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Bills Campus Department of Education Due Process Free Speech Investigations Office for Civil Rights

SAVE Commends Sen. John Kennedy for ‘Ensuring Fairness for Students Act’

PRESS RELEASE

Rebecca Hain: 513-479-3335

Email: info@saveservices.org

SAVE Commends Sen. John Kennedy for ‘Ensuring Fairness for Students Act’

WASHINGTON / April 4, 2023 – Senator John Kennedy of Louisiana recently introduced the Ensuring Fairness for Students Act, a bill that is designed to codify due process protections in campus Title IX proceedings. In introducing the bill, Kennedy charged the Biden White House is seeking to “roll back fair proceedings on school campuses by making students guilty until proven innocent.” (1)

The bill would provide for a number of due process protections, such as assure that both parties are provided written notice of the allegations, require objective evaluation of the evidence, uphold the presumption of innocence, eliminate conflict of interest, and allow cross-examination.

Just three days after the Kennedy bill was introduced, a news account revealed the deplorable state of Title IX procedures on many campuses (2). The report highlighted the case of a former University of Maryland student who had been accused of sexual misconduct. Even after he was cleared of the charge, two students undertook a campaign to accuse him of being a rapist, causing him to be kicked off the university’s lacrosse team. Saying the university Title IX office failed to intervene to stop the defamation campaign, the lawsuit is seeking over $1 million in damages.

A recent national survey conducted by FIRE found that (3):

  1. 72% of universities failed to provide timely notice of allegations to students accused of wrongdoing.
  2. 60% of schools do not assure the presumption of innocence.
  3. Only 15% of institutions guarantee that accusers and the accused could see the evidence being presented to fact-finders.

SAVE commends Senator Kennedy for introducing the bill, and encourages other members of Congress to take steps to support the bill’s prompt enactment into law.

The Ensuring Fairness for Students Act can be viewed online (4).

Links:

  1. kennedy.senate.gov
  2. https://wtop.com/maryland/2023/03/first-on-wtop-former-u-md-student-cleared-of-sex-assault-claims-sues-school-2-ex-members-of-campus-advocacy-group/
  3. https://www.thefire.org/sites/default/files/2022/11/due-process-report-2022-rev-1.pdf
  4. https://www.kennedy.senate.gov/public/_cache/files/f/6/f6d164a4-7449-4ba5-be39-3199894696c4/F428B98345D9FE8A4E7F174E71295D90.aeg22708.pdf
Categories
Bills Civil Rights Office for Civil Rights Title IX

Growing Wave of Bills Frustrate Biden Plan to Allow Biological Males to Compete in Women’s Sports

  Dating Married
  Male % Female % Male % Female %
Any physical violence 14.6 17.4 13.6 12.1
Severe physical violence 11.9 5.6 4.9 4.4

PRESS RELEASE

Rebecca Hain: 513-479-3335

Email: info@saveservices.org

Growing Wave of Bills Frustrate Biden Plan to Allow Biological Males to Compete in Women’s Sports

WASHINGTON / February 14, 2023 – Surfer Bethany Hamilton is speaking out against the World Surf League’s newly announced policy that would allow biological males to compete against women in professional surfing events (1).

Hamilton’s comments spotlight the growing controversy arising from a Department of Education proposal, issued last June, to redefine the meaning of “sex” in the Title IX law to include “gender identity” (2). Such a change would impose a competitive disadvantage on biological females (3).

In response, a milestone court decision was handed down, and a series of proposed bills have been introduced at the federal and state levels that are designed to protect women’s sports.

On January 5, 2023, the Southern District Court of West Virginia ruled in favor of the Save Women’s Sports Bill, which defines “girl” and “woman” as biologically female for the purpose of secondary school sports (4).

In Congress, Rep. Greg Steube recently introduced the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act. The bill, which now has 20 co-sponsors, would require that sex “be recognized based solely on a person’s reproductive biology and genetics at birth” (5).

In 12 states, lawmakers recently have introduced bills designed to protect women’s sports:

  1. Alaska: HB 27 (6)
  2. Colorado: HB 23-1098 (7)
  3. Connecticut: SB 468 (8)
  4. Hawaii: HB 508/SB 1429 (9)
  5. Kansas: HB 2238 (10)
  6. Maryland: HB 359 (11)
  7. Minnesota: HF 551 (12)
  8. Missouri: SB 48 (13)
  9. New Jersey: SB 589 (14)
  10. North Dakota: HB 1249 (15) and HB 1489 (16)
  11. Texas: HB 23 (17)
  12. Virginia: HB 1387 (18)

Eighteen states previously enacted laws designed to ban biological males from competing in female sports: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Iowa, Idaho, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, and West Virginia (19).

A SAVE opinion poll found that 71% of Americans oppose allowing transgender athletes to participate in women’s sports (20).  SAVE urges lawmakers to discourage attempts the redefine “sex” and work to assure fairness in women’s sports (21).

Links:

  1. https://www.foxnews.com/lifestyle/bethany-hamilton-surfer-speaks-against-rule-transgender-compete-females
  2. https://www.ed.gov/news/press-releases/us-department-education-releases-proposed-changes-title-ix-regulations-invites-public-comment
  3. https://concernedwomen.org/protect-female-athletes/
  4. https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.wvsd.231947/gov.uscourts.wvsd.231947.512.0.pdf
  5. https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/house-bill/734?q=%7B%22search%22%3A%5B%22HR+734%22%5D%7D&s=1&r=1
  6. https://www.akleg.gov/PDF/33/Bills/HB0027A.PDF
  7. https://leg.colorado.gov/sites/default/files/documents/2023A/bills/2023a_1098_01.pdf
  8. https://www.cga.ct.gov/asp/cgabillstatus/cgabillstatus.asp?selBillType=Bill&bill_num=SB468&which_year=2023
  9. https://legiscan.com/HI/bill/HB508/2023
  10. http://www.kslegislature.org/li/b2023_24/measures/hb2238/
  11. https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Legislation/Details/hb0359?ys=2023RS
  12. https://www.revisor.mn.gov/bills/text.php?number=HF0551&version=latest&session=92&session_number=0&session_year=2023
  13. https://legiscan.com/MO/supplement/SB48/id/287499
  14. https://www.njleg.state.nj.us/bill-search/2022/S589/bill-text?f=S1000&n=589_I1
  15. https://www.ndlegis.gov/assembly/68-2023/regular/bill-overview/bo1249.html
  16. https://www.ndlegis.gov/assembly/68-2023/regular/bill-overview/bo1489.html
  17. https://legiscan.com/TX/bill/HB23/2023
  18. https://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?231+sum+HB1387
  19. https://www.lgbtmap.org/equality-maps/sports_participation_bans
  20. https://www.saveservices.org/2022/06/63-of-americans-oppose-expanding-definition-of-sex-to-include-gender-identity/
  21. https://www.saveservices.org/2022-Policy/
Categories
Bills Gender Agenda

Twelve States Have Introduced Bills to Affirm Parental Rights. More Bills Are Expected.

PRESS RELEASE

Rebecca Hain: 513-479-3335

Email: info@saveservices.org

Twelve States Have Introduced Bills to Affirm Parental Rights. More Bills Are Expected.

WASHINGTON / February 6, 2023 – Following reports of secretive school policies that marginalize and exclude parents, parental rights has become a hot-button issue across the United States (1). For example, the New York Times recently published an article highlighting the concerns of parents who were kept in the dark about their child’s gender dilemmas (2).

In response, 12 states have introduced bills in the past month designed to affirm and strengthen parents’ rights. These bills can be classified in terms of whether they affirm fundamental principles of parental rights, assure parental notification, address curriculum and instruction issues, or relate to gender transitioning of children:

Fundamental Principles

Alabama: H.B. 6 prohibits the government from burdening certain fundamental rights of parents (3).

Hawaii: H.B. 1393 states, “Each parent in the State shall have the right to direct the upbringing, education, care, and welfare of the parent’s child.” (4)

Indiana: H.B. 1407 affirms no government entity shall “infringe on the fundamental right of a parent to direct the upbringing, education, health care, and mental health of the parent’s child” without a “compelling governmental interest of the highest order.” (5)

Minnesota:  H.F. 682 seeks to amend the state Constitution to affirm that parents have a fundamental right to “direct the education of their child.” (6)

Mississippi: H.B. 509 states, “The liberty of a parent to direct the upbringing, education, health care and mental health of that parent’s child is a fundamental right.” (7)

New Hampshire: H.B. 10 establishes a “parental bill of rights.” (8)

North Dakota: H.B. 1403 prohibits “governmental entities from interfering with parental rights.” (9)

South Carolina: H. 3485 includes a provision that the government “shall not substantially burden the fundamental right of a parent to direct the upbringing, education, health care, and mental health of that parent’s child….” (10)

Texas: HJR 58 proposes an amendment to the state constitution that states in part: “A parent has the right to direct the education of the parent’s child…” (11)

Parental Notification

Indiana: S.B. 413 proposes that schools “may not discourage or prohibit parental notification of and involvement in decisions affecting a student’s social emotional, behavioral, mental, or physical health.” (12)

South Carolina: H. 3197 states that no public school employee shall “withhold from a child’s parent information that is relevant to the physical, emotional, or mental health of the child.” (13)

Texas: H.B. 61 affirms: “The Texas Education Agency shall adopt procedures for notifying a student’s parent if there is a change in the student’s services or monitoring related to the student’s mental, emotional, or physical health or well-being.” (14)

Utah: S.B. 100 states that “each school and each local governing board shall ensure that no policy or action of the school or LEA [local education agency]: (a) operates to shield any student’s information from the student’s parent.” (15)

Curriculum and Instruction

Indiana: H.B. 1608 states that teachers may not provide instruction on ambiguous concepts of “gender identity” to children in grades K–3. (16)

Missouri: S.B. 4 says that parents have a “right to know what their minor child is being taught in school including, but not limited to, curricula, books, source materials, and other instructional materials.” (17)

Oklahoma: S.B. 95 states no school “may provide any sexually explicit material…to a student …without written consent from the student’s parent or legal guardian.” (18)

Gender Transitioning

Indiana: H.B. 1407 protects a parent’s right to raise “the child consistent with the child’s biological sex” and to decline to consent to the child undergoing gender transitioning. (5)

Additional parental rights bills are expected be introduced in the near future in other states (19). A listing of current lawsuits, federal court rulings, and model legislation is available on the SAVE website (20).

Links:

  1. https://1819news.com/news/item/amicus-brief-filed-in-support-of-eagle-forums-rights-after-federal-government-subpoenas-group-for-vulnerable-child-compassion-and-protection-act-docs
  2. https://www.nytimes.com/2023/01/22/us/gender-identity-students-parents.html
  3. https://legiscan.com/AL/bill/HB6/2023
  4. https://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/sessions/session2023/bills/HB1393_.pdf
  5. https://iga.in.gov/legislative/2023/bills/house/1407#digest-heading
  6. https://www.revisor.mn.gov/bills/text.php?number=HF0682&version=latest&session=93&session_number=0&session_year=2023
  7. http://billstatus.ls.state.ms.us/documents/2023/pdf/HB/0500-0599/HB0509IN.pdf
  8. https://legiscan.com/NH/text/HB10/2023
  9. https://www.ndlegis.gov/assembly/68-2023/regular/bill-overview/bo1403.html
  10. https://www.scstatehouse.gov/sess125_2023-2024/bills/3485.htm
  11. https://capitol.texas.gov/tlodocs/88R/billtext/pdf/SJ00029I.pdf#navpanes=0
  12. https://iga.in.gov/legislative/2023/bills/senate/413#document-a771d1bd
  13. https://www.scstatehouse.gov/sess125_2023-2024/bills/3485.htm
  14. https://capitol.texas.gov/tlodocs/88R/billtext/pdf/HB00631I.pdf#navpanes=0
  15. https://le.utah.gov/~2023/bills/static/SB0100.html
  16. https://iga.in.gov/legislative/2023/bills/house/1608#document-57edadc2
  17. https://senate.mo.gov/23info/pdf-bill/comm/SB4.pdf
  18. http://webserver1.lsb.state.ok.us/cf_pdf/2023-24%20int/SB/SB95%20int.pdf
  19. https://parentalrights.org/
  20. https://www.saveservices.org/2022-policy/network/parental-rights/
Categories
Bills Campus Department of Education Discrimination Domestic Violence False Allegations Free Speech Sexual Harassment Title IX

SAFER Act Seeks Sweeping Changes to Redefine ‘Sex’ and ‘Sexual Harassment’

PRESS RELEASE

Rebecca Stewart: 513-479-3335

Email: info@saveservices.org

SAFER Act Seeks to Make Sweeping Changes to Redefine ‘Sex’ and ‘Sexual Harassment’

WASHINGTON / December 12, 2022 – Lawmakers recently introduced the Students’ Access to Freedom and Educational Rights (SAFER) Act in both the Senate and House (1). The bill proposes to codify sweeping changes to the definitions of “sex” and “sexual harassment.”

Definition of Sex

The existing Title IX law, enacted in 1972, was designed to eliminate discrimination based on a student’s “sex.” But the SAFER bill seeks to expand this fundamental term to include sex stereotypes, pregnancy or related conditions, sexual orientation, or gender identity.  Gender identity is defined as “a person’s internal sense of gender, which could be female, male, or another gender.” (Section 101)

To date, two circuit courts have ruled against changing the Title IX definition of sex:

  • On July 15, 2022 a Tennessee District Court issued a Preliminary Injunction overturning the Department of Education’s Interpretation of Title IX to include “discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.” (2)
  • In a November 11, 2022 decision, a Texas District Court ruled in Neese v. Becerra that Title IX does not prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity. (3)

Over 200 organizations have gone on record in opposition (4) to proposed changes to Title IX that would expand the definition of “sex,” which would impose devastating consequences on women’s sports (5), promote life-altering sex changes on underage children (6), and have long-term effects on parental rights (7).

Definition of Sexual Harassment

In Davis v. Monroe, the U.S. Supreme Court defined sexual harassment as harassment that is ‘‘so severe, pervasive, and objectively offensive that it can be said to deprive the victims of access to the educational opportunities or benefits provided by the school.’’ (8)

But the SAFER bill proposes a broader definition of sexual harassment that would encompass virtually all sex-related conduct that is perceived as “unwelcome:”

“any unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature, regardless of whether it is direct or indirect, or verbal or nonverbal (including conduct that is undertaken in whole or in part, through the use of electronic messaging services, commercial mobile services, electronic communications, or other technology), that unreasonably alters an individual’s terms, benefits, or privileges of an education program or activity, including by creating an intimidating, hostile, or offensive environment.” (Section 203(i))

Such changes would exact harmful consequences on free speech (9) and open the door for a wave of false allegations of sexual misconduct and domestic violence (10). A former Washington State prosecutor explains the false allegations problem this way (11):

“The Department of Education has put immense pressure on higher education institutions to handle cases to their liking….As a result of this unfair treatment, innocent accused students, staff, and faculty find themselves expelled, fired or facing criminal charges.”

In Orwellian fashion, the bill sponsors make the remarkable claim that the SAFER Act will protect “all” students from discrimination (12).

SAVE urges lawmakers to strongly oppose the SAFER Act.

Links:

  1. https://www.congress.gov/117/bills/hr9387/BILLS-117hr9387ih.pdf
  2. https://adfmedialegalfiles.blob.core.windows.net/files/TennesseeOrderOpinionPI.pdf
  3. https://casetext.com/case/neese-v-becerra-1
  4. https://www.saveservices.org/2022-Policy/
  5. https://www.iwf.org/womens-sports-resource-center/
  6. https://nrb.org/articles/thousands-rally-at-tennessee-state-capitol-to-end-child-mutilation/
  7. https://parentalrights.org/
  8. https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/526/629/
  9. https://speechfirst.org/about/
  10. https://www.saveservices.org/2021/05/pr-40-50-of-campus-sexual-assault-allegations-are-unfounded-revealing-need-for-strong-protections-of-the-innocent/
  11. https://kuhlmanoffice.com/practice-areas/title-ix-defense/
  12. https://www.casey.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/one_pager_safer_act.pdf
Categories
Bills Campus Civil Rights Department of Education Due Process False Allegations Office for Civil Rights Press Release Sexual Assault Sexual Harassment Title IX

Ignoring Wave of Attacks on Campus Due Process, Lawmakers Introduce Bill to Help ‘Survivors.’

PRESS RELEASE

Rebecca Hain: 513-479-3335

Email: info@saveservices.org

Ignoring Wave of Attacks on Campus Due Process, Lawmakers Introduce Bill to Help ‘Survivors,’ For the Fifth Time

WASHINGTON / October 10, 2022 – Basic principles of “due process” on campus are being challenged by a growing number of frivolous and false Title IX complaints. Despite these developments, Congressional lawmakers introduced last week the Campus Accountability and Safety Act, a bill that does nothing to shore up due process protections.

Due process, enshrined in the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution, serves to protect innocent citizens from false accusations. But a review of recent Title IX complaints reveals that female students increasingly are resorting to Title IX as a weapon to settle old scores.

For example, Clemson University student Erin Wingo initiated a sexual encounter with a male acquaintance. But worried that her boyfriend might learn of the tryst, Wingo fabricated an allegation of sexual assault. A South Carolina jury later awarded the male student $5.3 million for defamation (1).

In another case, the male student was taking a medication that precluded his ability to have intercourse— but that did not deter an accusation of “rape” from being filed by the female student. In other recent complaints, there is no allegation of intimate sexual contact. Rather, the complaint centers around vague and unverifiable claims of “harassment.”

In addition, recent developments reveal that certain groups are seeking to roll back fundamental due process protections:

  1. The Department of Education released a draft Title IX regulation in June that was widely criticized for its removal of key due process protections. One letter from 19 state Attorneys General charged, “The Proposed Rule threatens to destroy Title IX.” (2)
  2. The presumption of innocence has long been seen as the bedrock to due process (3). Nonetheless, 12 Democratic Senators submitted a letter calling on the Department of Education to remove any ”presumption that the respondent is not responsible for sex discrimination until a determination is made.” (4) This extreme position provoked the ire of leading liberal commentators (5).

Ignoring these worrisome threats to due process, last week federal lawmakers introduced the Campus Accountability and Safety Act (6). The bill had been introduced, unsuccessfully, in four previous sessions of Congress (7).

The House bill was co-sponsored by Representatives Carolyn Maloney and John Katko, neither of whom will be serving in Congress next year. Announced five weeks before the highly contested November 8 elections, the bill has little chance of being passed into law in the current session of Congress.

“The truth is that there is no crisis in sexual assault on campus,” notes a leading Title IX attorney. “Title IX teaches women to blame the guy instead of accepting her share of responsibility for the failed relationship.”

Citations:

  1. https://www.saveservices.org/2022/04/south-carolina-jury-awards-5-3-million-to-wrongfully-accused-clemson-u-student-on-defamation-and-civil-conspiracy-claims/
  2. https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/sites/default/files/images/executive-management/Title%20IX%20NPRM%20Indiana%20Comment%20Letter%20FINAL.pdf
  3. http://www.prosecutorintegrity.org/innocence/cornerstone/
  4. https://www.help.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/220912%20Title%20IX%20Comment%20Letter.pdf
  5. https://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2022/09/24/senate_democrats_and_title_ix_148234.html
  6. https://maloney.house.gov/sites/maloney.house.gov/files/final%20casa.pdf
  7. https://www.grassley.senate.gov/news/news-releases/grassley-gillibrand-reintroduce-bipartisan-bill-to-combat-sexual-assault-on-college-campuses
Categories
Bills Campus Press Release Sexual Assault

PR: Turning the Criminal Justice System into an After-Thought: SAVE Announces Opposition to Campus Accountability and Safety Act

Contact: Teri Stoddard
Telephone: 301-801-0608
Email: teristoddard@saveservices.org

Turning the Criminal Justice System into an After-Thought:

SAVE Announces Opposition to Campus Accountability and Safety Act

WASHINGTON / August 5, 2014 – Today Stop Abusive and Violent Environments (SAVE) is announcing its opposition to the Campus Accountability and Safety Act. The CASA bill was introduced last week by Sen. Claire McCaskill of Missouri.

By limiting the involvement of the criminal justice system, the bill would make it harder for thorough investigations to be completed, fair trials to be conducted, and appropriate sanctions to be imposed. The bill impairs the deployment of criminal justice resources in three ways:

1. The Act would not require campus rapes to be reported to law enforcement, thus thwarting the ability of trained investigators to collect evidence.

2. Campus security programs do not possess the legal authority to search FBI DNA and fingerprint databases. A match can prevent a future rape, and allow a previous crime to be solved, as well.

3. The law would preclude the local prosecutor’s office from filing charges unless and until the victim gave permission.

Over 200 editorials have criticized the existing system of campus disciplinary committees for failing to appropriately respond to victims’ needs and conducting shoddy investigations: www.accusingu.org . Even if the accused is found guilty, the most severe punishment is expulsion, a sanction that is woefully inadequate, most say.

The CASA bill has been sharply criticized for ignoring due process protections, as well. Charlotte Hays at the Independent Women’s Forum highlighted concerns about the “erosion of due process for the accused.” Diana Furchtgott-Roth of the Manhattan Institute charged the bill would encourage colleges to “throw out due process.”

“The CASA bill says the way to stop rape is to turn the criminal justice system into an administrative after-thought,” notes SAVE spokesperson Sheryle Hutter. “Rape victims are outraged by this misguided attempt to handcuff the involvement of police, detectives, and prosecutors.”

Stop Abusive and Violent Environments—SAVE—is a victim-advocacy organization working for evidence-based solutions to domestic violence and sexual assault: www.saveservices.org

Categories
Bills Campus Civil Rights DED Sexual Assault Directive Innocence Law Enforcement Press Release Sexual Assault

Safety of Our Students: SAVE Calls on Congress to Fix Broken System of Campus Rape Panels

Contact: Teri Stoddard
Telephone: 301-801-0608
Email: teristoddard@saveservices.org

Safety of Our Students: SAVE Calls on Congress to Fix Broken System of Campus Rape Panels

WASHINGTON / May 21, 2014 – Based on growing complaints by victims and accused students, Stop Abusive and Violent Environments (SAVE) is calling on Congress to fix the current system of campus disciplinary committees. A 2011 federal policy mandated that these panels adjudicate claims of campus sexual assault. Over 350 editorials to date have sharply criticized the boards both for shortchanging victims and violating the rights of the accused: www.accusingu.org

SAVE is proposing enactment of a new law entitled “SOS: Safety of Our Students.” The law would require that all allegations of campus criminal sexual assault be referred to local criminal justice authorities for investigation and adjudication. The full text of the bill can be seen here: http://www.saveservices.org/camp/campus-rape-courts

In 2011 the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights issued a “Dear Colleague” letter that shifted responsibility for campus rape cases to the committees that handle cheating and plagiarism cases. These panels lack legal authority to subpoena witnesses, conduct in-depth investigations, or impose criminal sanctions.

On May 1, 2014 the Department of Education announced it was launching investigations of 55 universities for “possible violations of federal law over the handling of sexual violence and harassment complaints.” The probe underscores federal concerns over the turmoil and confusion that the current system is now experiencing.

Five days later a USA Today Editorial Board column charged the current approach is “failing” because the “strongest punishment schools can deliver is to expel a rapist from campus.” A May 13 editorial by the Los Angeles Times Board echoed similar concerns.

“Despite the best of intentions by its proponents, the current system represents second-class justice to victims and third-world justice for the accused,” charges SAVE spokesperson Sheryle Hutter. “We call on Congress to act promptly to respond to the growing crisis in handling campus rape cases.”

Stop Abusive and Violent Environments—SAVE—is a victim-advocacy organization working for evidence-based solutions to domestic violence and sexual assault: www.saveservices.org

Categories
Accusing U. Bills Campus Innocence Press Release Sexual Assault

PR: Commentators Ridicule Campus Sex Bill, SAVE Says It Will Harm Victims

Contact: Teri Stoddard
Telephone: 301-801-0608
Email: teristoddard@saveservices.org

Commentators Ridicule Campus Sex Bill, SAVE Says It Will Harm Victims

WASHINGTON / March 11, 2014 – Editorial writers are criticizing Senate Bill 967 for removing due process protections and encouraging false allegations. Stop Abusive and Violent Environments, a victim advocacy group, says the bill’s broad definitions would serve to dissipate scarce resources and make it harder for victims to be believed.

SB 967 would require students contemplating any form of “sexual activity” to express their prior consent through “clear, unambiguous actions.” SB 967 also encourages partners to reaffirm consent on a continuing basis throughout the sex act.

National columnist Cathy Young reveals the notion of mandating verbal consent to sex has been “widely ridiculed as political correctness gone mad.” “With the California bill, we now have a state legislature effectively mandating how people—at least college students—should behave during sex,” Young notes. “Whatever happened to getting the government out of the bedroom?” http://www.mindingthecampus.com/originals/2014/02/want_to_have_sex_sign_this_con.html

Civil rights expert KC Johnson believes SB 967 embodies a clear “hostility to due process” by mandating the “preponderance-of-evidence threshold in branding a student a rapist.” http://www.mindingthecampus.com/forum/2014/02/a_deceptive_california_bill_on.html

By expanding the definition of sexual assault, the number of persons charged with sexual offenses would be likely to increase exponentially. Columnist Hans Bader asks, “How will classifying most consensual sex as rape help rape victims?” http://libertyunyielding.com/2014/03/09/california-activists-seek-redefine-quiet-consensual-sex-rape/

“The California bill would flood the system with students falsely accused of sexual assault,” notes SAVE spokesperson Sheryle Hutter. “This would make investigators more skeptical of persons claiming to be raped, and leave real victims less likely to report the crime. Who in their right mind would want that?”

For more information, see SAVE’s Ten Steps to Turn Any Student into a Sex Offender: http://www.saveservices.org/camp/affirmative-consent/

Stop Abusive and Violent Environments is a victim-advocacy organization working for evidence-based solutions to domestic violence and sexual assault: www.saveservices.org

Categories
Bills Civil Rights Discrimination Domestic Violence Press Release Victims Violence Violence Against Women Act

Press Release: SAVE Applauds New Inclusion Mandate of Violence Against Women Act

PRESS RELEASE

Contact: Teri Stoddard
Telephone: 301-801-0608
Email: tstoddard@saveservices.org

SAVE Applauds New Inclusion Mandate of Violence Against Women Act

WASHINGTON / March 1, 2013 – SAVE, a leading victim-rights organization, is applauding the recent passage of the Violence Against Women Act which includes a new mandate for inclusive services. Following spirited debates that spanned a full year, the VAWA reauthorization bill was approved yesterday in the House of Representatives by a vote of 286-138.

Within hours of its passage, Attorney General Eric Holder released this statement: “I applaud Congress for passing a bipartisan reauthorization that protects everyone – women and men, gay and straight, children and adults of all races, ethnicities, countries of origin, and tribal affiliations.” (1)

Sen. Patrick Leahy, lead author of the Senate VAWA bill, has repeatedly emphasized the necessity for the law to help all victims: “A victim is a victim is a victim. And violence is violence is violence.” (2)

A press release from the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence echoes the same theme: “This bipartisan legislation improves VAWA programs and strengthens protections for all victims of violence” (emphasis in the original).

And the Independent Women’s Forum called on the Violence Against Women Act to be refocused “to include all victims rather than singling out specific groups for special protection based on gender, sexual orientation, or other group status.” (3)

“Through all the debates of the past year, members of Congress agreed on one thing – a need to bring an end to the discriminatory practices of VAWA programs,” explains SAVE spokesperson Sheryle Hutter. “Discrimination on any basis is wrong, and we thank the leaders in Congress who had the courage to stop this shameful practice.”

Reports have documented widespread bias against heterosexual male (4) and lesbian/gay victims of abuse.

Stop Abusive and Violent Environments is a victim-advocacy organization working for evidence-based solutions to domestic violence and sexual assault: www.saveservices.org  

  1. http://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/2013/February/13-ag-253.html
  2. http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/02/13/leahy-slams-republican-opposition-to-violence-against-women-act-a-victim-is-a-victim/
  3. http://www.iwf.org/publications/2790645/The-Violence-Against-Women-Act
  4. http://www.saveservices.org/downloads/Domestic-Violence-Programs-Discriminate-Against-Male-Victims
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Bills Campus Domestic Violence Media Press Release Research Violence Against Women Act

PR: ‘Incendiary and Extreme:’ SAVE Deplores Vilification Campaign in Wake of Senate Approval of VAWA

PRESS RELEASE

Contact: Teri Stoddard
Telephone: 301-801-0608
Email: tstoddard@saveservices.org

‘Incendiary and Extreme:’ SAVE Deplores Vilification Campaign in Wake of Senate Approval of VAWA

WASHINGTON / February 13, 2013 – Following yesterday’s Senate approval of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), advocates for prompt passage of the bill in the House of Representatives have launched a high-pressure campaign designed to portray Republicans as unsympathetic to the plight of domestic violence victims.

Within hours of Senate approval of the bill, a group called UltraViolet issued a statement announcing its strategy in bold-faced type: “If we can spread the word that House conservatives are blocking legislation to reduce domestic violence because ‘it’s not fair to men,’ we can create a political firestorm no politician will want to get caught up in.”

A press release from the National Organization for Women claims a “radical fringe” controls the Republican leadership and that majority leader Eric Cantor would continue his “shameful efforts” to delay passage of the bill. The N.O.W. statement includes an emotional claim about daily “burnings” of women.

The Huffington Post has previously denounced the N.O.W. attacks on Cantor as “incendiary and extreme” (1).

Last week the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee put out an alert demanding that Senate Republicans “abandon their War on Women and fund the Violence Against Women Act.” The DSCC message did not mention the fact that Democratic and Republican bills have recommended identical funding levels for VAWA.

Numerous groups have questioned the effectiveness of VAWA-funded programs:

— Concerned Women for America, the nation’s largest public policy group for women, notes in a recent editorial, “VAWA has morphed into a series of rigid and ineffective law enforcement programs” (2).

— The Independent Women’s Forum’s Fact Sheet on VAWA warns, “The criminal justice approaches funded by VAWA may be harming the very victims they were intended to protect” (3).

— A recent report documents VAWA-funded restraining orders, mandatory arrest, and aggressive prosecution policies can increase partner violence (4).

“I’ve never seen this level of fanatical name-calling,” says SAVE spokesperson Sheryle Hutter. “Instead of engaging in intimidation and bullying tactics, these groups should be thanking the courageous lawmakers who are willing to look at the facts, ask hard questions, and propose new ways to protect victims.”

Over 40 leading scientists and organizations have questioned VAWA’s ideological basis and endorsed major reforms to the law: http://www.saveservices.org/pvra/vawa-reform-principles/.

Stop Abusive and Violent Environments is a victim-advocacy organization working for evidence-based solutions to domestic violence and sexual assault: www.saveservices.org

(1) http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/12/06/violence-against-women-act-eric-cantor-native-americans_n_2251924.html
(2) http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2013/feb/8/nance-why-congress-ought-ditch-vawa/#ixzz2KKZBAdoI
(3) http://iwf.org/publications/2790517/FACT-SHEET:-Violence-Against-Women-Act
(4) http://www.saveservices.org/2013/02/the-violence-against-women-act-is-a-deadly-proposition/