THE BATTLE WAGES FOR THE HEARTS AND MINDS OF AMERICANS

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Worcester, located about 35 miles west of Boston, is the second-biggest city by population in the state, with just over 200,000 residents. The City Council passed a resolution, titled “Sanctuary City for Transgender and Gender Diverse People“. It prevents the city from cooperating with federal or state policies deemed harmful to trans-identified individuals and ensures access to healthcare, housing, education and employment without discrimination.

While critics have argued the resolution defies federal law and fails to protect youth, approximately 200 people, activists and residents, showed up for the council meeting to support the resolution, many of them speaking out — some even singing — during the five-hour public meeting. 

Among those who spoke out in favor of the resolution was Julie Payne-Britton, a pastor at the Hadwen Park Congregational Church, which is affiliated with the progressive United Church of Christ. Payne-Britton, who identifies as a disabled, cisgender lesbian, sported a clerical collar as she told council members that if Jesus were at the meeting, He would be “dressed in full drag.”

“The Jesus I know would be dressed in full drag and serving face, or handsome as a trans man, or wrapped in the garb of a non-binary person who knows one gender is way too small to capture their gloriousness,” Payne-Britton claimed. “The Jesus I know would be at this mic with a trembling voice and a shaking body and tears that will not be held back crying, ‘make this city safe for my child.’”

Another speaker, a blue-haired, white-gloved man in drag who identified as “Dee Dee Delight” spoke about being “afraid” of President Donald Trump’s executive order requiring federal agencies to recognize only two sexes — male and female — and a second order prohibiting trans medical operations for anyone younger than 19.

“I need the city to protect me because the federal government won’t. And if you think you’re afraid of Trump, you should see how afraid of Trump I am,” the speaker said. 

After identifying as “multiply disabled,” the speaker, standing in front of a sign that read “Silence = death,” issued what appeared to be a threat against the council.

“If you say you’re afraid of Trump and that’s why you don’t want the city to be a safe space for [trans] people, you better prepare for [trans] people to make this a very unsafe space,” said the person.

A short time later, a black female activist warned the council about “strong, queer” transgender-identified people who “will collect you with the quickness.” 

Another activist wearing a wig screamed at the city council, “How many of my friends have to die before you do anything?”

The City of Worcester has folded to the increasingly threatening demands of LBTQ proponents. The battle is escalating. Fortunately, we know how the story ends, Jesus returns to put things right.

LATEST ON GENDER TRANSITION PROCEDURES

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President Trump has issued an executive order to take the various state laws on Gender Transition for Minors up to the national level.

“This executive order is beautiful. The language in it is wonderful,” Family Research Council Senior Fellow Meg Kilgannon gushed. “It’s very well written. It’s very clear. And it protects parents. It protects children. It ends the reliance on junk science and will stop the promotion of using the WPATH guidelines. That’s huge. And it directs the federal government to review: what is the state of the science on this? What is the research into the effects of these treatments, so-called treatments on children?”

“This is quite extensive,” Family Research Council President, Tony Perkins agreed. “Not only does it address the issue of transgender sexual mutilation that is taking place, but it shows how much the federal government is involved in everything.” The executive order affects “institutions that get [federal] grants,” he continued, “and that’s almost every institution of higher learning that may have a hospital associated with it.” It also affects the military health care system, and it instructs the Department of Justice to treat some gender transition surgeries as female genital mutilation.

Future

Trump’s executive order also places his administration on the side of those fighting to protect children. “Now we will have the wind at our backs, instead of fighting the headwinds of the Biden administration, which was enforcing all of the opposite of this,” Kilgannon said.

“I love these executive orders — most of them,” said Perkins. “But they’re executive orders. They can be undone four years from now.” He called on Congress and state legislatures “to start seeing policy adopted into law that is anchored to truth, common sense. … Now, with the wind at our backs, this needs to be translated into public policy at the state and even the federal level.”

In fact, Senator Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) “has already introduced a bill to protect children against child abuse of these procedures,” noted Kilgannon. “It’s really a wonderful time to think about the possibilities.”

For all the labor expended in fighting to protect children from gender transition procedures, it’s encouraging to see that translate into federal policy under the Trump administration. However, the possibility that some future administration will reverse this policy is a reminder that the fight is not over until there is legislation to back up this order.