New York Could Legally Abolish Parenthood
Also, no opt-out for sex ed in kindergarten, IVF, assisted suicide, and other takeaways from Legislative Day of Action in Albany
I’ve said that Christians need to re-politicize, both to protect their own interests, and to go on the offensive in the public square.
That’s why I attended New York Families Day of Action yesterday in Albany.
I live-X’d much of it under the #LegDay24 hashtag and you can view my tweets here.
Here I will cover some highlights.
Parenthood Legally Abolished
I am not sure how else to explain the language in Senate Bill S8352 which proposes to “to enable decisionally-capable minors to consent to their medical, dental, health, and hospital care.”
The bill’s summary says this would only apply to “homeless” children, but, as written, allows any youth, including infants, to “consent” to medical procedures (h/t Will Cox).
What happened to in loco parentis?
And parents, if “homeless” children can consent on their own to medical treatment, so can yours.
No opt-out for kindergarten sex ed
State Senators Jake Ashby and Pam Helming spoke on a panel about pending legislation along with Stephen Hayford, communications director for New York Families.
All three bemoaned the exodus of families from New York, blaming policies that discourage and hinder families from raising children here.
New York is attacking the family, which is driving the state’s population loss, according to Ashby.
“Parental rights are under assault here in New York State from the majority in our legislature,” Hayford said, voicing his agreement with the senators.
He added that there will be no parental opt-out in the new sex ed bill, which requires comprehensive sexuality instruction for students in grades K-12.
“Why do children in kindergarten need sex ed?” Hayford asked.
Helming told the audience that she has children and grandchildren who are moving back to New York State.
Her response to her children when they told her was, “Are you sure?”
Helming says we need to change policy in New York State and urges Christians to contact her office get involved.
In-Vitro Fertilization (IVF)
Sex-based abortion is illegal in the United States, but sex selection IVF is legal, according to Emma Waters from the Heritage Foundation.
Four million embryos are created each year, but only about 97,000 are brought to term, she added.
What happens to the rest?
Waters explained that many parents feel uneasy about their offspring-on-ice.
Some of these couples are now past their childbearing years. She gave the example of one couple asking their daughter to carry her own siblings to term.
The ethics of IVF are far from simple.
Storage of embryos costs these couples money, year after year. Often, they become the subject of custody battles in divorce.
According to Waters, same-sex couples are driving the demand for both surrogacy for pay and IVF, resulting in what she called the “commodification of women and children.”
New York State was among the last states to legalize surrogacy for pay in 2021.
Equality Amendment to State Constitution
The “Equality Amendment” sounds innocent enough but, if enacted, would further cement in law what author Christopher Caldwell calls America’s second, subversive constitution.
According to a New York Families memorandum of opposition, the Equality Amendment would amend the New York State Constitution to ban discrimination based on:
“ethnicity, national origin, age, [and] disability,” as well as “sex, including sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, pregnancy, pregnancy outcomes, and reductive healthcare and autonomy.”
New York law already contains extremist policies supporting transgenderism and late-term abortion;
the Equality Amendment would further entrench extremist policies by placing them into the text of the New York State Constitution, making it more difficult to repeal those policies in the future.
The proposed constitutional ban on age discrimination is also objectionable, as it could be used to weaken parental rights in regard to matters like “gender-affirming” medical treatment.
New York Families strongly urges New York voters to vote “no” on the Equality Amendment on November 5, 2024.
Assisted Suicide
The afternoon session covered assisted suicide. Peter Wolfgang, executive director of the Family Institute of Connecticut addressed the audience.
Wolfgang explained that opposition to assisted suicide garners support from a broader coalition than just those concerned primarily with sanctity of life issues and sexual morality.
The disability community, seniors, progressives, and mental health advocates all have serious reasons to oppose legalization of assisted suicide in New York and nearby states.
For many, especially those with disabilities, “the right to die becomes the duty to die,” Wolfgang said.
Wolfgang and his group have successfully defeated assisted suicide bills in Connecticut eleven times.
“Assisted suicide targets the disabled,” Wolfgang continued, adding that there have been abuses of the law in jurisdictions where assisted suicide is legal, including “doctor shopping,” which is the practice of finding a medical professional who will sign off on the killing.
Wolfgang stressed that both the “progressive left” and the disabled community “get it” when it comes to assisted suicide because, “they know they may become targets if it becomes legal.”
Wolfgang didn’t expand on why he thought the “progressive left” might feel specifically targeted.
He urged Christians to make common cause on this issue with those with whom they would otherwise disagree.
“When you’re fighting against assisted suicide, the goal is to ‘Beat the Bill’,” he said.
Wolfgang also had a warning for doctors, nurses, and anyone else — including heirs and other family members — who are considering offering their assistance in the killing of a patient.
He underscored that assisted suicide will always be on legal thin ice and that healthcare providers risk incurring liability, even when they think the law protects them.
“Understand,” he urged, “that there will never be enough provisions in ‘the bill’ to protect you if you assist.”
Wolfgang noted that the strongest support for assisted suicide in his home state of Connecticut comes from “our most affluent communities.”
He explained that the affluent are used to having control over their lives and want to determine when and how to end them.
He added, however, that eager heirs often stand to gain a great deal by the legalization of assisted suicide.
He ended his talk noting that where assisted suicide is legal, it’s yet another example of the truth of the slippery slope.
“In places where assisted suicide is legal, proponents always come back to expand it,” Wolfgang said.
It is important for Christians to organize to stop these bills before they become law.