Author: Susan Berry, PhD

Massachusetts Public Libraries to Host Virtual Drag Queen Tutorial for Teens

Susan Berry, PhD

More than 30 Massachusetts public libraries are joining together to host a virtual drag queen event, targeted for teens aged 13-18, in which New England-based drag queen “Giganta Smalls” will teach the young people about the life of a drag performer and help them “pick up some advice on costuming and make-up.”

According to a Westhampton Public Library Facebook post for the June 10th event called “Dishing Out Drag with Giganta Smalls,” over 30 Massachusetts public libraries are “co-hosting this PRIDE event,” that has been “made possible by a discretionary fund of the Trustees of Rowley Public Library.”

Read the full story

Kohl’s Faces Backlash After Pitching LGBTQ ‘Pride’ Merchandise for Babies

Susan Berry, PhD

Kohl’s has now joined Target, The North Face, Anheuser-Busch, and others in marketing LGBTQ merchandise, with Kohl’s releasing its “Baby Sonoma Community Pride” onesie in sizes for babies aged three, six, and nine months.

The Twitter account for End Wokeness and TPUSA’s Benny Johnson shared Kohl’s online sales pitches for the baby clothing items that feature what appears to be gay parents and rainbow banners with the slogan, “Be Proud.”

Read the full story

Catholic Advocacy Group Launches $1 Million Ad Campaign to Boycott Los Angeles Dodgers for Honoring Anti-Catholic Hate Group

Susan Berry, PhD

A leading national Catholic advocacy group has responded further to the Los Angeles Dodgers’ announcement that the organization will move ahead with honoring an anti-Catholic hate group of self-described “queer and trans nuns” during its “pride night” game event in June.

Brian Burch, president of CatholicVote told Fox & Friends Weekend Sunday the Dodgers “have decided to honor and celebrate a detestable, vile, and perverse anti-Catholic organization.”

Read the full story

Louisiana Republican State Senator Joins Democrats to Kill Bill to Protect Minors from Gender Transition Hormone Drugs and Surgeries

Susan Berry, PhD

Louisiana State Sen. Fred Mills (R-Acadiana), a former Democrat and a pharmacy owner backed by the pharmaceutical industry, joined with Democrats of the Senate Health and Welfare Committee to kill a bill, already passed by the state House, that would have protected minors from life-altering gender transition procedures.

HB648, a bill that would “prohibit certain procedures to alter the sex of a minor child,” including providing puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, and surgeries such as elective double mastectomies and castrations, was killed in committee, by a vote of 5-4, with Mills, the GOP chair of the committee, breaking the tie to side with the Democrats.

Read the full story

Leftist Media Celebrate Teens Traveling to Washington, D.C. for ‘Trans Youth Prom’ on Capitol Lawn

Susan Berry, PhD

The leftist media celebrated a “Trans Youth Prom” on the Capitol lawn this week in Washington, D.C., an event that reportedly drew not only young gender dysphoric teens, but transgender children as young as age five, from 16 states, with the backing of American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) attorney and transgender activist Chase Strangio.

The New Republic described Monday’s “Trans Prom” as an event that “brought around 50 trans youth to Washington, D.C., in a two-for-one party and statement in the face of an unprecedented legislative, political, and cultural attack on young trans folks.”

Read the full story

Radical Anti-Life Gender Justice Group Backing Ohio Ballot Initiative Revealed to Be Pushing End to ‘Unethical’ Parental Involvement Laws

Susan Berry, PhD

Tweets by a key leftist organization pushing the Ohio abortion ballot initiative that could end parental involvement in minors’ medical decisions reveal that the goal of Unite for Reproductive and Gender Equity’s (URGE) is to cut parents out of their children’s lives.

Protect Women Ohio (PWO), a self-described “coalition of concerned family and life leaders, parents, health and medical experts, and faith leaders in Ohio,” posted a thread to Twitter Tuesday showing URGE has been “working to abolish parental consent and notification laws for years.”

Read the full story

South Carolina Becomes 23rd State to Protect Babies with Heartbeat

Susan Berry, PhD

South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster (R) signed the Fetal Heartbeat and Protection from Abortion Act Thursday morning, legislation that protects babies in the state from abortion from the time a heartbeat is detected.

McMaster’s signature on the bill now makes South Carolina the 23rd state to protect babies with a heartbeat, and marks that half of the United States is now protecting babies from abortion at or before 12 weeks.

Read the full story

South Carolina Lawmakers Send Heartbeat Bill to Governor’s Desk

Susan Berry, PhD

The South Carolina Legislature gave final approval to its heartbeat bill Tuesday, one that would ban abortions from the time a fetal heartbeat is detected and a move that will continue the trend in the southern states to restrict abortion.

The state senate passed the Fetal Heartbeat and Protection from Abortion Act (S. 474) Tuesday by a vote of 27-19 and sent the measure to the desk of Governor Henry McMaster (R), who said he “look[s] forward to signing this bill into law as soon as possible.”

Read the full story

Los Angeles Archdiocese Condemns Dodgers for Reinviting ‘Queer and Trans Nuns,’ Calls for Catholics to ‘Stand Against Bigotry’

Susan Berry, PhD

The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles has released a statement condemning the Los Angeles Dodgers for reinviting the “Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence,” a self-described group of “queer and trans nuns” that puts on exhibitions that desecrate the Catholic faith.

The statement comes as Catholic leaders are organizing an effort to educate Los Angeles Catholics about the “sisters’” anti-Catholic bigotry and to urge a boycott of the Dodgers’ “pride night” game event at which the team plans to honor the group.

Read the full story

Los Angeles Dodgers Apologize and Reinvite Drag ‘Nuns’ Group as ‘Pride Night’ Honoree

Susan Berry, PhD

The Los Angeles Dodgers apologized to and reinvited the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, a radical anti-Catholic group that defiles the Catholic faith, to be honored at the team’s game night “pride” event.

The move by the Dodgers’ organization to reinvite the blasphemous group of self-described “queer and trans nuns” comes following backlash from radical LGBTQ activists and their political allies.

Read the full story

New Jersey Rep. Chris Smith Chairs Hearing on Biden’s Push to Cede U.S. Sovereignty to World Health Organization

Susan Berry, PhD

New Jersey Representative Chris Smith (R) announced Monday he will chair a congressional hearing on the Biden administration’s push to enter into an international pandemic treaty that could cede U.S. sovereignty to the World Health Organization (WHO).

“Under absolutely no circumstances should the Biden Administration surrender American sovereignty to the World Health Organization and allow the voice of the American people and consent of the governed to be subjugated to dictates of an agenda-driven global administrative bureaucracy,” said Smith, chair of the House Global Health, Global Human Rights and International Organizations Subcommittee.

Read the full story

Medical School Professor Exposed as Urging Parents to Adopt Gender Ideology ‘At Birth or Even Before’

Susan Berry, PhD

A video has surfaced in which Albert Einstein College of Medicine Assistant Professor Dr. Lauren Roth is heard telling an interviewer that parents must adopt gender ideology even before their baby is born because young children can be “gender expansive,” meaning they “may not necessarily follow the social norms of gender.”

The video, found by Fox News, actually aired in June 2021, during “pride month” of that year, and only garnered 209 views at the time. Roth appeared as a guest on OPEN Tuesday at BronxNet, which provides community access productions for residents of Bronx, New York.

Read the full story

Oklahoma State Superintendent Cites Teachers’ Unions as ‘Marxist’ and ‘Terrorist’ Organizations

Susan Berry, PhD

Oklahoma state superintendent of schools Ryan Walters repeated Saturday that teachers’ unions are “Marxist” and “terrorist” organizations that are not advocating for students or teachers, but seeking power and financial gain for their leaders.

“Unions, including those in Oklahoma, have single-handedly destroyed the classroom,” Walters tweeted and linked to his interview with Fox News. “It is time to take our kids education back and put parents in charge.”

Read the full story

Veteran Connecticut Journalist Questions Whether Abortion Has Become ‘Connecticut’s Highest Social Good’

Susan Berry, PhD

In the wake of news last week that Connecticut’s Wesleyan University has agreed to pay for all student abortions and emergency contraception, veteran journalist Chris Powell considers that the move by this “citadel of leftist groupthink” signals that the state may have spiraled downward to a point at which abortion has now become Connecticut’s “highest social good.”

As CT Mirror reported last week, the Wesleyan Democratic Socialists’ demands for abortion and contraception services following the Supreme Court’s ruling that overturned Roe v. Wade was met with approval by the school.  

Read the full story

Christian Leader Calls for Immediate Release of Covenant School Shooter’s Manifesto Following Durham Report: ‘FBI Has Been Compromised’

Susan Berry, PhD

The director of the Christian Defense Coalition told The Star News Network in an interview Friday it is crucial that the FBI release The Covenant School shooter Audrey Hale’s manifesto to the public, especially in the wake of the “scathing report” by Special Counsel John Durham that has led to a firestorm over the federal law enforcement agency’s integrity and analysis.

“There have been many stories that the local Nashville Police Department is turning much of the manifesto in detail writings of Audrey Hale over to the FBI, for analysis, to try to get a sense of a profile, any issues that might help ensure that something like this doesn’t happen again,” Rev. Patrick Mahoney said.

Read the full story

Former Tennessee State Sen. Dolores Gresham: Story Claiming American Classical Education Charter Schools’ ‘Core Knowledge’ Program Has ‘Links’ to Common Core Is False

Susan Berry, PhD

American Classical Education (ACE) board member Dolores Gresham, a former Tennessee state senator, said Tuesday the story at Tennessee Lookout that claimed Hillsdale College’s affiliated ACE charter schools are teaching a curriculum with links to the Common Core Standards, is “false.”

“The Core Knowledge Foundation program is not the same thing as Common Core,” Gresham said in a statement. “It is decades older than Common Core and is already in use by many schools in Tennessee – including all three of Nashville’s top-performing charter schools.”

Read the full story

Los Angeles Dodgers Pull Invitation to ‘Anti-Catholic Hate Group’ for Pride Event After Catholic Uproar

Susan Berry, PhD

The Los Angeles Dodgers pulled their invitation Wednesday to an “extremist anti-Catholic hate group” known as the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence from a pride month event scheduled for June 16. The Dodgers announced the removal of the “sisters” as honorees in a press statement. “In the spirit of unity, the Los Angeles Dodgers are proud to host our 10th annual LGBTQ+ Pride Night on June 16th,” the announcement read. “This event has become a meaningful tradition, highlighting not only the diversity and resilience within our fanbase, but also the impactful work of extraordinary community groups.” “We are now aware that our inclusion of one group in particular – The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence – in this year’s pride night has been the source of some controversy,” the Dodgers continued, adding: Given the strong feelings of people who have been offended by the sisters’ inclusion in our evening, and in an effort not to distract from the great benefits that we have seen over the years of Pride Night, we are deciding to remove them from this year’s group of honorees. The Dodgers’ decision to remove the group from its list of honorees comes after Catholic leaders expressed outrage to the…

Read the full story

Florida Fifth-Grade Teacher Scolds Parents: ‘Your Rights Are Gone When Your Child Is In the Public School System’

Susan Berry, PhD

A Florida fifth-grade teacher justified her decision on CNN to show her students an LGBT-themed Disney movie claiming that parents who complained about it are “ignorant.”

Journalist and Grabien founder Tom Elliott tweeted a clip of CNN’s interview Monday night with Jenna Barbee, a fifth-grade teacher at Winding Waters School, a K-8 school in the Hernando County district, who is under investigation over possible violation of Florida’s Parental Rights in Education law, recently expanded to prohibit classroom instruction in sexual orientation and gender identity in all grades from K-12, rather than only K-3.

Read the full story

World Health Organization Ripped over ‘Early Childhood’ Sex Ed Teaching ‘Masturbation’ and ‘Gender Identities’

Susan Berry, PhD

The World Health Organization (WHO) is drawing fire throughout Europe for continuing its Comprehensive Sex Education (CSE) guidance that recommends children under four years of age be taught “enjoyment and pleasure when touching one’s own body, early childhood masturbation,” and “the right to explore gender identities.”

The “Standards for Sexuality Education in Europe,” first published in 2010 by the WHO, the global health organization of the United Nations, is being challenged by various pro-family organizations concerned about the sexualization of young children, as the Daily Mail reported.

Read the full story

Sens. Ron Johnson, Tommy Tuberville Join Colleagues in Defending Women’s Sports: ‘Leaving Women at a Complete Disadvantage in Activities Specifically Meant for Them’

Susan Berry, PhD

Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI) joined Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) and other GOP senators Tuesday in a public comment to Biden Education Secretary Miguel Cardona that opposes the department’s proposed rule to expand Title IX to allow biological males to compete in women’s sports, and specifically points out how the rule will undermine the original intention of Title IX.

The education department’s proposed rule, titled “Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Sex in Education Programs or Activities Receiving Federal Financial Assistance: Sex-Related Eligibility Criteria for Male and Female Athletic Teams” was published in the Federal Register on April 6.

Read the full story

Planned Parenthood CEO Calls for Supreme Court Reform: ‘The Court Now Has Been Fully Captured’ on Abortion Rights

Susan Berry, PhD

The CEO of Planned Parenthood said on Mother’s Day on MSNBC that the Supreme Court has now “been fully captured” by a “conservative supermajority” that has attacked abortion rights and, therefore, must be reformed, along with the lower courts as well.

Led by former Biden White House Press Secretary-turned MSNBC opinion host Jen Psaki, Alexis McGill Johnson said “the reality is the Court now has been fully captured in so many areas.”

Read the full story

Study Finds 71 Percent of American Men Experienced Negative Impact to Mental Health After Loss of a Child to Abortion

Susan Berry, PhD

A newly released study about the impact of abortion on American men finds 71 percent of men experienced “adverse changes” to their mental health following the loss of a child to abortion.

Results of the study, commissioned by Support After Abortion, a nonprofit focused on post-abortion healing education, found that of the 71 percent of men who suffered “adverse changes,” 83 percent said they “either sought after abortion help or said they could have benefited from talking to someone.”

Read the full story

Nickelodeon’s ‘Transformers’ Cartoon Pushes Trans Agenda on Children

Susan Berry, PhD

Nickelodeon’s Transformers: Earthspark cartoon has recently fallen prey to woke transgender ideology as the franchise that, for years, has caught children’s attention with creative and action-packed battles of good guys vs. bad guys, now includes discussions about “pronouns,” and “non-binary” beings.

In one clip from November, Morgan Malto, the lead nine-year-old character, instructs Optimus Prime, an old-timer robot, on why robot Nightshade uses different pronouns.

Read the full story

Parents of Student Urging Pro-Catholic Teachings Suspended from Their Teaching Positions, Under Investigation

Susan Berry, PhD

The parents of internationally known Ontario high school student Josh Alexander have been suspended from their teaching posts in another board and placed under investigation over what appears to be their son’s outspoken views against his Catholic school board’s cave to the LGBTQ agenda.

“From the beginning, I understood the consequences my actions may have and I was willing to take that stand and face the consequences,” Alexander told The Epoch Times, according to a report Thursday.

Read the full story

‘Faith and Wellness’ Report Finds 99 Percent of Evangelicals Believe Prayer and Active Faith Contribute to Positive Mental Health

Susan Berry, PhD

Nearly 100 percent of evangelical Protestants believe that prayer, reading the Bible, and living out a strong Christian faith impact mental health in a positive way, says a report released Thursday by Infinity Concepts and Grey Matter Research.

Noting that rarely is any group of people, including evangelical Protestants, in nearly entire agreement, Infinity Concepts, a self-described “integrated marketing-communications agency inspiring people of faith to action,” and Grey Matter Research, a consulting firm that specializes in serving Christian organization, say results of the current study is unique.

Read the full story

Maine Elementary School Skips Math, Literacy Classes to Organize Children in Black Lives Matter March

Susan Berry, PhD

Videos and other documents obtained by Parents Defending Education (PDE) have revealed an elementary school in Portland, Maine, cancelled its math and literacy classes to enable teachers to organize students in a social justice march that included children chanting “Black Lives Matter (BLM)” and waving signs.

The national parental rights organization that opposes indoctrination in schools submitted a public records request to Portland Public Schools for the documents and emails related to the BLM march that was reported to have been originally planned at Presumpscot Elementary School on February 28 – the end of “black history month,” but was ultimately delayed until March 3.

Read the full story

Connecticut Democrat Lawmaker Confirmed to Have Been Drunk When Killed by Wrong-Way Driver

Susan Berry, PhD

Connecticut State Rep. Quentin Williams (D-Middletown), 39, was legally intoxicated when he was killed by a wrong-way driver in January, according to Connecticut House Speaker Matt Ritter (D-Hartford).

An accident investigation report yet to be released also showed that Kimede Mustafaj, 27, who had been identified as the woman who was the wrong-way driver in the crash, also died with a blood-alcohol level above the legal limit and had Delta-9 THC, the active ingredient in marijuana, in her system when the crash occurred, according to Hearst Connecticut Media Tuesday.

Read the full story

Maine Governor’s Expert Witness for Bill to Legalize Abortion Until Birth Authorized Abortion on New Mexico Woman Who Died from Complications of Procedure

Susan Berry, PhD

The OB/GYN tapped by Maine Gov. Janet Mills (D) to champion her bill that would allow abortions up until birth has been found to have authorized the 24-week abortion of a woman who later died in Albuquerque from complications due to the procedure.

Dr. Shannon Carr was named in the wrongful death lawsuit filed against her employer, Southwestern Women’s Options (SWO), the Maine Wire reported Friday.

Read the full story

Catholic Civil Rights Leader: Washington Post Fails to Mention Its Recent Poll Revealed 78 Percent of Transgender Adults Had Serious Mental Health Problems Growing Up

Susan Berry, PhD

Catholic League President Bill Donohue observed Monday that The Washington Post neglected to mention in its news story about its own poll on transgenderism that trans individuals reported a more significant percentage of mental health concerns than all adults surveyed.

Bill Donohue noted that The Post’s “2517-word story, published May 5, covers just about every aspect of the 26-page survey except for the issue of mental health.”

Read the full story

Indiana Expands School Choice to Nearly All K-12 Students as Republican-Led States Continue Momentum

Susan Berry, PhD

Indiana scored the latest school choice victory with nearly all, save for 3.5 percent of families with school-age children, qualifying for the state’s new voucher program, The Wall Street Journal editorial board noted last week.

“The hits keep coming on school choice in Republican-run states,” The Journal editors observed, detailing:

The new law raises the income cap to 400% of the free- and reduced-price lunch income level, which is now about $220,000 for a family of four. The bill also removes the other criteria for eligibility so that any family under the income limit can apply. Tens of thousands of additional students could qualify, and a legislative analysis projects that some 95,000 students might use the program in 2025, up from about 53,000 in 2023.

Read the full story

South Carolina Mom Asks School Board ‘Why Are Adult Teachers Allowed to Sponsor a Group Regarding Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity with Minors?’

Susan Berry, PhD

A South Carolina parent challenged the school board of Richland School District Two in Columbia where Blythewood High School (BHS) hosted the Anti-Defamation League’s (ADL) “No Place for Hate” program that invites children to “explore identity,” and “apply this understanding to recognize the relationship between identity, bias and power.”

ADL’s No Place for Hate program also seeks to “build the capacity to recognize and confront bias within oneself, others and institutions. Examine the relationship between individual biases and systemic oppression, including the impact of intersecting oppressions.”

Read the full story

‘Do No Harm’ Questions East Tennessee State University DEI Office’s ‘Moon Shot for Equity’ Program After Signing of Higher Education Freedom of Expression and Transparency Act

Susan Berry, PhD

An organization of doctors, healthcare professionals, and policymakers attempting to protect health care from “radical, divisive, and discriminatory ideology” is questioning how East Tennessee State University (ETSU) will respond to the state’s new higher education transparency law that rolls back Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) requirements at publicly funded colleges, universities, and medical schools.

“ETSU is just continuing to double down on their DEI efforts,” Do No Harm’s Laura Morgan, MSN, RN, told The Tennessee Star in an interview, explaining that the school’s announced DEI program called “Moon Shot for Equity” is the “kind of program that House Bill 1376 and Senate Bill 817 is going to say you’ve got to get rid of because it’s pretty clear about not having courses or learning” related to DEI.

Read the full story

Massachusetts Middle School Doubles Down on Censoring 12-Year-Old’s ‘Two Genders’ Shirt

Susan Berry, PhD

Massachusetts middle school student Liam Morrison was reportedly told again to remove his shirt Friday, one that said, “There Are Censored Genders,” which he wore to protest his school’s alleged decision to censor his right to free speech.

Massachusetts Family Institute (MFI) said it is now preparing to take legal action on behalf of Liam and his parents “to vindicate Liam’s right to speak truth in a culture inundated by lies.”

Read the full story

North Carolina’s Veto-Proof Republican-Led Senate Passes 12-Week Abortion Bill

Susan Berry, PhD

The Democrat governor of North Carolina has vowed to veto a 12-week bill that would ban some abortions after the veto-proof Republican-controlled Senate approved the measure Thursday night.

On CNN Thursday, Gov. Roy Cooper (D) begged one Republican from each chamber of the North Carolina legislature to uphold his veto of Senate Bill 20, known as the “Care for Women, Children, and Families Act,” a measure he called a “disastrous abortion ban.”

Read the full story

Maryland Democrat Governor Signs Bills Enshrining Abortion and Protecting Transgender Drug and Surgical Treatments for Minors

Susan Berry, PhD

Maryland Gov. Wes Moore (D) signed bills Wednesday that would enshrine abortion rights in state law and protect transgender medical treatments for minors, including puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, and transgender surgeries.

Moore said in a statement the new laws have “further strengthened our leave no one behind vision by protecting individual freedoms,” especially “solidifying reproductive rights,” and “expanding access to healthcare.” 

Read the full story

Catholic Leader Rebukes Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman for Navy’s Use of Drag Queen for Recruitment Campaign

Susan Berry, PhD

In a strong rebuke Thursday to the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the president of the nation’s prominent Catholic civil rights organization charged that the U.S. Navy is continuing to use “the policies of the far-left, the woke brand of politics,” in its recent drag queen digital campaign supposedly intended as a recruitment strategy.

Bill Donohue of the Catholic League wrote to General Mark Milley, condemning the scandal of the Navy’s acknowledgment the service branch has recruited Yeoman 2nd Class Joshua Kelley, a sailor who “misidentifies,” as Donohue states, as “non-binary,” and who performs as a drag queen, to serve as a “digital ambassador” in a pilot program geared toward attracting young recruits.

Read the full story

Massachusetts Family Institute Defends First Amendment Rights of 12-Year-Old Student Against School That Punished Him for Wearing ‘Two Genders’ Shirt

Susan Berry, PhD

The Massachusetts Family Institute (MFI) announced Tuesday the public policy organization sent a demand letter to the superintendent of Middleborough Public Schools on behalf of a 12-year-old student who was allegedly punished for wearing a shirt that said, “There are only two genders.”

Liam Morrison defended his First Amendment rights to his school committee on April 13, several weeks after he was reportedly taken out of gym class at Nichols Middle School and informed by school staff that complaints had been made about the shirt he was wearing that said, “There are only two genders.”

Read the full story

U.S. History and Civics National Test Scores Plunge to Lowest Levels on Record

Susan Berry, PhD

U.S. Education Department data released on Wednesday finds national eighth-grade test scores in U.S. History and civics dropped to their lowest level on record last year.

Compared to 2018, average test scores on the 2022 Nation’s Report Card (National Assessment of Educational Progress – NAEP) declined in both subjects. Additionally, scores dropped for lower- and middle-performing students in civics, and across five selected percentiles, except the 90th percentile, in U.S. history.

Read the full story

Heritage Author Asserts Goal of Leftist Lawmakers’ Demand for Ethnic Studies Curricula in Government Schools Is Erasure of American Culture

Susan Berry, PhD

A senior fellow at the Heritage Foundation says leftist lawmakers in Democrat-led states such as Minnesota and California are feeding into a culture of victimization and identity politics with their plans for mandatory K-12 ethnic studies curricula, the goal of which, he says, is actually to erase American culture.

In an op-ed at the Washington Examiner Tuesday, Mike Gonzalez wrote that what is most disturbing about the leftist call for mandatory K-12 ethnic studies curricula in government schools is that most of the lawmakers proposing these bills are actually “not in the least bit interested” in learning about the minutiae of the hundreds of ethnic cultures represented in the United States. Rather, “they care only about American culture — or, at least, how to erase it.”

Read the full story

Connecticut State Trooper Wins $260,500 Settlement in Lawsuit Against Police Union and Department Officials

Susan Berry, PhD

A Connecticut State Trooper won a settlement in his federal civil rights lawsuit against officials of the Connecticut State Police Union (CSPU) and Department of Emergency Services (DESPP), in which he charged them with illegally demoting him for his refusal to become a union member and to pay union dues to support CSPU’s political positions.

The trooper, Joseph Mercer, who was represented by the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation, settled the lawsuit for $260,500.

Read the full story

Vivek Ramaswamy Schools Chuck Todd Over His Claim Gender Is ‘a Spectrum’

Susan Berry, PhD

Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy instructed NBC’s Meet the Press host Chuck Todd in basic biological principles and the moderator’s claim that gender is “a spectrum.”

“Under the age of 18, I think it’s perfectly legitimate to say that we won’t allow genital mutilation or chemical castration through puberty blockers,” Ramaswamy asserted to Todd on Sunday.

Read the full story

Massachusetts Boy Confronts School Board After Allegedly Being Punished for ‘There Are Only Two Genders’ Shirt: ‘Why Do the Rules Apply to One Yet Not Another?’

Susan Berry, PhD

A 12-year-old Middleborough, Massachusetts school boy recently defended his First Amendment rights to his school committee after allegedly being sent home from school for making others feel unsafe by wearing a shirt that says, “There are only two genders.”

A video of Liam Morrison’s confrontation of his school committee was reported Sunday at the Libs of TikTok Twitter account.

Read the full story

Former Student Urges Catholic School District to Promote Church Teachings Rather Than Cave to LGBTQ Agenda During ‘Pride Month’

Susan Berry, PhD

A former student at Cardinal Carter Catholic High School in Aurora, Ontario, was cheered this week when he gave a passionate speech at a board meeting during which he urged the district to adhere to the teachings of the Catholic Church to help all students rather than cave to the LGBTQ agenda during the upcoming “pride month.”

Myles Vosylius, 20, drew applause from parents and other citizens at a York Catholic District School Board (YCDSB) meeting Tuesday as he shared his own conversion story related to his parents’ divorce while he was in high school.

Read the full story

Union Boss Randi Weingarten Ripped for Denying She Pushed Biden Administration to Keep Schools Closed

Susan Berry, PhD

American Federation of Teachers (AFT) President Randi Weingarten is drawing fire from many sides for her denial before a congressional subcommittee that she pressed the Biden administration to keep government schools closed during the COVID-19 pandemic, even as U.S. private and religious schools, and public schools in Europe, reopened.

CNN contributor and Kentucky parent Scott Jennings confronted Weingarten Thursday night for pushing the Biden administration to keep schools closed during the COVID crisis but claiming to the House COVID subcommittee she had always wanted to reopen schools.

Read the full story

Catholic Advocacy Group Sues FBI and DOJ for FOIA Documents Related to Government Targeting of Catholics

Susan Berry, PhD

National Catholic advocacy organization CatholicVote filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit with Judicial Watch Thursday against the FBI and DOJ for failing to provide records requested under FOIA regarding the government’s targeting of Catholics.

CatholicVote President Brian Burch spoke to Fox & Friends Thursday about the lawsuit.

Read the full story

Top Swedish Doctors Determine Transgender Puberty Blockers ‘Experimental’ While U.S. Gender Clinics Push Ahead

Susan Berry, PhD

With the urging of the Biden administration, gender clinics in the United States appear to be pushing ahead with aggressive medical interventions for gender-confused young people even as top Swedish doctors who reviewed the use of puberty blockers for children now say the drugs should only be called “experimental.” 

Doctors at the Karolinska Institute, one of Europe’s top medical schools, released a systematic review of the literature regarding the provision of puberty blockers to children, the report for which was published April 17 at Acta Paediatrica.

Read the full story

Woke Washington State School District Board Member Draws Fire for Cutting Music Program With Claim It Fosters ‘White Supremacy’ and ‘Institutional Violence’

Susan Berry, PhD

An Olympia School District board member in Washington state is the recipient of intense criticism for attempting to justify budget cuts by eliminating the district’s music classes with the claims the classes promote “white supremacy culture” and “significant institutional violence.”

According to Jason Rantz, host of The Jason Rantz Show on 770KTTH, with an expected district budget shortfall of $11.5 million, School Board Director Scott Clifthorne told parents the music program for fourth and fifth-grade students would be eliminated to make the budget cuts.

Read the full story

Documents: Teachers’ Union Played Significant Role in CDC’s Halting of Full School Reopening

Susan Berry, PhD

The American Federation of Teachers (AFT) and its president Randi Weingarten had significant input into the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) pandemic school reopening guidelines than was known in 2021, according to documents obtained by Americans for Public Trust (APT).

The independent watchdog organization that, according to its website, “works to restore trust in government by exposing corruption and holding the powerful accountable,” reportedly discovered in emails and records shared with The New York Post that Weingarten “spoke twice by phone with CDC Director Rochelle Walensky in the week leading up to the Feb. 12, 2021, announcement that halted full re-opening of in-person classes — including the day before the guidance was released,” The Post said.

Read the full story

Catholic Civil Rights Leader Requests Nashville Police Department Release Covenant Killer’s Manifesto

Susan Berry, PhD

Catholic League President Bill Donohue is asking Nashville police to produce the manifesto they said they found among transgender shooter Audrey Hale’s belongings.

“The local police said she was planning the attack ‘over a period of months,’ and that she had studied other mass murderers,” wrote Donohue Monday. “They emphasized that the attack was ‘calculated and planned.’ Importantly, they found a manifesto that laid bare her thinking.”

Read the full story

Survey: Faith Surged Among Young People amid COVID Pandemic

Susan Berry, PhD

A survey first reported Monday by the Wall Street Journal found that 30 percent of young people say their faith grew stronger during the COVID pandemic, and that the percentage of those who say they know a “higher power” exists surged to 28 percent in December 2022 from the 22 percent reported in the 2021 survey.

Conducted by nonprofit Springtide Research Institute, the survey cites the context of the COVID pandemic lockdowns, when young people were largely isolated from others, and the subsequent mental health crisis among them had already begun to reach “epidemic proportions.”

Read the full story