By Henry Fowler, Stevensville
With two recent anti-Christian decisions from a supposedly “conservative” Supreme Court, it’s time for conservative Christians to start paying attention. We are living in a post-Christian America.
While “June Medical Services LLC v. Russo,” which overturned a Louisiana abortion law, did not change federal abortion law, “Bostock v. Clayton County” changed the meaning of “sex” in Title VII (Equal Employment Opportunity) of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to include “sexual orientation and gender identity.” That means that the anti-discrimination protections afforded to women under federal employment law must be extended to homosexuals and transgendered people because discrimination against them is discrimination “on the basis of sex.”
In a previous letter (“Equality Act threatens our freedoms,” May 13, 2020), I warned about the Equality Act, passed by the Democratic-controlled House of Representatives in May 2019. By redefining “sex” to include “sexual orientation and gender identity,” the Supreme Court has done what the Equality Act would have done if it became law.
And by redefining “sex” to include “sexual orientation and gender identity,” the Supreme Court has declared that homosexuality and transgenderism are the same as race. If you disagree, you are on the same moral and legal level as a racist. This is no longer just the opinion of Democratic lawmakers or columnists at The New York Times. This is now the law of the land.
And if you think it might be a bad idea for biological males to compete against your daughter in the high school girls’ sports teams, or that biological males do not belong in your daughter’s or wife’s locker room, or even if you dissent from gender ideology at all, then you are also on the same moral and legal level as a racist.
And if you voted for Initiative 96 in 2004, along with 67 percent of your fellow Montanans, which amended the Montana Constitution to prevent same-sex marriages from being conducted or recognized in Montana, then you are also on the same moral and legal level as a racist.
And if you express the opinion in the workplace that marriage is between a man and a woman or that a person’s sex is determined at birth, or if you refuse to use someone’s preferred pronouns, then you may be accused of sexual harassment for creating a “hostile work environment.”
The Religious Freedom Restoration Act will not protect your religious liberty because a provision of the Equality Act nullifies the RFRA where it comes in conflict with sexual orientation and gender identity.
For valuable guidance to conservative Christians, read Rod Dreher’s blog and his books, “The Benedict Option” and “Live Not By Lies.”
And for the end of the conservative legal project, see US Senator Josh Hawley’s speech on June 16, 2020. He was one of only three Republican Senators who stood up to oppose the passage of the Equality Act by unanimous consent. Where was Senator Steve Daines?