IFI files amicus brief in support of music teacher

7/29/24

Earlier this month, IFI filed an amicus brief supporting Indiana music teacher John Kluge, who was forced to resign from Brownsburg Community School in 2018 after his request for a religious exemption to the school’s mandatory “pronoun policy” was revoked. The policy required teachers to call students by their “preferred gender” and name, denying biological reality and Biblical truth.

Six years later, John is still embroiled in a legal battle against the school. Following the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Groff v. DeJoy, which upheld that “Title VII requires employers to grant a religious accommodation unless it would result in undue hardship or substantial additional costs,” the 7th Circuit sent John’s case back to the district court to be reconsidered. Click here for a full timeline of John’s legal battle against Brownsburg.

“In recent years, IFI has noticed a growing trend of public schools ignoring the constitutional rights of parents, teachers, and students,” the amicus brief, submitted by IFI General Counsel Josh Hershberger, reads. “Education is foundational to the project of raising children and building a strong family; and students, teachers, and parents should not face discrimination by school officials because of their political or religious views. For these reasons, IFI has publicly supported John Kluge and the right of teachers generally to live out their faith in the public school environment while respecting differences and modeling citizenship in a plural society. IFI is gravely concerned that the District Court’s decision in this matter will be used as precedent for violating the religious beliefs and conscience rights of other teachers in Indiana.”

Brownsburg argued and the district court agreed that the Indiana Constitution requires Brownsburg employees to affirm students identifying as transgender by using their preferred name and pronouns. The court relied on Article 8, Section 1 of the Indiana Constitution, which states, “[I]t shall be the duty of the General Assembly to provide…by law, for a general and uniform system of Common Schools, wherein tuition shall be without charge, and equally open to all.” 

IFI argued against that line of reasoning in the brief:

“Brownsburg is open to all—meaning all who openly affirm transgender ideology, and others need not apply or enroll. The 150 drafters of the 1851 Indiana Constitution would be shocked by this interpretation, as Article 1, Section 3 of our Indiana Constitution declares, “No law shall, in any case whatever, control the free exercise and enjoyment of religious opinions, or interfere with the rights of conscience.” And Article 8, Section 1 simply requires the state to maintain a free common school system with enrollment available to all. Brownsburg fails even this standard.

To be clear, no Indiana law requires a school corporation to compel its teachers to promote transgender ideology. Instead, Indiana law designates sports teams based on biological sex, prohibits biological males from participating on teams designated for biological females, bans gender reassignment surgeries, requires schools to notify parents of any change to a student’s name or pronouns, and protects the religious expression of students and parents. Indiana’s chief legal officer also recently sought and procured an injunction prohibiting federal regulations from enforcing the very same policy concerning transgender names and pronouns at issue in this case.”

Please continue to prayerfully and financially support IFI as we fight to protect parental rights, religious freedom, and biblical values in the education system.

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Announcing IFI’s Fall Dinner Keynote Speaker

7/22/24

IFI is excited to announce the details of our annual Fall Dinner, which will take place in just under two months, on September 16th. This year we will be joined by keynote speaker Riley Gaines, who became a prominent conservative figure after speaking out against men competing in women’s sports. 

In 2022, Riley was forced to not only compete against a biological male, “Lia” Thomas, who was swimming in UPenn’s women’s team at the NCAA Championship, but she and all her teammates were forced without warning or consent to undress in front of the man and were subjected to discrimination by the NCAA. Riley went on to tie with Lia at the championship and has since been one of the most powerful voices to speak out against the injustice of men competing in women’s sports. You can watch a video about her experience here. She has challenged the rules of the NCAA, USA Swimming, International Olympic Committee (IOC), and other governing bodies. 

Riley later founded the Riley Gaines Center at the Leadership Institute, where she and her colleagues make real and lasting change in the area of women’s rights. They have worked to legally define ‘woman,’ protect Title IX, and defend women’s rights to single-sex spaces and equal opportunities. 

We are honored to have Riley speak at our Fall Dinner this year, and we are highly anticipating her keynote address! 

The dinner will begin at 6:00 PM, preceded by a VIP reception at 5:00, at the following location:

IMMI Conference Center

18880 N East St

Westfield, IN  46074

Registration is now open, and you can sign up by clicking HERE.

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Prioritizing Parental Rights

7/18/24

Last week I attended a conference with our national legal partner Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), leaders of other Family Policy Councils from around the nation, and other social conservative groups and leaders. We explored legislative opportunities to advance the cause of faith, family, and freedom in our respective states. One of the many topics discussed during the conference was that of protecting parental rights… an issue near and dear to our hearts at IFI.

You may not know this, but Indiana is not doing a great job of protecting parental rights – both objectively and compared to other states. One prime example is the Cox family, who had their child stolen from them by the Indiana Department of Child Services because they refused to accept radical transgender ideology and deny their Christian beliefs. Another example is school counselor Kathy McCord, who was fired from her position in the South Madison County School district for publicly explaining that the district was requiring staff to lie to parents about their children seeking “gender support plans.” We are still waiting to see both of these situations rectified, and we continue to call on DCS, the governor, and our legislators to take action to prevent these scenarios from ever occurring again.

Tennessee is one state that has enshrined parental rights in its state law, protecting parents’ fundamental right to guide the upbringing, education, and health care of their children. We desperately want to see this implemented in our state, and we believe that through your financial and spiritual partnership, we can see it happen in the 2025 state legislative session. We must prioritize protecting parental rights in Indiana.

Additionally, we hope you will join us in praying for the victims and their families of Saturday’s attempted assassination of President Donald Trump. We are living in tumultuous times, and the grace of God is needed now more than ever to guide our nation. We need to be in prayer that God will guide and protect our nation’s leaders, and that no further acts of violence will take place in the months leading up to the November election.

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Recap: HLS Healthcare Day

Every year the Hoosier Leadership Series devotes one class to focusing on the issue of healthcare in Indiana. It gives students an opportunity to take a deeper look at the realities of the healthcare industry from a doctor’s perspective and also examine the issues at a macro level, seeing how dollars are spent by the state.

This year, “Healthcare Day” was held at the end of June. Students heard from speakers on a wide range of topics – from how the legislature is attempting to manage healthcare costs for consumers, to hearing about how to help children who mistakenly believe they are transgender.

Five speakers were featured throughout the course of the class, including doctors, state officials, and healthcare directors. IFI was honored to have Dr. Dan Stock, the Indiana physician who went viral during COVID for calling out the nonsensical rules early on, speak to the class during this one-day event. Following his opening remarks, we heard from Leah Wilson, Executive Director of Stand for Health Freedom, on the pitfalls, trends, and advocacy opportunities in the healthcare industry.  

Class members also had the unique opportunity to hear from a parent who successfully navigated pulling their child from the perils of “transitioning” genders. Following her insightful testimony, I personally spoke to the class about IFI’s efforts at the Statehouse on this deeply important issue, such as the passing of SB 480, the “Help, Not Harm” bill, which prohibits doctors from performing gender “transition” procedures on minors, including puberty blocking drugs, cross-sex hormones, and surgery.

HLS students also continued their leadership training that delves into their individual strengths under the direction of B23 Strategies.

This HLS class was informative, convicting, and encouraging, and we’re extremely grateful to all those who took time out of their busy schedule to be with us, including State Representative Donna Schaibley and Joel Noble, Director of Public Policy for Samaritan Ministries.

As always, we are incredibly grateful for our sponsors, who help make the Hoosier Leadership Series possible: B23 Strategies, Vertical Immersive, Americans for Prosperity, Adler Law Firm, Ash and Oak, and Samaritan Ministries.

If you’re interested in taking part in next year’s Hoosier Leadership Series, you can apply here, or email HLS Director Valerie Swack with any questions: valerie@hoosierfamily.org. This class is an excellent way to learn how to apply your faith in a more effective way within the public square. We highly encourage you to consider participating next year!

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