Virtual Rally: Equality Act Exposed

Family Policy Alliance (FPA) calls the Equality Act “the most dangerous piece of legislation to come out of Congress.” Introduced into the U.S. House of Representatives last week, FPA is hosting a virtual one-hour rally about the bill, The Equality Act – Exposed.

The online event will take place Wednesday morning, February 24, at 10:00 a.m. Eastern Time. FPA writes, “This bill would create new protected classes based on a person’s self-identified sexual orientation and gender identity.” (Their emphasis.)

The Equality Act, H.R. 5, would amend the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and other federal nondiscrimination laws to include “sexual orientation” and “gender identity.” The measure was introduced into the U.S. House of Representatives February 18, and House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer announced it was a legislative priority.

FPA says, “If it became law, the Equality Act would pose serious threats, especially to women and children across the nation:

• Sanctioning abortions and removing pro-life protections
• Introducing explicit content in school curriculum across the nation
• Pressuring struggling children toward experimental cross-sex hormones and surgery
• Letting males win girls’ sports championships
• Allowing males to enter girls’ locker rooms and women’s shelters
• Closing the doors of faith-based foster and adoption agencies
• Denying parental rights in the name of a sexualized political ideology
• Silencing all of us who disagree.”

In addition to elevating sexual orientation and identity to the same level as other protected characteristics, such as race, color, religion, sex and national origin, H.R. 5 redefines “sex” to include “ pregnancy, childbirth, or a related medical condition.” Abortion activists admit that “a related medical condition” includes abortion.  

Passage of H.R. 5 means that refusing to participate in an abortion would be considered discrimination on the basis of sex.

FPA isn’t the only one calling the Equality Act dangerous. Over at The Briefing, Southern Baptist Theological Seminary President Albert Mohler Jr. says, “This bill would represent the greatest threat to religious liberty in imaginable decades in American public life. This would be the single greatest threat.”

He adds that “there are no truly meaningful religious Liberty exemptions or protections in this legislation” and says that “the Democratic majority that passed the bill in the last Congress doesn’t see the need for those protections.”

Ryan Anderson, president of the Ethics and Public Policy Center, writes about the devastating effect of the act on privacy, safety and girls and women’s sports. He says, “The Equality Act would sacrifice the hard-won rights of women, while privileging men who identify as women. If it becomes law, such men would have a right to spend the night in battered-women’s shelters, disrobe in women’s locker rooms and compete on women’s sports teams – even at K-12 schools.”

Anderson then quotes the relevant portion of H.R. 5, “An individual shall not be denied access to a shared facility, including a restroom, a locker room and a dressing room, that is in accordance with the individual’s gender identity.”

Franklin Graham, president of Samaritan’s Purse and the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, posted about the act on his Facebook page, “Have you heard of the Equality Act? The name might sound good, but it’s deceiving. It has nothing to do with equality.” He encourages Christians to take action and to “PRAY for God to move in the hearts of these legislators and open their eyes to see the dangers looming before us.” (His emphasis.)

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops concurs, elaborating on the threat from H.R. 5 to faith-based organizations and the individuals they serve: “The Catholic Church is the largest non-governmental provider of human services in the United States, helping millions of Americans in need through its parishes, schools, hospitals, shelters, legal clinics, food banks, and charities. Our core beliefs about the dignity of the human person and the wisdom of God’s design motivate both our positions on marriage, life, and sexuality, and our call to serve those most in need and the common good. By running roughshod over religious liberty, the Equality Act directly undermines the Church’s ability to fulfill that call.”

Family Policy Alliance is joined in its virtual rally by Christian organizations such as Family Research Council and Concerned Women for America. Secular groups such as Save Women’s Sports and the Women’s Liberation Front (WoLF) are also participating, as is The Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank and public policy organization. FPA also has an action page, where individuals can easily contact their representative about H.R. 5.

Join: The Equality Act – Exposed, Wednesday, February 24, 10 a.m. ET, Streaming LIVE on Facebook and YouTube

Related articles:

Do ‘Gender Identity’ Laws Affect Me and My Family?

“Equality Act” – An Assault on Freedom, Privacy and Safety

The “Equality Act” Would Mark the End of Religious Conscience

House to Consider ‘Equality Act’ – A Threat to Life and Freedom

Photo from Family Policy Alliance