Kim was homeless and in an abusive relationship when she gave birth to Braiden. She loved her son but knew he would be safe and have more opportunities with another family. Although it was difficult to let him go that day, Kim later discovered she had gained a new family of her own.

Now, Braiden enjoys a relationship with both his biological mother and his adoptive mom, Billi. See Braiden’s story at Christian Family Care.

It’s not uncommon for adoptive and biological parents to share in the lives of adopted children and their new families, and what a blessing. But not everyone can do that. Thankfully, Arizona laws make room for both, so adoption can serve as a loving option for any child in need.

November is National Adoption Awareness Month, a time to highlight the blessings of adoption – and the need.

There are currently about 400,000 children in foster care in the U.S., about 120,000 of them are waiting to be adopted. In Arizona, more than 3,500 children were adopted in 2019.

Arizona lawmakers work to increase the number of children finding forever homes by passing laws that encourage adoption. Just this past 2021 legislative session, they passed a CAP-supported law requiring comprehensive adoption information to be prominently displayed on the Arizona Department of Health Service’s website. The  law will make it easier to find adoption information for women faced with an unplanned pregnancy, as well as families desiring to adopt.

Resources:

For information on adoption, visit Christian Family Care here, which has been helping families for more than 30 years.

Many children are adopted from the foster care program. For more information on foster care, visit AZ 1.27 here.

Teachers largely not behind CRT curriculum

The leftist push to indoctrinate K-12 students has grabbed headlines and enraged parents in states throughout the nation. Heritage Foundation this week released the results of a unique, national study gauging the beliefs of K-12 teachers on the subject of Critical Race Theory (CRT) and similar teachings such as, Diversity Equity Inclusion (DEI) and Social Emotional Learning (SEL).

The results may surprise you. They indicate teachers generally do not support teaching CRT, but teachers’ unions and other activists push for such instruction, as well as fighting parents who push back.

According to Heritage Foundation, “The results of this survey do not support the idea that K–12 teachers are radical activists, although conservative and moderate parents may find it disconcerting that nearly six of 10 teachers believe that white supremacy is a major problem in the United States. Overall, teachers appear somewhat left of center on many topics, but their responses were not particularly close to those of the average liberal.” 

The article indicates that it is up to state legislators, school boards, and parents to fight the DEI bureaucracy at both the college level and K-12. The study found that it is likely the professional liberal activists, not the teachers, who are behind the aggressive push for DEI type instruction, writing, “These administrative employees—who are extremely well organized, but represent a minority viewpoint—are motivated by political goals, while most classroom teachers are motivated to help students to learn.”

Target: Religious freedom

A leaked Health and Human Services memo reportedly indicates Secretary Xavier Becerra is considering revoking the authority of the Office of Civil Rights (OCR) to prevent violations of religious rights.

The Trump Administration had beefed up protections under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) designed to prohibit the federal government from infringing on religious freedoms.

The memo reportedly states HHS intends to bring religious organizations under so-called “nondiscrimination” requirements, which means religious organizations will be forced to embrace the LGBTQ agenda, regardless of their religious beliefs.

Also, last week I spelled out some of the dangerous pitfalls hidden inside the $1.7 trillion social spending bill. In addition to incentivizing government-run childcare over private care or parents caring for their own children, the Administration’s plan is a direct threat to religious freedom.

It would change the way religious organizations receive federal money, thereby forbidding them to function consistent with their own beliefs if those beliefs run contrary to the LGBTQ agenda. Read or listen here for more details.

Call your U.S. lawmakers and urge them to vote NO on the $1.7 trillion social spending bill.

Reach your U.S. Representative here.

Reach your U.S. Senators here.

Call the White House and urge the President to retain current religious freedom protections under OCR authority.

Reach the White House here.

ICYMI

• The Colson Center’s Breakpoint addresses the danger of reducing all problems and solutions to politics and how the GOP’s new “Pride Coalition” forces Christians to answer critical questions.
• The U.S. Supreme Court in less than two weeks will hear oral arguments in a case challenging Roe v. Wade. Read World Magazine’s take on the hopes of those in the pro-life movement.
• Read here how “Progressive legal scholars have long known Roe’s reasoning is calamitous.”
• Pro-life group urges lawmakers to stop the Biden Administration from covertly easing regulations on the abortion pill.

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