Judge sides with Biden, rules that Christian college must open women’s bedrooms and showers to biological males​



A federal judge this week rejected a Christian college's request to bypass new rules under the Biden administration that force religious schools to open their dormitories — including shared bedrooms and shower spaces — to members of the opposite sex.

Judge Roseann Ketchmark issued the ruling Wednesday denying the College of the Ozarks a temporary restraining order and a preliminary injunction, which would have provided temporary protection for the school while its federal court case is pending.

The school filed a lawsuit in April arguing that the Biden administration was forcing religious schools to violate their beliefs by opening up female dormitories to biological males, and vice-versa, under subject of punitive damages, six-figure fines, and attorneys' fees.

After President Joe Biden issued an executive order titled, "Preventing and Combating Discrimination on the Basis of Gender Identity or Sexual Orientation" in January, the Department of Housing and Urban Development put forward a directive in line with the administration's new interpretation of "sex."

The directive holds that entities covered by the Fair Housing Act cannot discriminate against someone based on their sexual orientation or gender identity. Meaning that a transgender person who is biologically male but identifies as a female must be permitted to share dormitory spaces such as bedrooms, bathrooms, and showers with female students.

"The government cannot and should not force schools to open girls' dorms to males based on its politically motivated and inappropriate redefinition of 'sex,'" Alliance Defending Freedom Senior Counsel Julie Marie Blake said in a statement. The religious liberty law firm is representing the school in its legal fight.

"Women shouldn't be forced to share private spaces — including showers and dorm rooms — with males, and religious schools shouldn't be punished simply because of their beliefs about marriage and biological sex," she added. "Government overreach by the Biden administration continues to victimize women, girls, and people of faith by gutting their legal protections, and it must be stopped."

The College of the Ozarks is a private, Christian, liberal arts college in Point Lookout, Missouri, that since its founding more than a century ago has held to a belief that biological sex is assigned by God and is unchangeable.

In response to the ruling, the school's president, Jerry Davis, acknowledged he and staff were "disappointed" in the ruling, but announced that they would be appealing "so that schools are not forced to open women's dorm rooms to males and violate their religious beliefs."

"For more than 100 years, College of the Ozarks has provided a distinctly Christian education to students with financial need. We will not abandon our mission. The fight to protect our religious freedom has just begun," he said.

Woke op-ed writer blasts Oral Roberts U., suggests Christian school should be banned from NCAA competition for its 'anti-LGBTQ+ stance'



After tiny Oral Roberts University shocked the sports world with its otherworldly upsets of second-seeded Ohio State and then seventh-seeded Florida in the NCAA men's basketball tournament, you knew the woke mob sooner or later would deliver vitriol against the famously conservative Christian college.

What are the details?

Sure enough, a Tuesday op-ed penned by USA Today's Hemal Jhaveri did just that.

While acknowledging that Oral Roberts has "become a fan favorite" due to its improbable underdog run, Jhaveri pulled no punches when came to the school's moral standards, which she said are "wholly incompatible with the NCAA's own stated values of equality and inclusion" — particularly its "discriminatory and hateful anti-LGBTQ+ policy."

She noted that ORU condemns "homosexual behavior" along with "adultery" and "premarital sex" and requires students to pledge they won't be in marriages other than those "between one man and one woman," none of which is surprising for a conservative Christian college.

More from Jhaveri's op-ed:

As a private university and under the banner of fundamentalist Christian beliefs, the school is free to impose whatever standards of behavior they see fit, even if those standards are wildly out of line with modern society and the basic values of human decency. Now, as Oral Roberts gains national attention, the focus shouldn't just be on their very good men's basketball team, but on their prejudiced teachings and moral regressiveness.

That Oral Roberts wants to keep its students tied to toxic notions of fundamentalism that fetishize chastity, abstinence and absurd hemlines is a larger cultural issue that can be debated. What is not up for debate however is their anti-LGBTQ+ stance, which is nothing short of discriminatory and should expressly be condemned by the NCAA.

She went on to argue that "any and all anti-LGBTQ+ language in any school's polices should ban them from NCAA competition."

Calling ORU "a hotbed of institutional transphobia, homophobia with regressive, sexist policies," Jhaveri added that "there is no way to separate their men's basketball team from the dangers of their religious dogma, no matter how many top seeds they defeat."

If Jhaveri's name sounds familiar...

You might recognize Jhaveri's name, as she was in numerous news stories earlier this week for being one of many prominent leftists who jumped to conclusions about the race of the Boulder mass killer before suspect Ahmad Al Aliwi Alissa was identified.

Jhaveri wrote in a now-deleted tweet that "it's always an angry white male. always."

I’m shocked and appalled that the Race and Inclusion editor at a major newspaper, is, in fact, a racist. (And prono… https://t.co/OI01ehUnbA
— Dave Rubin (@Dave Rubin)1616517524.0

While Jhaveri's tweets are now protected and not viewable without her permission, Townhall noted that she apologized for the latter tweet: "I deleted a previous tweet that was posted in haste and poor judgement. My tweet was impulsive and an over-generalization, for which I apologize. That over-generalization does not reflect the values of this position or Gannett."

It's likely just fine with Twitter's censors, though.

College founded to 'promote the cause of Christ' defends hosting 'White Citizenship as Terrorism' event



Berea College — a private liberal arts college in Kentucky that says it's "still firmly rooted in its historic purpose," which is "to promote the cause of Christ" — is hosting an event next Wednesday titled, "White Citizenship as Terrorism: Make America Great Again, Again."

What are the details?

The event — sponsored by the Women's and Gender Non-Conforming Center at Berea — will feature a Zoom presentation from Amy Brandzel.

The latter notice regarding the event reads:

"Despite the calls for multiculturalism, the presentation and color-blindness, segments of white America mourn their so-called loss of privilege, consistently begging to return to the nostalgic past in which their esteemed value as white citizens went unquestioned. Trump's 'Make America Great Again' appears to follow suit by offering a seemingly benign promise to return America to a previously 'great' past. But the offer to 'Make America Great Again, Again,' requires we refocus on how the last four years of daily tweets and administrative actions redefine whiteness. If terrorism is defined as the use of violence and threats to create a state of fear towards [sic] particular communities and identities, then this is what 'Trumpism' is at its core. The talk offers to resuscitate Trumpism and white citizenship as forms of white terrorism enacted against the majority of people living within the borders of the U.S. and beyond."

It wasn't immediately apparent that Berea College or the campus organization sponsoring the event described who Brandzel is, but the Federalist noted she's an assistant professor of women studies at the University of New Mexico and author of "Against Citizenship: The Violence of the Normative."

The outlet added that Brandzel's book proposes that "citizenship is a violent dehumanizing mechanism that makes the comparative devaluing of human lives see," and that "citizenship requires anti-intersectionality, that is, strategies that deny the mutuality and contingency of race, class, gender, sexuality and nation…"

Pushback and a defense

After word got out regarding the "White Citizenship as Terrorism" event and some pushback was felt, Berea College posted a statement defending the event. The school also quoted its motto — "God has made of one blood all peoples of the earth" — which is based on Acts 17:26:

"A planned event by the Women's and Gender Non-Conforming Center at Berea College has attracted a great deal of attention on social media, and resulted in several emails from concerned persons. To some, the provocative title of the event implies that Berea is not a welcoming place for individuals with differing political views. That is not true. At Berea, we strive to live out our motto: God has made of one blood all peoples of the earth. Berea accepts students of all faiths (or none at all), religious beliefs, ethnicities and political leanings, creating a diverse environment that encourages acceptance, respect and even appreciation across our differences.

"We encourage open dialog on difficult topics. Racism and white nationalism have been topics of great debate over the past five years. The event planned for next week seeks to confront aspects of the political spectrum that relate to the difficult topic of race in America. While that may cause discomfort, it is a valid and important conversation in this time of political and racial division. It is our hope that these types of conversations will occur across the country. Open, honest dialogue is essential to understanding racism and moving toward an anti-racist society."

The Women's and Gender Non-Conforming Center issued a statement, as well:

"We are grateful to President Lyle Roelofs, Interim Provosts Scott Steele and Steve Gowler, Dean Matthew Saderholm, Associate Vice President for Marketing and Communications Kim Brown, and Director of Publications and Media Relations Abbie Darst for this statement in support of our Gender Talk next week about the white terrorism that claims to make America great again (again). Be sure to tune in!"

Anything else?

Berea College notes on its website that it was "founded by ardent abolitionists and radical reformers" and wants staff and students to "work toward both personal goals and a vision of a world shaped by Christian values, such as the power of love over hate, human dignity and equality, and peace with justice."

The school's website also stated that it "stands in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement and those peacefully demonstrating against police brutality across the country and around the world. As the first interracial and coeducational college in the slaveholding South in 1855, this moment calls for our support. Our history and our commitments demand it."

(H/T: Young America's Foundation)

'Sinister' plan circulating in left-wing circles: Strip accreditation from religious schools that don't comply with progressive policies



On Tuesday, in an op-ed published by the Daily Signal, Texas Republican Rep. Brian Babin raised awareness about a dangerous plan being hatched by progressives to shape future generations of Americans.

What are the details?

The plan — outlined in a recent Human Rights Campaign manifesto titled, "Blueprint for Positive Change" — urges the incoming Biden administration to mandate compliance with their political agenda by stripping accreditation from religious colleges and universities that don't meet "nondiscrimination policies and science-based curricula standards" regarding sexual orientation and gender identity.

The objective, which is one of 85 policy recommendations submitted by the LGBTQ advocacy group, demands that the Department of Education amend language found in the Higher Education Opportunity Act that presently requires accrediting agencies to respect a school's "stated mission."

The department, HRC argues, "should issue a regulation clarifying that this provision ... does not require the accreditation of religious institutions that do not meet neutral accreditation standards including nondiscrimination policies and scientific curriculum requirements."

Should the plan be carried out, it would effectively dissolve religious higher education institutions in America as many employers do not hire applicants without a degree from an accredited school.

Babin responded to the plan, saying, "Here, couched in language designed to suggest moral superiority and scientific legitimacy, is a blatant, full-frontal assault on our religious liberties.

"The Human Rights Campaign is not simply suggesting that Christian institutions comply with the left's view of 'nondiscrimination,' but rather it is forcing institutions to either abandon the tenants of their religious beliefs or face severe consequences. Haven't we seen this play out in history before, such as the Soviet Revolution and Mao's Cultural Revolution?" he added.

Babin warned that if the HRC is successful in lobbying Democratic President-elect Joe Biden, Christian schools would "cease to exist" or be "bullied to bow down to the LGBT orthodoxy."

What else?

Last month, shortly after the blueprint was released, Al Mohler, the president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky, called the recommendation "sinister."

"I've not seen any document like this before — the Human Rights Campaign is effectively calling for religious colleges and schools to be coerced into the sexual revolution or stripped of accreditation," he said in a column. "In terms of accreditation, that is an atomic bomb."

"This is an outright attempt to eliminate religious freedom for Christian schools — or for any religious school that refuses to bow to the moral revolutionaries at the Human Rights Campaign," he continued. "This is an undisguised attempt to shut down any semblance of a Christian college or university that would possess the audacity to operate from a Christian worldview."