Month: March 2022

Blog

Four more states act to save women’s sports – Indiana must act, too

In the past week, four more states have joined the fight to protect female sports by passing legislation that prohibits biological males from competing in girls’ sports. Almost half of the country has passed this kind of legislation, with many more currently working to move the legislation into law.

Like Indiana, Utah’s governor vetoed the bill expressing similar concerns as Governor Holcomb. The state’s legislature voted last week to override that veto with overwhelming support and had even greater numbers than when the bill originally passed. The law is scheduled to go into effect on July 1.

Women are actively being erased from their own sports and Governor Holcomb decided to side with woke corporate interest groups by vetoing HB 1041. If he really believed in protecting fairness in women’s sports, he would have listened to his constituents who voiced their overwhelming support for this bill and signed it into law.

Our female athletes deserve better. The Indiana House Speaker has already announced the intention of the legislators to overturn the Governor’s veto in May and it is integral that they do. The future of women’s sports in Indiana depends on it.

We must follow Utah’s example and overturn Governor Holcomb’s egregious failure towards women’s sports.

Female athletes deserve a fair playing field and it’s time we gave it to them. Click here to urge your lawmakers to override his veto on the Fairness in Women’s Sports Act.

  Back

Blog

Override Governor Holcomb’s veto

Governor Holcomb betrayed Hoosiers last week by vetoing HB 1041, the Fairness in Women’s Sports Act. This bill would have provided protections for girls’ sports programs through the high school level in our state.

The people of Indiana were loud and clear in their support for this bill as seen with its passing by both the House and Senate. But Governor Holcomb has officially discarded common sense and reality. He has abandoned the majority of Hoosiers who put him into office by choosing to side with the ACLU and woke corporate interests bent on bullying government officials into implementing their radical agenda.

This veto comes just days after a biological man won the NCAA title for women’s swimming, despite having male chromosomes and the skeletal and muscular advantages that come with it.

Despite saying that protecting fairness in women’s sports was “a worthy cause for sure,” Holcomb’s concerns about the bill are surface level at best and another excuse to avoid controversy.

Hoosiers, you deserve better. Our female athletes certainly deserve better. The Indiana House Speaker has already announced their intention to overturn the Governor’s veto in May.

Indiana Family Institute urges lawmakers to override the Governor’s veto, reinstate this bill, and encourage the Governor to stop abandoning the majority of Hoosiers who put him into office. Indiana girls and women deserve a fair playing field.

Governor Holcomb failed all Hoosiers – but this fight isn’t over. Click here to urge your lawmakers to override his veto on the Fairness in Women’s Sports Act.

  Back

Blog

End of legislative session wrap-up

Indiana’s 2022 legislative session wrapped up deliberations last week. After months of debate on some highly contended issues, the session ended with major victories but also significant losses – and we have a major battle ahead that we need your help on.

One major victory was HB 1217 which penalizes coerced abortions. Though it received outspoken opposition from Planned Parenthood, the people of Indiana believed in the sanctity of life and the necessity to protect it. With pro-life movements gaining traction across the nation and the possibility of the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade, many Republican lawmakers are passionate about fighting for the rights of the unborn and have even requested that Governor Holcomb call them back for a special session if Roe is overturned.

Free speech on college campuses and the right to display historical documents on state property were also passed, further protections of our First Amendment rights.

Unfortunately, legislators missed the mark on some crucial bills. One of the biggest was the failure to address Critical Race Theory and LGBTQ indoctrination in our schools. As one of the most contested issues, parents desired to see more transparency in public-school education. Curricula that causes children to see each other in terms of race or gender identity has no place in school.

Multiple pieces of legislation were introduced and shot down that sought to address trans issues in hospitals and data collection, prevent DCS from removing children with mental health issues from innocent parents, and protect children from harmful medical experimentation that would damage their natural biologic structure. Children need safe spaces; help, not harm.

Furthermore, we were disappointed in the failure to prevent vaccine mandates for employees. HB 1001 did pass and has expanded exceptions to vaccine mandates by employers, which we view as a positive step.  However, vaccines should be a personal choice, not a requirement. And while we are overjoyed that HB 1041 passed for K-12 grade, it failed to include college athletics which, as we’ve seen with universities across the country, is integral to protecting women’s sports.

But the most egregious failure from this session is Governor Holcomb’s betrayal of Hoosiers on HB 1041, the Fairness in Women’s Sports Act. Hoosiers were loud and clear in their support for this bill, but ultimately, the governor chose to side with the ACLU and woke corporate interests bent on bullying government officials into implementing their radical agenda. We intend to press for a veto override to reinstate this bill, and encourage the governor to stop abandoning the majority of Hoosiers who put him into office.

Governor Holcomb failed all Hoosiers – but this fight isn’t over. Click here to urge your lawmakers to override his veto on the Fairness in Women’s Sports Act.

  Back

Blog

PRESS: IFI Statement on Governor Holcomb’s Tone-Deaf Veto of Common Sense Bill to Protect Women’s Sports

PRESS: IFI Statement on Governor Holcomb’s Tone-Deaf Veto of Common Sense Bill to Protect Women’s Sports 

March 22, 2022 (INDIANAPOLIS) – Late Monday evening, Governor Eric Holcomb vetoed a bill, which was passed by wide majorities in the Indiana House and Senate, that would have provided protections for women’s sports programs in the Hoosier State.

This veto came just days after Lia Thomas won the national title for women’s swimming, despite having male chromosomes and the skeletal and muscular advantages that come with it. The crowning of Thomas caused a bipartisan uproar and sparked a national debate on fairness in competition. 

“Indiana girls and women deserve a fair playing field,” said Ryan McCann, Executive Director of the Indiana Family Institute. “Hoosiers were loud and clear in their support for this bill, but ultimately, the governor chose to side with the ACLU and woke corporate interests bent on bullying government officials into implementing their radical agenda. We intend to press for a veto override to reinstate this bill, and encourage the governor to stop abandoning the majority of Hoosiers who put him into office.” 

###

  Back

Blog

Troubling statement from President Biden

In honor of International Women’s Day, President Biden made a troubling statement regarding abortion. “Every person deserves the chance to live up to their full God-given potential, without regard for gender or other factors. Yet too often, in too many places, women and girls face obstacles that limit their possibilities and undermine their participation in economic, political, and social life.” He further affirmed his administration’s commitment to “ma[ke] gender equity a cornerstone” and even “launched a whole-of-government effort to protect reproductive rights.”

This statement is deeply distressing as he is suggesting that women can’t reach their God-given potential without the availability of abortion. Not only is it demeaning, it is very wrong. Violence can never, and should never, be used to achieve equality. It’s a sad reflection of the dehumanization of the child in the womb, and actually quite insulting to women to assert that they won’t be able to achieve their dreams with children.

IFI believes that life starts at conception and must therefore be protected. Women should never be intimidated to abort their child out of fear, desperation, or concern of societal stigma. Statements like the one above are very damaging and dangerous to those considering abortion. It does not provide encouragement or confidence to women who are already struggling with a life-altering decision.

That is why we worked to pass HB 1217. This bill will penalize anyone who coerces a woman into having an abortion and results in a felony. Women seeking an abortion must be informed that coerced abortions are illegal, and abortion clinics are required to report instances of coercion to law enforcement. Every life is gift from God, and we want women in Indiana to recognize the value of their unborn child.

Thanks to your support and activism, HB 1217 passed in the House and the Senate! It now heads to Governor Holcomb’s desk where it must be signed before becoming law.

But we still need your help. Please contact Holcomb and ask him to approve this critical bill. Women deserve to feel loved and supported during the miracle of pregnancy, not coerced into making an egregious mistake.

Let’s protect women and their unborn children from threats of violence and other coercion.

  Back