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FIRST AMENDMENT? WHAT FIRST AMENDMENT?

Florida Taxpayers Spend $129 Million to Pay for the Anti-LGBTQ Education of Thousands of Students in Schools That Ban Homosexuality

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The concept of separation of church and state seems to be all but dead in the state of Florida. Anti-LGBTQ religious activists have succeeded beyond their wildest dreams, convincing lawmakers that the taxpayers should foot the bill for nearly any school parents want to send their children – including private Christian and other religious schools that promote anti-LGBTQ hate.

Taxpayers are literally paying to teach children of all ages that being LGBTQ is a sin.

The Orlando Sentinel has just published a deep dive into just how extensive the push for school vouchers has become in the Sunshine State, and it’s disturbing.

Here’s how their reporting begins:

In the shadow of a nearly 200-foot cross, Central Florida Christian Academy enrolls students who live by the Bible’s commands and abstain from “sexual immorality” — meaning gay children aren’t welcome on the state-supported campus in west Orange County.

Calvary Christian High School in Clearwater denies admission to students if they, or someone in their home, are practicing a “homosexual lifestyle or alternative gender identity” or “promoting such practices.”

Wade Christian School in Melbourne keeps an “expulsion list,” with a “homosexual act” among the offenses, alongside bringing weapons to campus, distributing drugs and striking a staff member.

Now for some hard numbers.

Florida taxpayers last year foot the bill for 20,800 students to attend one of at least 156 private, faith-based schools that are overtly anti-LGBTQ. The bill came to over $129 million.

One school, Calvary Christian Academy in Broward County, received over $4 million in taxpayer funds, to teach nearly 600 students. The Sentinel details some of Calvary’s polices:

Students must “abstain from sexual immorality, such as: the use of pornography, inappropriate touching, premarital sex, homosexual behavior, adultery, and all other sexual relations outside the bonds of marriage.” It also says “acceptable sexual behavior is exclusively reserved to occur within the confines of a monogamous marriage union of a consenting man and woman” and that “Any other attitude towards or form of marriage, parenting or sexual behavior is in fundamental conflict with our sincerely held religious beliefs; making these practices something we are unable to support or facilitate in any manner in good conscience.”

Trinity Christian Academy in Duval County received nearly $3.9 million from Florida taxpayers to teach 614 students that  “Homosexuality, lesbianism, bisexuality, trans-sexuality are in opposition” to school’s beliefs. “As such, the student would be required to withdraw.”

One education expert spoke to the Orlando Sentinel, denouncing Florida’s policies.

“All students should be welcome at a K-12 school, especially those schools that receive public money,” said Suzanne Eckes, a professor in educational leadership and policy studies at Indiana University who has studied school voucher programs. “I think the big question is, ‘Hey citizens of the state of Florida … Do you want your taxpayer money used in this way?”

NCRM previously reported that U.S. taxpayers are doling out $1 billion a year to fund private, anti-science Christian grade school educations. Several years ago we also reported that America spends $71 billion annually subsidizing tax-exempt religion.

Image by abcdz2000 via Flickr and a CC license

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FIRST AMENDMENT? WHAT FIRST AMENDMENT?

Justice Clarence Thomas Believes Media Criticism of Decisions ‘Jeopardizes Any Faith’ in the Supreme Court

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3 years ago

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September 16, 2021

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Justice Clarence Thomas complained about the harsh criticism the Supreme Court has received since allowing a controversial anti-abortion law to go into effect in Texas.

Thomas delivered the 2021 Tocqueville Lecture at the University of Notre Dame on Thursday, where he complained about media criticism, The Washington Post reported.

“I think the media makes it sound as though you are just always going right to your personal preference. So if they think you are anti-abortion or something personally, they think that’s the way you always will come out. They think you’re for this or for that. They think you become like a politician,” Thomas said.

“That’s a problem. You’re going to jeopardize any faith in the legal institutions,” he said.

A second Post report on the speech noted Thomas’ remarks on the ongoing mistrust of the court.

“The court was thought to be the least dangerous branch and we may have become the most dangerous,” Thomas said. “And I think that’s problematic.”

The newspaper noted the lecture was interrupted by protesters who yelled, “I still believe Anita Hill.”

 

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FIRST AMENDMENT? WHAT FIRST AMENDMENT?

Four Cops ‘Drag’ Man From McCarthy Press Conference for Asking Question About Jan. 6 Committee

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3 years ago

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August 5, 2021

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Four law enforcement officers reportedly removed a man from House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy’s (R-CA) press conference on Thursday when he tried to ask a question about the Jan. 6 committee.

“I tried to ask @GOPLeader McCarthy a question after he decried Cuban police pickup up people in the streets,” Grant Stern explained in a tweet. “Why does he oppose the bipartisan #January6thCommission?”

“A Congressional staffer had four cops pick me up and drag me from the room,” he explained.

Stern’s bio indicates that he is an editor for the OccupyDemocrats organization.

Watch the video below

 

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FIRST AMENDMENT? WHAT FIRST AMENDMENT?

GOP Launches Witch Hunt Demanding Investigation Into Highly-Respected University Professor’s Tweets

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3 years ago

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July 9, 2021

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Republicans in Virginia are demanding that University of Virginia President James E. Ryan open an investigation into tweets by Center for Politics founder Dr. Larry Sabato.

“A reasonable taxpaying citizen can readily conclude that Dr. Sabato is demonstrating the rankest form of bitter partisanship,” Virginia GOP Chair Rich Anderson wrote in a letter printed on Republican Party of Virginia letterhead.

“In order to have faith in our institutions, it is essential that Virginians hold accountable those public employees and officials who violate institutional values, codes of conduct, and other guidelines of professional behavior.”

A spokesperson for the university said Sabato has done nothing wrong.

“There is nothing in our Code of Conduct that limits University employees from engaging in expression that is protected under the First Amendment,” the spokesman said.

Anderson complained about eight tweets by Sabato. The first noted Donald Trump’s refusal to release his tax returns.

The second tweet concerned Trump’s fact-free approach to presidential debates.

The third tweet was in the context of Trump hoping to bring back executions by firing squad while facing accusations of extreme tax fraud. It was in the comments of a Daily Beast story.

The fourth tweet questioned Trump’s sanity after he released a 46-minute video pushing his “Big Lie” of voter fraud.

The fifth tweet praised a return to normalcy “after 4 years of the bizarre and disturbing.”

The sixth tweet returned to the question of Trump’s mental health in the context of the delusional conspiracy theory that he will be “reinstated” as president in August in violation of the Constitution.

The seventh tweet concerned Glenn Youngkin, who is worth hundreds of millions after working as the co-CEO of the private-equity firm The Carlyle Group. Youngkin is now running for governor of Virginia.

The final tweet the GOP believes should result in an investigation concerned Trump’s choice of music at his campaign-style rallies.

 

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