Emma Maple freelances for FāVS News.
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Will Idaho’s Law Criminalizing Transgender Bathroom Use Affect Churches?
Progressive religious leaders in Idaho are pushing back against a new state law that would force transgender people to use bathrooms aligned with their sex assigned at birth, a measure that is partially on hold following a preliminary injunction issued in June.
House Bill 752, which was scheduled to go into full effect on July 1, would require people to use bathrooms, locker rooms and other sex-segregated facilities matching their sex at birth, with criminal penalties for those who don’t comply. Six transgender Idahoans challenged the law in federal court, and a federal judge issued a temporary order predicting it would not survive legal scrutiny. The injunction also ruled that transgender people can use restrooms of their choosing if a single stall restroom is not readily available.
The state’s attorney general said he plans to appeal.
Although the law is backed by conservative Christians and was drafted by a legislature that opens most meetings with a Christian prayer, many progressive religious leaders have said it is unrepresentative of their faith and are speaking out against it. Some are also wrestling with separate questions: Does the bill apply to religious institutions, and should it?
The Catholic and Quaker Walking 90 Miles in the Name of Kindness
When Jim Hall and Bob Bruce, who have been best friends for over 50 years, heard about the Buddhist monks who walked for peace earlier this year, they had an idea: What if they did a walk of their own, one that focused on building bridges across faith and politics?
The plan quickly took shape, leading to the kindness walk that the duo have planned Aug. 12-20.
The nine-day walk will cross nearly 90 miles and several faith communities between Shoreline and Olympia, Wa.