federal law protects places of worship and other religious uses of property. Through this initiative, federal prosecutors would receive training about legal protections for houses of worship.
July 24-26, 2018—The State Department held the first-ever Ministerial to Advance Religious Freedom. Political and civil society leaders from around the world gathered in Washington, D.C., for a three-day summit to discuss religious freedom issues and solutions. The Potomac Declaration, issued at the Ministerial, made a strong statement about the state of religious freedom around the globe and provided a plan of action for promoting global religious freedom. The United States also announced the International Religious Freedom Fund (to provide emergency assistance to victims of religiously motivated discrimination and abuse around the world) and the Genocide Recovery and Persecution Response Initiative (which has provided nearly $373 million to help persecuted ethnic and religious minorities in northern Iraq restore their communities). The United States was among 25 countries that signed a statement condemning terrorism and the abuse of religious believers by non-state actors.
July 30, 2018—The DOJ announced a Religious Liberty Task Force to fully implement religious liberty guidance and policy across all components of the DOJ.
August 1, 2018—The Trump administration sanctioned two Turkish officials over the detention of American pastor Andrew Brunson due to his Christian faith and ultimately resulted in Pastor Brunson’s release.
September 24, 2018—HHS terminated a $15,900 contract with Advanced Bioscience Resources to procure fetal tissue from aborted babies for research. The termination of this contract led HHS to announce an audit of all acquisitions and research involving human fetal tissue to ensure consistency with statutes and regulations.
November 7, 2018—HHS finalized two regulations to protect conscience and religious liberty from long-running problems with the Obamacare “HHS contraceptive mandate.” These two final regulations exempted organizations with either a moral or religious objection to purchasing insurance with coverage of contraceptives and abortion-causing drugs and devices. The regulations took effect on January 14, 2019.
November 9, 2018—HHS proposed a new regulation to address an abortion surcharge hidden in many plans purchased on the Obamacare exchange. This proposed regulation enforced the requirement that abortion surcharges are to be collected separately from other insurance premiums. This requirement was not closely followed under the Obama administration.
December 26, 2018—The DOJ filed an amicus brief with the U.S. Supreme Court defending a publicly displayed cross-shaped veteran’s memorial that had been challenged as a violation of the Establishment Clause.
January 18, 2019—HHS issued a notice of violation to California for requiring pregnancy resource centers to post notices about how to obtain an abortion, in violation of the pr o-life Weldon and Coates-Snowe Amendments.
January 19, 2019—President Trump sent a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi in which he promised to veto any legislation that weakens current pro-life federal policies and laws. This letter was a message to the new Democrat majority in the House that longstanding pro-life protections like the Hyde Amendment and safeguards protecting the conscience rights of health care providers are not negotiable.
February 22, 2019—HHS announced final rule changes governing the Title X family planning program. Consistent with federal law, these rule changes ensured that Title X clinics would be financially and physically separate from abortion facilities and would not refer patients for abortions. Since the implementation of the rule, Planned Parenthood and several pro-abortion states voluntarily decided to withdraw from the program rather than quit performing abortions or referring patients for abortions.
March 8, 2019—U.S. Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom Sam Brownback criticized China’s poor religious freedom record in a speech he delivered in Hong Kong.
April 12, 2019—The Trump administration’s policy on military service by those with gender dysphoria went into effect.
May 2, 2019—HHS announced a final rule to expand the structure in which federal conscience laws are enforced. In 2011, President Obama issued a rule that enforced only three federal conscience provisions. The new regulation under President Trump covered 25 existing statutes, enforced by the new Conscience and Religious Freedom Division of HHS’ OCR.
May 5, 2019—At the World Health Assembly, the Trump administration issued a joint statement on behalf of the United States and eight other nations calling on other countries to join an effort to focus on women’s health issues that unify rather than create dissension among members (like abortion and sexual and reproductive health). This statement was the first action taken under the administration’s new Protecting Life in Global Health Policy (PLGHP), which seeks to build a global coalition to promote women’s health while also protecting unborn life and strengthening the family. This policy works in conjunction with the PLGHA program, which restricts funding for organizations abroad that perform or promote abortion.
May 24, 2019—HHS proposed a new regulation clarifying that discrimination on the basis of sex in section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act was to be interpreted under the plain meaning of the word. Therefore, it does not include “gender identity” or “termination of pregnancy” as set forth by a 2016 Obama administration regulation. The HHS regulation would continue to enforce existing civil rights protections; however, it clarified that the federal government would not force physicians to participate in gender reassignment surgeries or abortions.
June 5, 2019—After an extensive audit into fetal tissue research, the Trump administration announced a major change in the enforcement of research contracts. HHS would no longer conduct intramural (internal) research using tissue from aborted babies and greatly increase the ethics rules and safeguards governing extramural (external) fetal tissue research contracts. All new external contracts would be subject to a congressionally authorized ethics advisory board, making it much more difficult for fetal tissue research contracts to be awarded by the National Institute of Health.
July 16-18, 2019—The State Department held the second Ministerial to Advance Religious Freedom. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced a new global initiative, the International Religious Freedom Alliance, meant to provide a way for like-minded countries to work together to advance religious freedom. Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai gave a compelling speech condemning the use of technology to track and control the lives of religious minorities. The United States was among 14 signatory countries on a statement of concern about technology and religious freedom; one of 34 countries that signed a statement of concern on counterterrorism as a pretext for the repression of religious freedom; one of 27 countries that signed a statement condemning blasphemy, apostasy, or other laws that restrict religious freedom; and one of 46 countries that signed a statement that called upon government officials to condemn attacks on places of worship and to work with religious communities to protect these places. At this event, the State Department and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) also announced new religious freedom training programs for foreign service officers.
July 16, 2019—The State Department placed targeted sanctions on Burmese military officials for their human rights and religious freedom violations committed against the Rohingya Muslim population.
July 18, 2019—Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and HHS Secretary Alex Azar issued a joint letter on international partnerships that called states to join a coalition of countries that seek to advocate against pro-abortion policies at the World Health Organization and the United Nations (UN).
August, 2019—The DOJ filed amicus briefs with the U.S. Supreme Court in two important religious liberty cases, G. & G.R. Harris Funeral Homes, Inc. v. Equal Employment Opportunity Commissionand Bostock v. Clayton County/Altitude Express, Inc. v. Zarda. Through these filings, the DOJ advanced a biologically binary definition of sex and those who operate accordingly, whether because of science or religious belief.
August 15, 2019—The Department of Labor (DOL) proposed a new regulation clarifying the scope and application of religious exemptions for federal contractors. Under the Obama administration, the scope of religious exemption at DOL was severely narrowed. The current DOL relied on the history of our nation’s preservation of religious liberty, the First Amendment, and U.S. Supreme Court decisions to re-invigorate the exemption to its historical and constitutional parameters.
August 28, 2019—The HHS OCR issued a notice of violation to the University of Vermont Medical Center for forcing a nurse to participate in an abortion despite a conscience objection. This marked the third time the HHS Religious Freedom Division under President Trump investigated a conscience complaint related to participating in or promoting abortion.
September 10, 2019—The State Department placed targeted sanctions on Russian officials for their religious freedom violations and torture of Jehovah’s Witnesses.
September 23, 2019—President Trump hosted a meeting during the UN General Assembly and gave a speech solely on the topic of religious freedom. During the speech, he announced a U.S. policy initiative to protect places of worship, pledging an additional $25 million in funding to protect religious sites and relics. President Trump also announced the United States would form a coalition within the business community to protect religious freedom. This was the first time a U.S. president hosted a meeting focused solely on religious freedom at the UN.
September 24, 2019—President Trump discussed the need to protect religious freedom during his UN General Assembly speech. He also discussed China and Iran, two major violators of religious freedom.
September 25, 2019—HHS Secretary Alex Azar delivered a statement at the UN General Assembly stating that there is no international right to abortion and that the United States does not support ambiguous terms like “sexual and reproductive health” in UN documents.
October 7, 2019—The Department of Commerce blacklisted 28 Chinese companies whose surveillance technology products are used to systematically oppress and control—and violate the religious freedom of—Uyghur Muslims in Xinjiang, China.
October 11, 2019—Attorney General Barr delivered a striking defense of religious liberty at Notre Dame Law School. He noted, “[t]he imperative of protecting religious freedom was not just a nod in the direction of piety. It reflects the Framers’ belief that religion was indispensable to sustaining our free system of government.” He proceeded to remind the audience that religion gives us the “right rules to live by.” Barr highlighted the recent attacks on religious liberty and how the DOJ, under his leadership, fought back and protected religious liberty.
November 14, 2019—The U.S. government led a statement on behalf of itself and 10 other countries at the Nairobi Summit, once again calling upon the international community to focus on areas of consensus instead of divisive issues like abortion and sexual and reproductive health.
November 19, 2019—HHS issued a rule removing burdensome requirements that all grantees, including those that are faith-based, must accept same-sex marriages and profess gender identity as valid in order to be eligible to participate in grant programs. This included the adoption and foster care space, where these requirements had been used to shut down faith-based providers of foster care and adoption.
November 27, 2019—President Trump signed the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act into law, affirming Hong Kong’s semi-autonomous status and protecting against Chinese government encroachment, which is a threat to Hong Kong’s religious freedom.
December 19, 2019—The Treasury Department sanctioned two Iranian judges responsible for human rights violations. One of the judges was known to violate the rights of Iran’s Christian and Baha’i religious minority communities.
December 20, 2019—The Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced a final regulation to address the abortion surcharge hidden in many plans purchased on the Obamacare exchange. This final rule aligned federal regulations with section 1303 of the Affordable Care Act, ensuring that consumers knew their health care plan covered abortion and that funding for abortion was kept separate from all other covered services.
January 16, 2020—HHS Secretary Alex Azar hosted 34 countries for a meeting on how to promote women’s health and protect the lives of the unborn. This meeting followed an invitation sent by Secretary Azar and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to 70 different countries inviting them to join a coalition to oppose international efforts to enshrine abortion as a human right.
January 16, 2020—ED and the DOJ issued guidance on constitutionally protected prayer and religious expression in public elementary and secondary schools. This guidance ensured that prayer in schools is properly protected and not unconstitutionally prohibited or curtailed.
January 16, 2020—The White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) sent a memo to the heads of executive departments and agencies providing guidance on the administration’s Religious Liberty Executive Order. This memo required the agencies to review the order and publish policies on how they will comply.
January 17, 2020—Nine federal agencies (the Departments of Agriculture, Education, Homeland Security, Veterans Affairs, Justice, Labor, Health and Human Services, and Housing and Urban Development, along with the State Agency for International Development) proposed rules leveling the playing field for faith-based organizations wishing to participate in grant programs or become a contractor. The rules eliminated two requirements placed on faith-based organizations that were not placed on secular organizations.
January 22, 2020—The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services at HHS approved a family planning waiver for Texas to implement a state-run Medicaid program that excludes abortion providers like Planned Parenthood. This made Texas the first state to receive Medicaid funding for a family planning program that did not include abortion providers.
January 24, 2020—President Trump became the first sitting president to give remarks in person at the annual March for Life in Washington, D.C. In his address, he stated the eternal truth that every child is a sacred gift from God and reiterated his effort to defend the dignity and sanctity of every human life.
January 24, 2020—HHS Secretary Alex Azar announced that HHS had issued a notice of violation to California for violating the federal Weldon Amendment. California’s abortion coverage mandate deprived over 28,000 residents of health insurance plans that did not cover abortion. This marked the second time HHS issued a notice of violation to California for violating federal conscience laws and was the fourth enforcement action taken by the HHS OCR’s Conscience and Religious Freedom Division.
February, 2020—The Trump administration filled the role of Special Advisor to the President on International Religious Freedom within the National Security Council. This role was authorized by the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 but had remained unfilled for over 20 years since that law’s enactment. President Trump was the first president to dedicate a full-time staffer to this role and fill it on a permanent basis.
February 4, 2020—During his State of the Union address, President Trump called on Congress to pass legislation that would ban late-term abortions. To highlight the need for this legislation, he invited special guest Ellie Schneider, who was born at just 21 weeks gestation.
February 5, 2020—Secretary of State Mike Pompeo launched the International Religious Freedom Alliance. The Alliance united government leaders from like-minded nations to strategize ways to promote religious freedom and protect religious minorities around the world.
February 25, 2020—OMB issued a Statement of Administrative Policy strongly supporting two pro-life bills being voted on in the U.S. Senate: the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act and the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act. Had Congress passed these bills, the president’s advisors would have recommended that he sign both into law.
March 24, 2020—The DOJ filed a statement of interest in a case protecting biological women against biological men intruding on their sporting competitions. The statement made clear that athletic qualifications on the basis of “gender identity” were harmful to women’s sports.
March 28, 2020—Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the HHS OCR issued a strong statement reminding health care entities of their obligation to treat persons with disabilities with the same dignity and worth as everyone else.
April 2, 2020—U.S. Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom Sam Brownback held a special briefing. He called upon China, North Korea, Iran, and Russia to release their prisoners of conscience in light of the contagious COVID-19. Many of these prisoners were imprisoned for their religious faith.
April 3, 2020—The Small Business Administration (SBA) issued a FAQ document confirming that churches and religious nonprofits are eligible for assistance like the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) in the COVID-19 relief legislation known as the CARES Act. These clarifying protections ensured organizations would not be discriminated against based on their religious affiliation and would not have to give up their religious freedom in order to participate in these programs. In addition, the administration used an affiliation rule to ensure that large abortion providers like Planned Parenthood would not be eligible for COVID-19 relief in the CARES Act.
April 14, 2020—DOJ filed a statement of interest protecting the religious liberty of churchgoers in Greenville, Mississippi. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the city of Greenville had banned all religious services, even those that were able to abide by social distancing standards with drive-in church services.
April 17, 2020—The Department of Homeland Security included “clergy for essential support” in its list of personnel and entities deemed “essential” for purposes of responding to COVID-19. This designation allowed clergy and pastors more freedom to continue to operate and serve those around them in need.
April 27, 2020—Attorney General William Barr directed federal prosecutors to monitor and, if necessary, take action to correct state and local policies that discriminate against religious institutions and believers while battling the COVID-19 pandemic.
May 3, 2020—The DOJ filed a statement of interest supporting the religious freedom of Lighthouse Fellowship Church in Chincoteague Island, Virginia. After the church held a 16-person worship service on Palm Sunday (following strict social distancing protocols), a criminal citation and summons were issued against the pastor pursuant to Governor Ralph Northam’s executive order, which banned in-person religious services but allowed large gatherings for businesses like liquor stores and dry cleaners.
May 12, 2020—HHS finalized a rule revising the AFCAR (Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting) system and their data collection processes by not asking questions about the sexual orientation of the child, foster parent, adoptive parent, or legal guardian.
May 15, 2020—The DOL issued guidance implementing the administration’s Religious Liberty Executive Order and DOJ religious liberty guidance. The DOL guidance also cited the OMB memo from earlier this year, which directed all grant-administering agencies to detail how they will protect religious liberty in the context of such grants and included specific action steps to ensure that religious liberty is protected.
May 15, 2020—ED issued Title IX violation notices to Connecticut’s interscholastic sports governing body.
May 18, 2020—USAID Acting Administrator John Barsa sent a letter to the UN Secretary-General advocating that the UN not push abortion during the COVID-19 crisis. Barsa noted that abortion is not an “essential service,” and there are many actual health needs at this time. Therefore, the United States, which stood with the international pro-life community under the Trump administration, did not look kindly on these efforts to promote abortion.
May 19, 2020—ED issued a final rule on “Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Sex in Education Programs or Activities Receiving Federal Financial Assistance” that eliminated the requirement that religious institutions submit a written statement to qualify for the Title IX religious exemption and expressly prohibited retaliation against individuals for exercising rights under Title IX.
June 2, 2020—President Trump signed an Executive Order on Advancing International Religious Freedom, which recognized the promotion of international religious freedom as a moral and national security imperative for the United States.
June 12, 2020—HHS finalized its regulation clarifying that discrimination on the basis of sex in section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act is to be interpreted under the plain meaning of the word. Therefore, it did not include “gender identity” or “termination of pregnancy” as set forth by a 2016 Obama administration regulation. The HHS rule would continue to enforce existing civil rights protections; however, it made clear that the federal government would not force physicians to participate in gender reassignment surgeries or abortions.
June 19, 2020—The DOJ filed a statement of interest defending the constitutionality of Idaho’s Fairness in Women’s Sports Act. The Fairness in Women’s Sports Act ensures that only biologically female athletes are permitted to compete in female sports. By restricting biologically male athletes from participating, female athletes have a fair shot when competing.
June 24, 2020—President Trump issued an Executive Order to strengthen America’s foster care and adoption system. Among other things, this action sought to increase partnerships with faith-based organizations to care for children and preserve families.
June 29, 2020—The White House released a statement condemning the U.S. Supreme Court ruling in June Medical Services v. Russo. This ruling concluded that requiring individuals who perform abortions to have admitting privileges at hospitals is unconstitutional.
June 30, 2020—The White House released a statement praising the U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Espinoza v. Montana Department of Revenue. This ruling was a victory for religious freedom, ensuring that religious schools are not discriminated against in state voucher programs.
July 8, 2020—HHS Secretary Alex Azar issued a statement celebrating the U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Little Sisters of the Poor v. Pennsylvania. The ruling upheld the Trump administration’s expansion of religious freedom protections under the Affordable Care Act’s contraception mandate.
July 9, 2020—The Treasury Department sanctioned four current or former Chinese government officials and one Chinese government entity for their abuses against the Uyghur Muslim minority in China.
July 21, 2020—The HHS OCR resolved a religious discrimination complaint against the Prince George’s Hospital Center of the University of Maryland Medical System (UMMS). Because of COVID-19 restrictions, the hospital denied a patient’s request to have a Catholic priest visit the hospital to provide spiritual care. The OCR worked with the hospital system to revise their visitor’s policy to allow religious visitations during the pandemic.
July 31, 2020—The Treasury Department sanctioned a Chinese paramilitary organization in connection to their human rights abuses against Uyghur Muslims in China.
August 5, 2020—Vice President Mike Pence gave a speech on the importance of protecting life and reaffirmed the administration’s pro-life positions. He also became the first vice president to visit a pregnancy resource center. These centers are valuable lifelines that offer abortion-free services for women facing crisis pregnancies.
August 7, 2020—ED issued guidance regarding the administration’s Religious Freedom Executive Order, detailing how Department regulations protected the religious freedoms of institutions and individuals and the process by which both faith-based organizations and individuals could inform the Department of a burden or potential burden on religious exercise under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA).
August 17, 2020—The State Department, in coordination with other federal agencies, released a second review of the PLGHA Policy. This report reaffirmed the policy’s effectiveness and that the U.S. government can both protect unborn life and promote better health outcomes for women globally.
August 18, 2020—The Human Fetal Tissue Research Ethics Advisory Board, which was convened as a part of President Trump’s June 5, 2019, fetal tissue research policy, issued a report providing recommendations on the ethics of fetal tissue research proposals. The report recommended that HHS not fund 13 of the 14 proposals because of ethical concerns with how fetal tissue from aborted babies would be inappropriately used.
August 20, 2020—The HHS OCR resolved a civil rights complaint against the state of Utah, helping the state amend its crisis standards of care (CSC) guidelines to prevent discrimination against the elderly and disabled when medical resources are scarce. This was the OCR’s seventh resolution helping states create CSC plans that value the dignity of all human life.
August 25, 2020—USAID released its updated Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment Policy with the purpose of “empowering women and girls to participate fully in and equally benefit from the development of their societies.” The updated policy took into account the biological differences between males and females and recognized the importance of strengthening “families and communities” to achieve its goal.
September 8, 2020—The DOJ filed an amicus brief with the Supreme Court of Indiana in support of the Catholic Archdiocese of Indianapolis’ right protected by the First Amendment to “decide for itself who should personify its beliefs, inculcate its teachings, and instruct students at religious high schools affiliated with the Archdiocese.”
September 9, 2020—ED published a final rule on “Improving Free Inquiry, Transparency, and Accountability at Colleges and Universities.” This rule made clear that First Amendment rights are to be upheld on campuses. It provided colleges and universities controlled by religious organizations with guidance on how to protect religious freedom in the context of Title IX. The rule also leveled the playing field for religious groups on campuses and upheld their right to assemble and free speech.
September 14, 2020—The Trump administration proposed a new regulation to apply the PLGHA policy to contracts and subcontracts. This regulation would ensure that more foreign organizations must certify they will not perform or promote abortions in order to receive government aid. The Trump administration had identified a loophole in which foreign organizations performing or promoting abortions were still contracting with the United States for global health programs. This unprecedented expansion of PLGHA further solidified the administration’s commitment to protecting life abroad.
September 14, 2020—U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) issued five withhold release orders on a number of Chinese companies in order to prevent products known to be made through forced labor by Uyghur Muslims from entering the United States.
September 18, 2020—A resolution agreement was signed by Franklin Pierce University after the Department of Education looked into its policy allowing biological males to participate in sports programs for biological females and found that it violated Title IX.
September 21, 2020—The DOJ filed a statement of interest in a case “challenging New Mexico’s more stringent COVID-19 capacity limits on private schools than public schools.” In doing so, the Trump administration supported parents’ right to select the school of their choice for their children.
September 22, 2020—President Trump addressed the 75th session of the United Nations General Assembly. In this speech, the president highlighted his administration’s commitment to advancing religious liberty, protecting unborn children, and combating human trafficking.
September 25, 2020—President Trump signed an Executive Order that reinforced existing protections for children born prematurely, with disabilities, or in medical distress, including infants who survive abortion. This order, which clarified the enforcement of existing laws and prioritized medical screenings for vulnerable infants, was in response to Congress’ inaction to pass meaningful legal protections for infants that survive abortion.
September 30, 2020—Secretary of State Mike Pompeo spoke in Rome, Italy, at a Holy See Symposium on Advancing and Defending Religious Freedom through Diplomacy.
October 2, 2020—The DOJ filed a statement of interest in federal court in support of Capitol Hill Baptist Church’s lawsuit against Washington, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser “arguing the Constitution and federal law require the District of Columbia to accommodate Capitol Hill Baptist Church’s effort to hold worship services outdoors, at least to the same extent the District of Columbia allows other forms of outdoor First Amendment activity, such as peaceful protests.”
October 20, 2020—The HHS OCR resolved two religious discrimination complaints involving hospital policies that restricted clergy access to patients during the COVID-19 pandemic. The first involved a Maryland hospital’s policy that denied a new mother’s request to have her son baptized because she had tested positive for COVID-19. The other case involved a Virginia hospital’s policy that prohibited a Catholic priest from administering last rites to a COVID-positive patient who was in an end of life situation. Both policies were updated to ensure that religious freedom is not diminished at the expense of public health policies.
October 22, 2020—HHS Secretary Alex Azar and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo hosted the Geneva Consensus Declaration signing ceremony. This declaration was a historic effort by the United States, Brazil, Egypt, Hungary, Indonesia, and Uganda to strengthen global initiatives that promote women’s health, preserve human life (including the unborn), strengthen the family, and protect national sovereignty.
November 19, 2020—HHS and the DOJ collaborated to resolve a complaint that the Massachusetts Department of Children and Families (DCF) discriminated against a parent with intellectual disabilities. A mother with intellectual disabilities had to give up her two-day-old child, but then DCF denied her equal access to support and services to be able to reunite with her child. This was a historic action by HHS and the DOJ to ensure that those with disabilities are treated equally under federal law.
December 9, 2020—The DOL finalized its rule clarifying the scope and application of religious exemptions for federal contractors.
December 16, 2020—HHS followed through on enforcement action announced in January 2020 to disallow $200 million in federal Medicaid funds from going to California due to its refusal to comply with federal law. California was given an opportunity to amend its mandate that all health insurers provide abortion coverage but refused to comply. HHS also referred the University of Vermont Medical Center for enforcement action after they unlawfully forced a nurse to participate in an elective abortion against her conscience.
December 19, 2020—A final rule was published that leveled the playing field for faith-based organizations wishing to participate in grant programs or become a contractor. The rules eliminated two requirements placed on faith-based organizations that were not placed on secular organizations.
December 29, 2020—President Trump issued a Proclamation on the 850th Anniversary of the Martyrdom of Saint Thomas Becket, honoring his fearless defense of religious liberty.
On January 8, 2021—ED issued a memo responding to the U.S. Supreme Court’s Bostockdecision, affirming that sex is still to be determined biologically.
January 11, 2021—HHS proposed a new federal regulation to strengthen safeguards against using aborted fetal tissue in research. This regulation formalized the policies that the administration issued in June 2019 to cut off federal funding of fetal tissue research and institute an ethics advisory board to review future fetal tissue research projects.
January 12, 2021—HHS finalized its rule that removed burdensome requirements that had compelled all grantees (including faith-based ones) to accept same-sex marriages and profess gender identity as valid in order to be eligible to participate in grant programs. These requirements had been used to shut down faith-based providers of foster care and adoption.
January 13, 2021—DOL Deputy Secretary Patrick Pizzella sent a letter to all governors and state workforce agencies ensuring and reiterating that religious organizations are eligible to participate in DOL programs on the same basis as any other organization.
January 15, 2021—HHS proposed a new federal regulation to protect infants that survive abortion and ensure that any patient with a disability is not discriminated against in the provision of health care. This regulation formalized the Executive Order issued on September 25 to reinforce existing protections for children born prematurely, with disabilities, or in medical distress, including infants who survive abortion.
January 17, 2021—DOJ issued a memo on the Bostock decision to clarify its limited application.
January 18, 2021—President Trump declared January 22, 2021, to be National Sanctity of Human Life Day. He then issued this message for America: “Today, I call on the Congress to join me in protecting and defending the dignity of every human life, including those not yet born. I call on the American people to continue to care for women in unexpected pregnancies and to support adoption and foster care in a more meaningful way so that every child can have a loving home. And finally, I ask every citizen of this great Nation to listen to the sound of silence caused by a generation lost to us, and then to raise their voices for all affected by abortion, both seen and unseen.”
January 19, 2021—Secretary of State Mike Pompeo officially declared that China is committing genocide and crimes against humanity through its campaign of repression against Uyghur Muslims.

At the end of his term, the Trump administration nominated and had confirmed 230 federal judges, including three U.S. Supreme Court justices and 55 federal appeals court judges. An overwhelming number of President Trump’s judicial nominees have been constitutional originalists, who will interpret the law as written rather than interpret it according to their personal policy preferences.

Catholic League Report: Biden Administration and Thought Control

No administration in American history has tried harder to promote thought control than the Biden administration. Orwellian at its finest, the goal is to induce the public to accept its highly politicized vocabulary as a means of controlling its thought patterns. Here are some examples of how this is being done.

Gender Identity

“President Biden has long promised that he would be an advocate for the LGBTQ community should he be elected president. Now, just hours into his presidential term, Mr. Biden’s White House website allows users to choose their pronouns, a change that drew swift praise from advocates. As part of the website revamp that occurs during presidential transitions, the White House changed its contact form. The form now allows individuals to select from the following list: she/her, he/him, they/them, other, or prefer not to share. Those who select other also have the option to write-in what pronouns they use. People can also choose which prefix they use: Mr., Ms., Mrs., Dr., Mx., other, or none.” (CBS News, “Biden administration allows users to choose their pronouns on remastered website”, January 20, 2021)

In August, the department rolled out new guidelines titled, ‘Updated Department Guidance Regarding Transgender Employees in the Workplace’ and mandates that all employees and applicants should be addressed ‘by the name, pronouns, and honorific (Mr., Mrs., Ms., Miss, Mx., etc.) that they themselves use in everyday interactions, and as they choose to communicate to their supervisor/manager and colleagues.’ ‘Continued intentional use of an incorrect name, pronoun, and/or honorific – also known as misgendering – could, depending on its severity and pervasiveness, contribute to a hostile work environment allegation, and constitute misconduct subject to disciplinary action, up to and including separation or removal,’ the guideline states.” (“GOP Sen. Ted Budd demands State Department roll back requirement for employees to use preferred pronouns” Fox News, October 23, 2023)

“The EEOC’s newly proposed guidance similarly includes ‘Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity’ as the basis for prohibited ‘sex-based discrimination’ under Title VII and asserts that ‘sex-based harassment includes harassment on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity, including how that identity is expressed.’ ‘Harassment,’ according to this guidance, includes epithets and physical assault as well as ‘intentional and repeated use of a name or pronoun inconsistent with the individual’s gender identity (misgendering).’ Also included as a form of harassment is ‘the denial of access to a bathroom or other sex-segregated facility consistent with the individual’s gender identity.'” (“The EEOC is trying to make ‘misgendering’ a thought-crime” The Hill, October 8, 2023)

“‘All employees should be addressed [by] the names and pronouns they use to describe themselves,’ an HHS email sent to employees and shared with CNA read. The mandate is part of the department’s new Gender Identity and Non-Discrimination Guidance, which was established to outline ’employee rights and protections related to gender identity,’ according to the email.” (“Biden Health and Human Services Imposes Trans Pronoun Mandate on Employees” National Catholic Register, October 12, 2023)

“An internal U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) memo obtained by the Heritage Foundation’s Oversight Project and shared with Fox News Digital prohibits agents from using ‘he, him, she, her’ pronouns when initially interacting with members of the public. ‘DO NOT use ‘he, him, she, her’ pronouns until you have more information about, or provided by, the individual,’ reads the memo obtained by Heritage via Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).” (“CBP memo orders agents not to misgender ‘members of the public”’ Fox News, November 22, 2023)

“The transgender policy deployed by Interior leadership in September urges employees to ‘use gender-neutral language in broad communications to avoid assumptions about gender identity.’ Examples of ‘pronouns,’ according to the policy, are ‘they, them, theirs, ze/hir/hirs, ze/zir/zirs, xe/xem/xyrs.’ Bathroom use is up to personal discretion, it says, and those who refuse to abide by departmental policies are warned of retribution for ‘unlawful discrimination.’ ‘Repeated, intentional refusal to use the employee’s affirming name/gender/pronouns, and/or repeated reference to the employee’s dead name/gender/pronouns by supervisors/managers, or coworkers is contrary to the goal of treating all employees with dignity and respect,’ the policy states. ‘Such intentional conduct could constitute unlawful discrimination.'” (“Interior Department Transgender Policy Threatens Employees Who Won’t Play Along With Fake Pronouns”, The Federalist, December 21, 2023)

“The USDA issued a May 12, 2022, memo stating how it planned to comply with a Biden executive order issued on Jan. 30, 2021, to prevent discrimination on the basis of gender identity and sexual orientation..The May 2022 memo on Biden’s executive action also called for developing ‘gender-inclusive language in agency internal and external communications,’ to include ‘the proactive use of pronouns in the workplace.’ It also included a plan to ‘update USDA Style guide for email signatures and business cards to include and encourage pronoun use.'” (“EXCLUSIVE: Biden Admin Adds LGBTQ Strings to Foreign Agriculture Grants” Daily Signal, January 9, 2024)

“The Federal Reserve conducted diversity, equity, and inclusion trainings in which staff members learned that ‘correct pronoun usage is a civil right’ and were told to acknowledge their ‘white privilege,’ documents obtained by the Washington Free Beacon show. The Fed held at least four DEI training sessions in the spring and summer of 2021, the documents reveal. During the training sessions, staffers learned to use ‘inclusive language,’ like ‘Latinx,’ and were shown an illustration of a transgender gingerbread man that could have a woman’s brain and male reproductive organs. Staffers were also told to refer to Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell as ‘chair,’ an example of ‘gender-inclusive language.'” (“Federal Reserve Staff Underwent DEI Training Amid Rising Inflation, Documents Show”, Washington Free Beacon, January 10, 2024)

Illegal Immigration

“Acting U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) head Tracy Renaud reportedly directed officials to overhaul their language in all official documents, outreach efforts and other communications, in a memo first reported Tuesday by Axios and confirmed by BuzzFeed News. Suggested terminology swaps reportedly include using ‘noncitizen’ or ‘undocumented noncitizen’ instead of ‘alien’ or ‘illegal alien,’ and referring to the ‘integration’ of immigrants into society instead of ‘assimilation,’ which has been criticized as racist.” (”Aliens’ No More: Biden Administration Directs Immigration Officials To Use ‘Inclusive Language”’ Forbes, February 16, 2021)

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) employees must use gender-neutral language when addressing border crossers, according to documents obtained by the Heritage Foundation’s Oversight Project. Border patrol agents allegedly told to use preferred pronouns during migrant encounters: ‘Rock bottom’ (ABC15 News, November 27th 2023)

At his 2024 State of the Union address, President Biden referred to an illegal alien accused of murdering a 22-year-old woman as an illegal alien. After being criticized by Democrats, he later said he regretted using this term. “White House: Joe Biden ‘Did Not Apologize’ to Laken Riley’s Accused Killer” (Breitbart.com, March 12, 2024).

Health

The Centers for Disease Control and the National Institutes of Health published a new style guide focusing on promoting “non-stigmatizing” language; it offered more “inclusive” alternatives. Below are several examples:

“Convict/ex-convict” becomes “People who were formerly incarcerated”
“Disabled” is replaced by “People with disabilities/a disability”
“Drug-users/addicts/drug abusers” should now be called “Persons who use drugs/people who inject drugs”
“Homeless people/the homeless” and “Transient populations” should be referred to as “People experiencing homelessness” or “Clients/guests who are accessing homeless services”
“Poverty-stricken” now becomes “People with lower incomes”
“Crazy” is replaced by “People with a pre-existing mental disorder”
“Asylum” is changed to “Psychiatric hospital/facility”
“Illegals” should be called “People with undocumented status”
“Elderly” should be replaced with “”Older Americans”
“Afro-American” should know be referred to as “Black or African American persons; Black persons”
“Rural people” are now “People who live in rural/sparsely populated areas”
“Homosexuals” should be called “Queer”
“Transgenders/transgendered/transsexual” is replaced by “LGBTQ (or LGBTQIA or LGBTQ+ or LGBTQIA2)”

(“Preferred Terms for Select Population Groups & Communities”, CDC November 3, 2022)

Aviation

“The FAA has had much to say about the system under [Transportation Secretary Pete] Buttigieg’s watch, but not for matters relating to its functionality or upkeep. Rather, the agency announced in December 2021 that it had changed the system’s name from ‘Notice to Airmen’ to ‘Notice to Air Mission,’ a ‘more applicable term’ that the agency said is ‘inclusive of all aviators and missions.’ ‘The language we use in aerospace matters,’ the FAA tweeted from its official account. ‘We’ve begun to adopt gender-neutral and inclusive aviation terminology as part of our agency-wide initiative.'” (“Here’s What the FAA Has Been Focused on Instead of Keeping Planes in The Air” Washington Free Beacon, January 11, 2023)

“The air safety system’s name change came months after an FAA advisory committee issued a report in June 2021 recommending the agency replace a wide swath of words and phrases with gender-neutral terms. The updated language, the advisory committee said, would help combat unintentional bias and reflect a ‘more modern recognition that gender can be binary.’ Recommendations included replacing ‘airman’ with ‘aircrew,’ ‘manned aviation’ with ‘traditional aviation,’ and ‘cockpit’ with ‘flight deck.'” (“Here’s What the FAA Has Been Focused on Instead of Keeping Planes in The Air” Washington Free Beacon, January 11, 2023)

Government Accountability Office

“Leaked internal memos obtained by DailyMail.com show the Government Accountability Office (GAO) forbids employees from using male and female terms.”

“The ‘style guide’ demands an end to ‘non-inclusive terminology’ and said the GAO’s 3,100-strong army of bureaucrats should avoid ‘wording that diminishes anyone’s dignity.’ It was posted on the GAO site, bans staff from using words such as ‘man-made’ or ‘manpower’ in official communications. The document suggests alternatives such as ‘artificial’ or ‘workforce’ instead.” (“EXCLUSIVE: Joe Biden’s new woke madness as top watchdog bans gendered language: Diversity management officer blacklists terms such as ‘man-made’ and ‘police man’ in new inclusivity push” Daily Mail, May 28, 2023)

State

Secretary of State Antony Blinken issued a memo instructing State Department employees to refrain from using what he deemed to be “problematic” language. Blinken’s memo notes that gender is a social construct and a person’s gender identity “may or may not correspond with one’s sex assigned at birth.” He goes on to say that assuming someone’s gender identity based on their appearance or name is not only “problematic” but also could convey a “harmful, exclusionary message.” Blinken further instructs staffers not to “pressure someone to state their pronouns.” Instead, he offers a list of commonly used pronouns including “she/her, he/him, they/them, and ze/zir” explaining that people use a variety of pronouns. Regardless of what pronouns someone chooses to use, he states that “is a personal decision that should be respected.”

Additionally, Blinken identified other common terms that State Department employees should avoid using. Instead of saying “manpower,” he suggests substituting “labor force.” “You guys” and “ladies and gentlemen” should be replaced by “everyone,” “folks,” or “you all.” Rather than saying “mother/father,” staffers should say “parent” instead. Likewise, “son/daughter” should be replaced with “child.” Meanwhile, “spouse” or “partner” should be used in place of “husband/wife.”

Finally, Blinken tells staff they should “use more specific language” to “avoid using phrases like ‘brave men and women on the frontlines.” He recommends more precise wording such as “brave first responders,” “brave soldiers,” or “brave DS agents.” (Secretary of State urged staffers to avoid ‘problematic’ terms like ‘manpower’ and ‘mother/father’ New York Post, February 20, 2024)

GOV. ABBOTT MADE IMMIGRATION #1 ISSUE

Bill Donohue

Whether one agrees with Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s decision to bus illegal aliens to sanctuary cities around the country or not, it is indisputable that he is responsible for making immigration the Number One issue in the nation. His gambit was sociologically brilliant. He turned what was perceived by most Americans to be a regional issue into a national one.

What Abbott did was right out of the playbook of the Left’s favorite radical, Saul Alinsky. In his 1971 book, Rules for Radicals, Alinsky listed 13 tactics for activists. Abbott mastered two of them.

The fourth rule is “Make the enemy live up to their own book of rules. You can kill them with this, for they can no more obey their own rules than the Christian church can live up to Christianity.” By busing migrants to sanctuary cities—making the “compassionate” ones experience what it is like for Texans to put up with the illegals—Abbott called their bluff. Now they are up in arms.

The eighth rule is “Keep the pressure on, with different tactics and actions, and utilize all events of the period for your purpose.” Abbott has not only been relentless in shipping migrants to liberal cities, he has quickened the pace. He has also spread his goodwill around, from east to west, showing his penchant for diversity and inclusion.

We prepared a report on exactly how Abbott rolled out “Operation Lone Star.” It was in April 2022 that he began transporting the migrants. He has now bussed over 100,000 to sanctuary cities. There will be more. In December, illegal aliens came in record numbers—over 300,000 crashed our southern border.

We know that Abbott’s policy is working by examining the polling data.
We looked at surveys conducted by the Harvard CAPS-Harris Poll examining the top three most pressing issues facing the nation, beginning with the start of “Operation Lone Star.” Here is what we found.

April 2022

1. Price/Inflation: 33 percent
2. Economy and Jobs: 28 percent
3. Immigration: 22 percent

Approximately 200 migrants had been relocated by that time.

October 2022

1. Price/Inflation: 37 percent
2. Economy and Jobs: 29 percent
3. Immigration: 23 percent

Over 12,700 migrants had been relocated by that time.

April 2023

1. Price/Inflation: 34 percent
2. Economy and Jobs: 25 percent
3. Immigration: 24 percent

Over 19,040 migrants had been relocated by May 2023 (Texas did not provide data for April 2023).

October 2023

1. Price/Inflation: 32 percent
2. Immigration: 27 percent
3. Economy and Jobs: 24 percent

Over 58,900 migrants had been relocated by that time.

January 2024

1. Immigration: 35 percent
2. Price/Inflation: 32 percent
3. Economy and Jobs: 25 percent

Over 102,100 migrants had been relocated by that time.

The AP-NORC polls found similar outcomes.

2022

1. Economy, general: 31 percent
2. Inflation: 30 percent
3. Immigration: 27 percent

2023

1. Immigration: 35 percent
2. Inflation: 30 percent
3. Economy, general: 24 percent

The evidence is clear: There is a direct line between the expansion of Abbott’s busing and the nation’s intolerance for illegal aliens. Had he not done so, this would still be regarded as a regional issue, and those who live along the border would be its only victims.

Some say it is cruel to bus migrants to cities around the country. We think it is cruel to make Texans pay for the policy prescriptions of those who never suffer the consequences of their own ideas.

Our one complaint with Abbott is that he didn’t exclusively choose to bus the illegals to the wealthiest and most liberal neighborhoods in the country. Only when those who live in places like Beverly Hills and East Hampton feel the pinch of their politics will matters change.

To see the full report, click here.

MEDICAL PROFESSION BOWS TO TRANSGENDERISM: PARTS I & II

To read how medical journals and associations have adopted the politics of transgenderism, click here.

To read Part I, click here.

Catholic League Campaign Against The Dodgers

To read the special report on the Catholic League’s campaign against the LA Dodgers click here.

SISTERS OF PERPETUAL INDULGENCE

Bill Donohue

(A timeline of anti-Catholic actions committed by these bigots)

1979: This was the beginning of the Sisters. In San Francisco’s Castro District three men dressed in traditional nun’s habit walked the streets. One of them carried a machine gun. Then they went to a nude beach. It was then that they adopted the name the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence.

1982: A year after AIDS was discovered, the Sisters were upset, but they did not complain about the lethal sex practices that gave rise to AIDS; rather, they complained about the “fear and prejudice” that it was engendering. “Sr. Florence Nightmare” and “Sr. Roz Erection” addressed the issue.

1987: The Sisters were granted a tax-exempt status after trashing Pope John Paul II’s visit to San Francisco. The Sisters held an “exorcism” and a “Condom Savior Mass” in Union Square. At the event, they featured “the Latex Host” and referred to Jesus as “the Condom Savior.” They also burned the Pope in effigy.

1987: They staged a “Hunky Jesus” contest, something they do every year on Easter Sunday.

1989: On their tenth anniversary, they held many events, including one with “Sr. Psychedelia’s” rise from the dead, and “Pope Dementia’s Altered Boys.” They wore “only thongs and smiles.”

1989: At the “Condom Savior Mass,” the Sisters read from a text of the “Condom Savior Consecration.” It said, “The Latex Host is the flesh for the life of the world. Just as the Creator who has life sent us, we have life because of the Condom Savior. Those who feed on this latex will have life because of it. This is the bread that comes down from Heaven, and, unlike those who eat not and therefore die, those who feed on this bread shall live forever!”

1990: A staff writer for the Miami Herald said the Sisters were noted for “carrying a 20-foot replica of a penis” at its street events.

1992: At a rally in Sacramento at the Capital Christian Center, the Sisters held signs of the Cross with a pink inverted triangle in the place of Jesus; the inscription read, “Stop Crucifying Queers.”

1992: “On Parade,” a publication of the San Francisco Lesbian/Gay Freedom Day Parade and Celebration Committee, published an article by “Sister Dana Van Iquity” which said the motto of the Sisters is “Encroach not on my crotch!” and “Leave my loins alone.” He described the day’s events, including “Dykes on Bikes” and “Dykes with Tikes on Trikes.”

1993: At another rally at the Capital Christian Center, protesters held a sign, “Queer Alert: Fighting for Freedom From Religion.”

1993: Twelve years after AIDS hit, they demonstrated in Washington, “reeling in anger and despair” over five of their members who died of the sexually transmitted disease.

1993: The Sisters were banned from the March on Washington’s stage for being “too controversial and not the appropriate image” for C-Span and “the movement.”

1993: The Sisters are seen as so offensive that they incur the wrath of Marshall Kirk and Hunter Madsen, the authors of a landmark book on gays, After the Ball: How America Will Conquer Its Fear and Hatred of Gays in the 90s. They say of the Sisters, “‘Fringe’ gay groups ought to have the tact to withdraw voluntarily from public appearance at gay parades, marches, and rallies, but they don’t care whether they fatally compromise the rest of us.”

1994: They served “holy communion wafers and tequila” to the congregation at a mock Mass.

1999: On the cover of the April 1, 1999 edition of the San Francisco Bay Times there was a full-page picture of a Sister superimposed on a cross-like photo with his hands stretched out, imitating Jesus on the Cross.

2000: In San Francisco, they held a Good Friday event where they sponsored a fetish fashion show that provided “a chance to get spanked and free “Sticky Buns.” Dr. Carol Queen held her “Good Vibrations Dildo Fashion Show.”

2001: I petitioned the IRS to revoke the tax-exempt status of the Sisters, citing multiple examples of “vulgar, obscene and bigoted material against the Catholic Church and its members.”

2002: They celebrated Easter with an “Indulgence in the Park” event that featured a “clown-drag-nun” fundraiser, along with the annual “Hunky Jesus” contest.

2004: They spent the entire month of December bashing Christmas in Los Angeles.

2008: San Diego House of the Sisters—The Asylum of the Tortured Heart, which was founded in 2005, held a “Midnight Confessional Contest” that gave prizes to those with the “hottest confessions.” It was held in a gay bar.

2009: They held a block party in San Francisco where some of the men danced naked in the street.

2010: At the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts winter gala, the Sisters were asked to perform six musical acts in a “Nunway Noir” drag fashion show where attendees could “bask in the bloody gore of occult film screenings.”

2011: In a Daily Beast column, gay writer Andrew Sullivan called the Sisters’ “Hunky Jesus” event a form of “blasphemy.” He was so angry at them that he said, “This makes me feel like Bill Donohue.”

2018: The Multnomah County Library in Portland, Oregon hosted “Drag Queen Storytime with the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence,” despite their history of anti-Catholicism. The event explicitly targeted kids 2-6.

2022: The Sisters gave an award for featuring Lil Hot Mess, “a man who dresses as a woman for children and one of the leading activists behind Drag Queen Story Hour.”

2023: A Sister won the “Free Choice Mary” pro-abortion award. The man, dressed with a nun’s veil, wearing a bra and panties, was featured holding a baby doll with a sign, “I Had A Choice.”