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women Archives – Concerned Women for America

The Real March Madness

By | News and Events, Women's Sports | No Comments

The real March Madness is the NCAA allowing men to compete in women’s sports as Concerned Women for America (CWA) Senior Advisor, Doreen Denny,  writes in her latest op-ed published on FOX.com. As Charlie Baker, the former Republican Governor of Massachusetts takes over as President of the National Collegiate Athletic Association, CWA have joined with other women’s organizations and female athletes to demand a policy that protects female athletes from having their scholarships, trophies and dignity taken by men.  

Stand on Principle and Win

By | LBB, News and Events, Sanctity of Life | No Comments

To achieve political victory by deceiving the public about who you are and what you will do once in office is no victory at all. It will not be a win for the candidate who will be eventually exposed as a fraud once elected, and in such a case, it is no win for the people who will be left suffering the consequences of policies they did not really want.

 

And the truth is that, usually, people can detect and will be attracted to authenticity. But, more important yet, a battle-tested leader who stands by his convictions in support of American families is nearly impossible to beat.

 

Gov. Ron DeSantis’ overwhelming victory in Florida is an excellent example of this longstanding principle…

 

Click here to read the rest of Mario’s exclusive Substack column. And be sure to subscribe below to never miss one of his posts again!

DOJ Politicization Adding to the Obliteration of Public Confidence in the Rule of Law

By | LBB, Legal, News and Events, Sanctity of Life | No Comments

“Eleven Charged With FACE Act Violations Stemming From 2021 Blockade of Mount Juliet Reproductive Health Clinic,” read the Department of Justice U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Tennessee press release. Translation: The U.S. Department of Justice uses law enforcement to harass the Biden Administration’s political adversaries. They see it all as part of their vengeful crusade to protect “reproductive rights” after the overturn of Roe v. Wade.

 

The announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Mark H. Wildasin from the Middle District of Tennessee and Kristen M. Clarke, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division. Clarke is a pro-abortion radical who testified in Congress in 2020 for the codification of a “Constitutional right to abortion.” She believes, “The right to reproductive care, including abortion care, is inextricably intertwined with the ability of women to attain upward mobility …” and that “limits on access to abortion are not just a reproductive rights issue, but a matter that squarely threatens to undermine racial justice, and that necessitates federal legislation.”

 

Naturally, President Joe Biden selected Clarke in 2021 to head the U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division, ensuring this sort of unjust, politically motivated actions against the Administration’s political opponents would materialize.

 

Meanwhile, DOJ continues to ignore the numerous attacks on pro-life clinics and churches since the Dobbs decision. You might recall CWA was itself vandalized.

 

The pro-life activists were charged under the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act under an indictment that “alleges that, beginning in February 2021, Chester Gallagher utilized social media to promote a series of anti-abortion events scheduled for March 4-7, 2021, in the Nashville area.” DOJ announced, “If convicted, those charged with conspiracy face up to 11 years in prison and fines of up to $250,000.”

 

As if that were not shameful enough, the politicized department proudly announced that “This case was investigated by the FBI,” which has come under unprecedented disrepute following its disgraceful mishandling of numerous cases. From the Larry Nassar case, where the victim’s families are seeking $130 million for their reckless and cruel mishandling of that case, to the Epstein fiasco, where Ghislaine Maxwell received 20 years in prison for trafficking underage girls to apparently no one because they continue to protect and ignore the “clients” of the dastardly affair to the unprecedented and utterly political search of former President Trump’s home at Mar-a-Lago, the FBI has unfortunately lost all credibility.

 

And DOJ has been working similarly alongside them. The adverse consequences of these developments cannot be overstated. Thanks to these blatant abuses, millions of Americans feel there are two systems of justice, one for friends of those in power and one for the rest of the country. They are destroying one of the principles that is foundational to our freedoms. John Adams said it best when he described our republic as “a government of laws, not of men.” This is foundational to justice.

 

The DOJ and FBI’s current despicable behavior reinforces a belief that what matters is not the law but the personnel enforcing it, that the law will be twisted to fit the outcomes they want.

 

The charges against these pro-life advocates are ridiculous. At a time when we face so many challenges in law enforcement, why would they spend the resources on this type of action? Well, it is evident that it is meant to deter pro-life advocacy going forward. Pro-life, pro-family, freedom-loving Americans are being painted as a threat.

 

It is worth noting that these actions are not taken in a vacuum. Remember President Biden’s red-flaming speech flanked by two military members where he screamed about “MAGA Republicans”? Perhaps you recall the DOJ’s outrageous labeling of parents as “domestic terrorists.”

 

This mismanagement and abuse have been catastrophic. We must put an end to it now for the good of our country. Congress must engage even more forcefully. The damage being done will take decades to undo.

New “For Life” Bible Study

By | LBB, Publications, Sanctity of Life | No Comments

No one enjoys being told they are wrong. But this is precisely what we most need when we are blind to the fact that we are indeed wrong about something. The first step to walking away from error is to recognize we stand in one.

 

This is precisely where many in our society find themselves on the issue of life. And as famous pastor, theologian, and mentor of the great Martyn Lloyd-Jones, G. Campbell Morgan eloquently said, “There is one sure and infallible guide to truth, and therefore one, and only one, corrective for error, and that is the Word of God.”

 

That is why I am excited to bring you our “For Life” Bible study. Please stay tuned to ConcernedWomen.org for ordering details.

 

This powerful, error-exposing resource will transform the lives of its student. How can it not? It exposes those who dare wrinkle its pages to the pure, unfiltered, heart-penetrating, two-edged sword of the Scriptures, only asking questions to help the reader reflect on the truths explored. I implore you to engage with it yourself, become familiar with it, and then take the time to disciple others with it.

 

As with any other two-edged sword worthy of that warning, “handle with care,” it is best if someone unfamiliar with such a powerful weapon is helped along by someone with some mastery of the material. I am praying God will move you to become such a helper.

 

Remember Philip’s encounter with the Ethiopian eunuch in Acts chapter 8? The eunuch was reading a passage from Isaiah by himself when Philip approached him and asked, “Do you understand what you are reading” (v.30)? To which he replied, “How can I, unless someone guides me” (v.31)? This study is undoubtedly powerful by itself. But when you teach it to someone else, a true miracle can happen. I pray that many of you will feel called by God to aid in this miraculous work. Would you help me pray for that?

 

I leave you with a short excerpt from Chapter 3, “In the Womb.”

 

Samson’s mother was also “childless, unable to give birth,” until an “angel of the Lord appeared to her and said, ’You are barren and childless, but you are going to become pregnant and give birth to a son.’” Judges 13:2-3. Scripture also tells us he was “dedicated to God from the womb.” Judges 13:5.

 

What does Samson being dedicated to God “from the womb” imply?

 

______________________________________________________

 

He was separated from the womb for a specific task. The angel said, “He will take the lead in delivering Israel from the hands of the Philistines.” Judges 13:5. What does that tell us?

 

______________________________________________________

Sen. Graham’s Pro-Life Bill Will Save Lives, Align Federal Law with American Values

By | News and Events, Sanctity of Life, South Carolina | No Comments

For Immediate Release:                                                        Contact:  [email protected]

September 14, 2022                                                                (703)282-7320

 

Washington, D.C.  –  Concerned Women for America Legislative Action Committee (CWALAC), the largest public policy women’s organization in the country, today announced its support of Senator Lindsey Graham’s (R-South Carolina) Protecting Pain-Capable Unborn Children from Late-Term Abortions Act. This bill will protect the unborn from abortion after fifteen weeks gestation.

 

“Life is a winning issue,” said CWALAC CEO and President, Penny Nance in a press conference with Senator Graham and other policy leaders.  “In today’s post-Roe America, we are finally allowed to have the conversation about what we as a society now know—by following the science—about fetal development. We can finally put into place stronger protections to stop destroying human life.”

 

“We saw abortion extremists show their true colors with so-called Women’s Health Protection Act, better named the Abortion-on-Demand Act. They pushed for taxpayer funded abortion up until the point of birth. This position is out of step with the American people. Unsurprisingly, that bill failed twice on the Senate floor. In a post-Roe poll in June, nearly three-fourths of respondents support a protection for the unborn at 15 weeks.

 

“Consistently, since 1973, around 70% of the American people have supported restrictions on abortion. Through advances in science, families and medical professionals are now able to understand that at fifteen weeks:

 

    • the baby can feel pain,
    • the baby can move her fully formed fingers and toes
    • the baby can suck her thumb
    • the baby has a fully developed heart pumping 26 quarts of blood per day.

 

“So, let’s make it clear to the Republican consultants and pollsters—the country knows what happens inside the womb. They know that life is precious.”

 

CWALAC encouraged other members of the United States Senate to lead with a winning issue for the American people.

 

To schedule an interview with Penny Nance, please contact [email protected].

 

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Concerned Women for America is the Nation’s largest public policy organization for women; we are dedicated to promoting Biblical values and Constitutional principles. More information is available at concernedwomen.org

NCAA abuse of female athletes’ Title IX protections needs to be fought in court

By | News and Events, Women's Sports | No Comments

New court rulings open door to fight NCAA’s approval of transgender athletes

 

You may not believe this, but the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), with its prime-time TV contracts and multi-million-dollar advertising budget, is a nonprofit organization under federal law. For decades the NCAA has been immune from Title IX lawsuits because it’s a nonprofit that doesn’t receive federal funds. But two federal courts have just redefined the meaning of “federal financial assistance” under Title IX and changed the equation for female athletes seeking to sue the NCAA.  

 

Last month, federal courts in Maryland and California ruled against religious schools in sexual harassment cases declaring their nonprofit tax-exempt status amounts to federal financial assistance. Under the same reasoning, it wouldn’t matter that the NCAA doesn’t receive federal money. The mere fact that the IRS grants it the privilege of being exempt from federal taxes amounts to financial assistance.  

 

While these opinions are rightfully criticized, their reasoning could pave the needed path for female student athletes to sue the NCAA for its discriminatory policy allowing biological males to compete in women’s sports.

 

Under policies forced by the NCAA, women are being exploited in ways never intended. Look no further than the real March Madness this year when school records at the University of Pennsylvania (UPenn) were shattered and an NCAA national title in women’s swimming was won by a male swimmer self-identifying as a woman. Lia Thomas’ records weren’t won by any measure of fairness or equity in women’s sports. They were stolen and only because the NCAA allowed it to happen…

 

Click here to read the rest of Doreen Denny’s FoxNews exclusive op-ed.

Press Release: Women’s Rights will be Violated by Biden Administration’s Title IX Rule

By | News and Events, Press Releases | No Comments

For Immediate Release                                                              Contact:  CWA Comms Team

September 13, 2022                                                                     [email protected]

 

CWA Files Opposition Comment to Discriminatory Proposed Rule

 

Washington, D.C.  –  Concerned Women for America (CWA), the largest public policy women’s organization in the country, announced today that it filed a comment in opposition to the Biden Administration’s proposed Title IX (Rule) titled “Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Sex in Educational Programs and Activities Receiving Federal Financial Assistance” (Docket ID # ED-2021-OCR-0166).  The Rule was proposed by President Joe Biden in June, and the comment period closed on September 12.

 

“Forcing a new interpretation of sex under Title IX is a direct threat to every woman and girl in America,” reads the comment letter addressed to Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona and signed by CWA CEO and President, Penny Nance.  “What this Rule does in practice is nothing less than erase our status and protections as female. There is an inherent and insurmountable conflict in the scope and application of sex discrimination proposed in this Rule that disproportionately harms biological women and girls. It is already happening today: female students are being assaulted in school restrooms; female athletes are forced to surrender their privacy in the locker room and lose their rightful opportunities in their own sports.

 

“Most certainly, the Department should not be gutting the very foundation of Title IX and the meaning of ‘sex’ with the vague, undefined, subjective category of ‘gender identity’ thus stripping women of vital protections under civil rights law. Mandating a new form of discrimination against women and girls is an affront to our dignity and humanity. Being male and female is an unchangeable fact of the natural world that differentiates human beings from conception. It is part of our genetic makeup.

 

“This Rule will straitjacket every educational program and activity to abide by its direct assault against our daughters and to perpetuate an insidious gender ideology that socializes students to believe they can be ‘born in the wrong body.’ The women of CWA object to this Rule in the strongest of terms.” 

 

Encouraged by CWA, thousands of women and men from every state across the country sent unique comments opposing this Rule.  A record-breaking number of comments were submitted according to the Department of Education.

 

For more information on opposition to the Rule by CWA and other likeminded organizations, please contact [email protected].

 

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Concerned Women for America is the Nation’s largest public policy organization for women; we are dedicated to promoting Biblical values and Constitutional principles. More information is available at www.concernedwomen.org.

A Prayer of Thanksgiving that Roe is No More

By | Dobbs, Legal, News and Events, Sanctity of Life, SCOTUS | No Comments

As the deer pants for the water,

So we have longed to see

Your righteousness restored, oh Lord

With the demise of abortion on demand in our land.

 

This was a seemingly impossible task,

The world told us.

“Abortion is our right,”

They screamed, as millions of babies died.

 

For fifty years Roe hung

Like an evil dark cloud of judgment

While many mocked You and Your Word

As approving of such barbarity.

 

But we, the remnant, had faith in You,

In justice and truth.

We drank the tears of repentance for our nation

And prayed diligently, without ceasing.

 

We hoped in God alone,

Therefore, we know our redemption

Was secured. Those who trust in You

Are never disappointed!

 

Thank You, Father!

Thank You, Jesus, the Son!

Thank You Holy Spirit, for guiding us!

All glory to You.

 

As hard as we have worked,

To see this day of joyful deliverance,

We know it was not our efforts,

But the Lord’s grace. Amen!

 

Grace, grace!

God’s grace!

That grace that pardons and cleanses within,

Grace that is greater than all our sins.

 

Even the great sin of abortion

Melts away— as far as the East is from the West

Your grace removes our transgression

And gives us hope for the future.

 

Now, we pray peace in our land, Lord.

Calm the hearts not set on you,

Let not the Enemy use and abuse

Any more women in the cause of death.

 

Help us to care for all mothers

And their children, born and unborn.

Help us to trust and pray, even more,

Until the day of Your return.

 

Amen.

Justice Restored—Roe Overturned

By | Dobbs, Legal, News and Events, Sanctity of Life, SCOTUS | No Comments

“Down goes Roe.” You could almost hear it from inside the U.S. Supreme Court (in that iconic Howard Cosell voice). And just as Cosell said of George Forman, the pro-life movement “is as poised as can be.” Justice demanded an end to Roe. Justice, we got.

 

In a stunning 6-3 masterclass opinion delivered by Justice Samuel Alito, joined by Justices Clarence Thomas, Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, and Amy Barrett, with Chief Justice Roberts concurring in judgment (but saying he would not go so far as to overturn Roe and Casey), the Court simply holds: “The Constitution does not confer a right to abortion; Roe and Casey are overruled; and the authority to regulate abortion is returned to the people and their elected representatives.”

 

Justices Stephen Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor, and Elena Kagan dissented.

 

“The critical question is whether the Constitution, properly understood, confers a right to obtain an abortion,” the Court wrote. First, the Court acknowledges the obvious, “The Constitution makes no express reference to a right to obtain an abortion,” and turns at once to the many theories that have been offered throughout the years to manipulate the constitutional text and read a right to abortion into the Constitution. “Roe held that the abortion right is part of a right to privacy that springs from the First, Fourth, Fifth, Ninth, and Fourteenth Amendments,” the Court explains. Casey shifted that and “grounded its decision solely on the theory that the right to obtain an abortion is part of the ‘liberty’ protected by the Fourteenth Amendment’s Due Process Clause.”  Still, others tried the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.

 

It is refreshing to see the Court refuse to play the usual pro-abortion games in law and instead conclude, “regulations and prohibitions of abortion are governed by the same standard of review as other health and safety measures.” …

 

Please, click here to read the rest of this column as featured on American Thinker.

Grasping at Straws on Dobbs

By | Dobbs, LBB, Legal, News and Events, Sanctity of Life, Substack | No Comments

The boorish left is having a full-blown meltdown over the leaked opinion in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization and its impending official release by the United States Supreme Court. Justice Samuel Alito’s unassailable, monumental takedown of Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey’s complete lack of constitutional underpinning has them panicked.

 

It is certainly not the result they want. That is the reason for all the screeching, weeping, and gnashing of teeth we have seen in front of the Supreme Court and at the constitutionalist justices’ homes in clear violation of federal law. But the worst part about it is that Roe’s legal reasoning is such a dud that all they are left with is trying to manipulate what they see as the internal soap opera at the Court. Their target, as usual, is Chief Justice Roberts, who they hope can somehow swindle other justices into keeping Roe alive.

 

Politico’s Senior Legal Affairs Reporter Josh Gerstein’s latest “What a Roberts compromise on abortion could look like” is the latest not-so-subtle attempt at this. “It’s a longshot,” says the tagline on the piece, “but court watchers are closely eyeing the chief justice for middle ground on Roe.”

 

Gerstein acknowledges no one wants this middle ground. The pro-abortion side emphatically rejected it at oral arguments. Still, they can dream. Here is how he summarized the feeble argument of this dream opinion: “The central organizing principle for a Roberts opinion is likely to be one he has articulated many times: that the court shouldn’t issue a sweeping decision when a more modest one would do.” …

 

 

Click here to read the rest of Mario’s exclusive Substack column. And be sure to subscribe below to never miss one of his posts again!

Female Athletes Are Being Victimized to Pander to the Personal Fantasies of a Few

By | LBB, Legal, News and Events, Sexual Exploitation, Women's Sports | No Comments

Women athletes are in danger of losing their rights to the desires of men who feel they are women.

 

The anti-science effort to erase the physical differences between men and women is regressive and dangerous. Women are being victimized in the name of an AstroTurf diversity that discriminates against all who do not conform to the personal fantasies of a few.

 

The effort has consequences that go well beyond women’s athletics. In April, a male Rikers inmate claiming to be a woman was sentenced to seven years for raping a female prisoner in the women’s section of the jail. Concerned Women for America, the organization I represent — a Christian, conservative organization — is supporting a lawsuit by the liberal feminist organization Women’s Liberation Front to fight for women’s rights on this front.

 

We are also witnessing the pernicious promotion of transgender ideology in public schools, which ignores the sadpractical reality of the harmful long-term effects of life-altering surgical procedures on all young people, but on young women in particular.

 

But legally speaking, the women’s sports aspect of this battle, which has the backing of Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, should be preventing the injustices we are witnessing…

 

Read the rest of this op-ed as featured exclusively on The Western Journal.

Concerned Women to Biden Administration: Stop the Assault on Women’s Rights; Protect Title IX

By | Erasing Women, News and Events, Social / Cultural Issues, Women's Sports | No Comments

The Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) of the United States Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is reviewing the Department of Education’s (ED) plans to unilaterally amend Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (20 U.S.C. 1681 et seq.) to follow along with the Biden Administration’s radical push for an elevation of the concerns of men who identify as women, over those of women in all areas of federal law. It will effectively be the destruction of Title IX.

 

President Joe Biden has ignored the concerns of millions of women as he moved swiftly on an Executive Order on Preventing and Combating Discrimination on the Basis of Gender Identity or Sexual Orientation, and another one on Guaranteeing an Educational Environment Free from Discrimination on the Basis of Sex, including Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity. Women lose under the proposed extreme implementations of these orders, and that is why Concerned Women for America (CWA) is standing in strong opposition.

 

Recently, CWA’s Doreen Denny, one of the nation’s leading experts on the protection of women’s rights against the gender identity push that seeks to erase women’s unique makeup as women, Annabelle Rutledge, National Director of CWA’s Young Women for America program, and Mario Diaz, CWA’s General Counsel met with high-level officials from OMB and ED to express the concerns of the hundreds of thousands of concerned women members from around the country.

 

Denny’s statement set the tone for CWA’s clear stance for women and scientific truth in policymaking. She said in part:

 

Forcing a new interpretation of sex under Title IX is a direct threat to every woman and girl in America. What this proposed rule does in practice is nothing less than erase our status and protections as females. There is an inherent conflict in these policies already playing out across the country today:  female students are being assaulted in school restrooms; female athletes are losing their rightful opportunities in WOMEN’s sports. Have you quantified those costs?

 

Let’s be clear: “gender identity” does not equal sex. Therefore, it should not be used to undermine Title IX protections for women. “On the basis of sex” as stated in Title IX, should be based solely on the immutable genetic fact of being male or female – not on gender perceptions.

 

A person’s subjective claim to being the opposite sex does not, and will never, make that person the opposite sex. Gender dysphoria is a real condition, and its treatment deserves compassion – but the answer is not to affirm a lie and require everyone else to comply.

 

Biology is not bigotry. As women, we expect that the sex discrimination protections of Title IX passed into law 50 years ago will continue to protect our safety, privacy, and opportunities based on our objective female status – as intended.   Whatever objective you have for “inclusion” must not be accomplished on the backs of women and girls.    

 

Ms. Rutledge followed up with a passionate plea representing the young female athletes who feel entirely ignored and under threat because of these ill-conceived, radical policies. Her statement said in part:

 

Young Women for America is made up of these brave women in high school, college, and young professionals. Each group is directly impacted by a refusal to uphold Title IX.

 

Our Young Women for America leaders have stepped up to the plate to do their part to protect women’s sports and are begging that you respect reality and basic biology by rejecting any proposed rule which would include gender identity. Gender identity is not sex.

 

We are in an unfortunate situation when high school and college-age females are having to uphold reality while government entities seem bent on undermining Title IX at every turn. Our leaders have asked for excused absences, covered their work shifts, and taken tests early so they can show up and fight for their rights by testifying in committee hearings and press conferences. They understand it is not just their rights, but the rights of all women who are coming behind us.

 

You may not be hearing these tragic stories – but sadly I  hear them too often.

 

You can check out some of the testimonies below:

 

 

Finally, CWA’s General Counsel spoke about the illegality of trying to amend the clear text and protections under Title IX’s legal classification of “sex” by unilaterally changing the meaning to include “gender identity.” Diaz cautioned of the unintended consequences for women and of clear Supreme Court precedent that has ruled against such manipulation of federal law through administrative rules and procedures.

 

The Biden Administration officials were respectful and welcoming of CWA’s comments and expertise in this area. We can only pray that they actually take our counsel and slow down the left’s radical push in this area so that they may stop trampling on hard-fought, historical women’s rights victories in pursuit of a counterfeit diversity policy.

Steady as the Enemy Panics on Abortion

By | Dobbs, Legal, News and Events, Sanctity of Life | No Comments

Let darkness squelch and screech at the loss of the sacrifices they value. The violent among them will stir up the multitudes to fulfill their vision and protest that the innocent are no longer as expendable. The undiscerning mob is sure to follow whichever way the wind blows, tossed to and fro — used, abused, and ultimately discarded.

 

They shall fail. The end of Roe is yet to be at the appointed time.

 

Remember how we have gotten to this point. Our almost 50 years of struggle against the evil of abortion centered not on legislation or legal battles but on prayer.

 

He who is able to give life and give it more abundantly told us that, as He reminded us, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy” (John. 10:10). Darkness has its nature. It will act according to it. The desperation and hopelessness they feel will make them do irrational things.

 

But the people of God shall stand firm and take action (Daniel 11:32). Prayer is action.

 

Therefore, pray.

 

Concerned Women for America (CWA) is making our Dobbs prayer guide available to you through this link.

 

Scripture tells us that we are “able to stand against the schemes of the devil” by putting on the whole armor of God (Ephesians 6:10-18). We stand:

 

    1. Having fastened on the belt of truth,
    2. Having put on the breastplate of righteousness, 
    3. As shoes for our feet, we put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace,
    4. We take up the shield of faith, with which we can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one,
    5. We put on the helmet of salvation,
    6. And the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

The promised result is that we will “be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm.”

Steady, then. We know where our hope is laid.

 

The leaked opinion is indeed promising—inspiring even. It states simple truths as it lays out Roe’s unethical, unconstitutional foundations. But we cannot reward the malicious tactics that have been used to release it to the public. So, we will wait until the official word from the Court, and then we will celebrate with thanksgiving to God, shining a light that darkness may flee.

 

The statement from CWA CEO and President Penny Nance, following the breaking news, laid out this righteous vision:

 

“The betrayal of trust we have witnessed today at the United States Supreme Court by what is reportedly the malicious leak of a private draft of the Court’s Dobbs opinion is outrageous.  

“This appears to be another attempt by the Left to intimidate the justices to uphold a law that is clearly unconstitutional. On the contrary, these tactics should only embolden the Court to stand firm on law and principle. Chief Justice John Roberts must take charge of his court and issue this decision as soon as possible, sending a clear message that the Court will never be intimidated.

 

“The hundreds of thousands of members of Concerned Women for America remain prayerful and cautiously optimistic as we work to provide loving alternatives to the violent ending of a human life through abortion.”

Amen.

Reason Demands an End to Roe

By | Dobbs, LBB, Legal, News and Events, Sanctity of Life, Substack | No Comments

A young wife and her husband were enthusiastically awaiting the birth of their first baby. It was a girl. They had already done a big baby shower with family and friends; they had bought all the furniture and decorated the room— a beautiful retreat of yellow and pink. They had faithfully kept every doctor’s appointment and attended all the classes, learning everything about what to expect when you’re expecting. They had even named her: Mary Beth.

But at 28 weeks (7 months), mom confesses she was not ready. She is just too young and not mentally and emotionally prepared to be responsible for another human being. So instead, she wants to have an abortion.

Dad earnestly pleads with her to no avail. “It’s my body,” came the answer.

“Is an abortion even legal so far along in a pregnancy,” he thought? Yes, one quick Google search informed him that there are no limits even for late-term abortions in their home state of New Jersey. He quickly found a clinic’s website offering the service and explaining a third-trimester abortion procedure, but he could not bear to finish reading the short description. He even explored legal options but has no recourse.

So, on a day they were supposed to go to another doctor’s visit and see their baby girl on the latest sonogram, mom will instead drive to an abortion clinic to “terminate her pregnancy.”

Such is the state of abortion policy in our nation. It is part of the wretched legacy of Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court decision that invented a constitutional right to abortion…

Click here to read the rest of Mario’s exclusive Substack column. And be sure to subscribe below to never miss one of his posts again!

Catastrophic Day 2 for Ketanji Brown Jackson

By | Breyer, Judicial Nominations, Legal, News and Events, SCOTUS, Vacancy | No Comments

Early in the second day, the focus of the hearings for Ketanji Brown Jackson’s (KBJ) nomination to the United States Supreme Court was on a concerning pattern that has emerged where KBJ has given low sentences to defendants in possession of child pornography. Having given ample room for KBJ to explain her thought processes in these cases, we can say the explanations we heard were simply unsatisfactory.

Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Missouri), who had given KBJ the specific cases he was interested in, drilled down on one particular case that illustrates the problem. The clip is long, but it is eye-opening, I commend it to you in its entirety:

It is troubling, no doubt. Again, she was given time to prepare to answer questions about those specific cases, so to try to obfuscate the issue with a lack of record is not reasonable. The concern is compounded by the fact that Democrats have denied the Republicans’ requests to release the records from KBJ’s time in the Sentencing Commission.

Even Judiciary Chairman Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Illinois) seemed to agree with Sen. Hawley that the case was unacceptable and suggests it is Congress fault. He suggests that they need to pass a law to prevent judges like KBJ from enacting sentences like she did in that case. Watch:

Her performance devolved from there. She could not answer Sen. John Kennedy (R-Louisiana) when he asked her when does life begin, even though her advocacy for pro-abortion groups is well established. How can someone who doesn’t know when life begins fairly decide when life can be terminated?

The issue was explored further by Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tennessee) who got some incredible confessions out of KBJ as she tried to distance herself from the language she approved of in a brief she cowrote calling pro-life advocates a “hostile, noisy crowd of ‘in-your-face’ protesters.” She apparently didn’t really mean it. She was just “lawyering,” you know. Take a look at this troubling exchange. Take special note of her admission that the Constitution says nothing about abortion, even as she apparently supports the Court in making up such rights by judicial fiat.

But the lowest point of the evening came when Sen. Blackburn tried to address the issue of gender with KBJ. The nominee could not even provide a definition of what is a woman. Apparently, one needs to be a biologist to define the term. Take a look for yourself:

How is a justice supposed to stand up for women’s rights if she cannot even tell you what a woman is? Her non-answer is revealing.

Concerned Women for America (CWA) has been at the hearings, monitoring closely every second. We have given her a fair hearing. But the bottom line after day two is that Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson simply cannot be trusted. Therefore, how could she be entrusted with a lifetime appointment to the nation’s highest court in the land? There are still a couple more days of hearings, but the damage she has done today seems too much for anyone to overcome.

Stay tuned.

CWA Joins Call on Congress to Stop Medicaid Funding of Faulty Prenatal Tests

By | News and Events, Sanctity of Life | No Comments

Concerned Women for America (CWA), joined a broad coalition of pro-life leaders calling on Congress to stop any Medicaid funding of prenatal genetic testing that has been shown to give a disturbing amount of false positives, causing many women to terminate their pregnancies based on wrong information.

The letter, addressed to Sens. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) and Steve Daines (R-MT), Chairman and Ranking Member of the Senate Finance Subcommittee on Health, and Reps. Anna Eshoo (D-CA) and Brett Guthrie (R-KY), Chairman and Ranking Member of the House Energy & Commerce Subcommittee on Health, explains in part:

These tests, which are marketed to expectant families as a way to determine whether their unborn child suffers from a rare genetic condition, are wrong a remarkable 85% of the time according to one recent report Considering the fact that these unreliable tests are now used by more than a third of pregnant women in America and that many families have tragically opted for an abortion when a potentially false positive is rendered instead of seeking another test to confirm the result, the lives of millions of unborn children are at risk.

Click here to read the letter.

 

A Prayer for Afghanistan

By | LBB, News and Events, Prayer | No Comments

LORD,

Words fail to express the sorrow
Of the Body of Christ here in America
As we consider the fate
Of our brothers and sisters in Afghanistan.

The images are just heartbreaking.
The stories, agonizing.
We grieve for those in such perilous situations
Wondering what awaits their families.

Help! Lord.
We humbly ask for Your guidance
For our leaders and those with the
Power and means to come to their aid.

We consider, and plead especially,
For the women and children who are
Specifically targeted by the evil rule
Of the Taliban. Rise against it, Lord.

Stretch out Your mighty hand
And show Your awesome power
For all the world to see that
You are God!

Frustrate the enemy’s plans at every turn.
Let those uncommitted to freedom and liberty
Among our leaders in Washington be exposed,
Let them be removed from their posts.

Let the righteous rule again
That the people may rejoice,
As Your Word says, Lord.
And strengthen the knees of Your Church.

Give us faith to engage the spiritual fight
We so often overlook.
Give us spiritual eyes and help us
To pray fervently in the power of the Spirit.

Hear the plight of those who,
In their distress, cry out to You.
Deliver them and protect them.
Let Your wisdom increase in Afghanistan.

May the threat of persecution
Be a catalyst for Your Word to flourish,
For Your church to do as our Lord and Savior did,
To give our very lives for love.

Teach us to love, Father.
Teach us to have compassion—
To be moved as Jesus when He saw the crowds,
And give us the faith to multiply the loaves and the fish.

For what is impossible with men,
It is possible with God.
We know this to be true, Lord,
And we declare it anew.

We believe.
We believe in You, our Father.
We believe in Your Son, Jesus, in whose name we pray.
We believe in Your Holy Spirit, through whom we pray.

Amen.

Statement for the Afghan Women and Girls Rally

By | Feminist / Women's Issues, News and Events, Sanctity of Life, YWA | No Comments

I saw a video posted by the New York Times of an Afghan woman named Crystal Bayat. On August 19th she helped organize a protest to celebrate Afghanistan independence. At great risk to her life, she and six other women marched through the streets of Afghanistan raising their country’s flag in defiance of the Taliban. She grew up in the freedom Afghanistan has experienced these last twenty years. This month was her first time ever coming face to face with the Taliban. They told her she had twenty days of freedom. Her response was, “Til they shoot me, I will strive, and I will seek my goals. I will not let them deprive me of my fundamental rights. I’m raising the voice of a million women.”

It brought me to tears. In Crystal, I see the same spirit of our Young Women for America leaders. As the Director of Young Women for America, I have the privilege and honor of working with young women across this country, from high schoolers to young professionals, who have this same bold spirit. They are strong, kind, smart, motivated, Christ-honoring individuals in diverse career paths who are using their gifts and talents to impact the world. I’m amazed at how they spend their time and the ways they are impacting their communities even now. As I consider their paths with endless opportunities in front of them, I can’t help but contrast it with the plight of women in Afghanistan at this moment. We must acknowledge what is happening to women in Afghanistan now and what we know will only continue to get worse. There is no future in the public square for women under Sharia law. They cannot safely leave their homes; they cannot leave their homes at all unless they have permission from men; their bodies must be covered head to toe; they cannot hold any positions of power; they cannot have jobs; they cannot drive. Images of women are being removed from public places. They are being beaten in the streets. Women in Afghanistan face a future of subjugation, rape, persecution, and even stonings. Women are dying and will continue to die.

The feminists are silent, but we will not be. At this very moment, across the country, Young Women for America leaders are joining you in prayer. From California to Pennsylvania and Alabama and beyond, YWA leaders are gathering their chapter members and friends or bowing their heads privately to come before the throne of God in unity. We can’t physically show up in Afghanistan, but right now, we are putting on the armor of God and engaging in spiritual battle. We are going to war against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places on behalf of our Afghan sisters.

And we trust in our God. We serve an awesome, all-powerful, all knowing, loving, and present God. He is among us. He hears us.

Standing for the Logos

By | Defense of Family, LBB, News and Events | No Comments

You will find one of the most stunning mysteries of life in John 1:14. Καὶ ὁ Λόγος σὰρξ ἐγένετο, in the original Greek, the Apostle John reveals to us in the most beautiful language that, “The Word,” the Logos, “became flesh.” He is speaking of Christ, of course, but as the Logos? Yes.

God spoke, and it was created (Genesis 1). What else would He speak but “logos.” After creating man, God could have related to us in any number of ways, but again He chooses the word—the logos. Rational thoughts and ideas, blessings and warnings, come to us through words with specific meanings. Yes, even in the beginning, it was understood.

The fall of man comes through the serpent’s word games. “Did God really say?” it asked Eve (Genesis 3:1). God communicates His covenant through words. He gave us prophets to announce and pray, yes, with words.

Even after Christ, Christians are to herald the good news (the Gospel) by using the miracle of God’s Word (the Bible) to tell the story of redemption. “How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher?” asked the Apostle Paul (Romans 10:14).

Looking at all this, one might begin to think that words (the logos) matter.

Which brings us to the problem of this present age…

Click here to read the rest of Mario’s exclusive Substack column. And be sure to subscribe below to never miss one of his posts again!

Your Voice in the Biggest Abortion Case of Our Lifetime

By | Briefs, Dobbs, Legal, News and Events, SCOTUS | No Comments

The Concerned Women for America (CWA) Legal Studies Department is proud to report that we have completed your amicus (friend of the Court’s) brief in the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization abortion case before the United States Supreme Court.  

From the outset, we let the Court know we are representing you, and we make clear the values for which you stand. “CWA believes abortion harms women, men, their families, and the nation and actively promotes legislation and public education to support women in crisis pregnancies and address the harms caused by pro-abortion policies,” we write on our Statement of Interest. And we conclude saying, “CWA believes it is false to suggest women need abortion to have equality. Moreover, we affirm women are not a monolithic group assenting to a homogeneous worldview on any policy issue so that this honorable Court benefits from hearing and giving value to a broad range of women voices in cases such as this one.” 

We present three basic arguments: (1) states should be free to make a reasonable determination about abortion policy that places a higher value on the life of mothers and their unborn children, (2) the Court has undervalued the state’s interest in women’s health by failing to give the proper weight to the physical, psychological, emotional, and even spiritual harms abortion has had on women’s lives, and finally (3) the Court should give proper weight to the views of a wide range of women’s voices, including those who reject the Court-created “right” to abortion. 

The first argument is simple. The Court’s abortion jurisprudence has no foundation in our Constitution and has therefore been predictably unreliable and inconsistent. We write: 

Advances in science and our understanding of the process and interests involved in the abortion decision today should push the Court not only to reconsider the definition and timing of viability but the factual underpinnings from Roe that it left standing in Casey. The time has come for the Court to rectify the constitutional error of Roe’s quasi-legislative analysis. States should never be prevented from presenting the evidence which undergirds their legislative reasoning as they fight to withstand a constitutional challenge to its laws in areas where the Constitution envisions them having ample freedom to engage based on well-established federalism principles.  

The lower court, in this case, did not even allow the state of Mississippi to show the scientific evidence on which it relied to enact the law at issue. The state’s interest in women’s health was front and center; therefore, we write of the great injustice of the court barring this evidence, “As a women’s organization, amicus considers the omission of the evidence for the state’s interest in the mother’s health from consideration at the pre-viability stage, for example, a grave misuse of the Court’s jurisprudence that the Constitution in no way prescribes.” 

The Constitution’s framework is key to our argument because, though the question before the Court concerns viability, the Court’s abortion jurisprudence problem is much more profound. We conclude: “Though not strictly necessary to resolve this case, the Court’s fundamental problems in this area of law go all the way back to Roe and Doe. To fully vindicate the constitutional principles involved requires an honest reversal.” 

Second, we argue, “Women’s interests should never be irrelevant in the abortion context at every stage of pregnancy, including at the pre-viability stage.” Period. “Amicus represents mothers, daughters, sisters, aunts, and friends who have seen the devastation that abortion can have on women’s emotional, psychological, and spiritual lives.” We go on to present some of the studies of the mental health risks associated with abortion and let the Court know, “Any interpretation of viability that forces courts to exclude the consideration of women’s health, not only before choosing to have an abortion but also after that choice, as the lower court decreed here, should not be upheld.”  

And finally, third, we go to CWA’s roots. Pro-abortion women do not represent all women. They do not even represent most women. Pro-life is pro-woman. “[A] new AP-NORC poll found that, ‘most Americans say abortions should generally be illegal during the second and third trimester,’” we report, “One would never guess this by looking at the Court’s abortion precedent.” 

The hundreds of thousands of women amicus represent want to stress that women do not need abortion as a measure of equality. Women have intrinsic dignity and value, regardless of abortion public policy. The fact that men do not give birth is not something they see as a flaw but a feature of the beautiful way women are created—the imago Dei. Being mothers is not to women’s detriment, despite its many challenges. Women celebrate the diversity of our Creator and therefore affirm our dignity, aside from abortion. Amicus affirms the dignity of every woman, including unborn women. 

That is just a sample, but you can access the full document here. We are confident this brief is something you can be proud of, as we stand together before the Supreme Court and proclaim the truth with honesty and respect. 

It is an honor to serve you in such a way.