logo
Lawsuit Aims to Stop Religious Exemptions From Vaccines in West Virginia

Lawsuit Aims to Stop Religious Exemptions From Vaccines in West Virginia

Epoch Times26-05-2025

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is suing West Virginia over its enabling students to receive religious exemptions from vaccines required for school attendance.
West Virginia Gov. Patrick Morrisey in January
Morrisey, a Republican, wrote at the time that forcing West Virginians to vaccinate their children despite religious objections 'substantially burdens the free exercise of religion in violation of the inherent religious liberties guaranteed by the Constitutions of the United States and West Virginia.'
The governor cited how legislators in 2023 approved the Equal Protection for Religion Act, which says in part that no action from the state may 'substantially burden a person's exercise of religion' unless it is essential to 'further a compelling government interest.'
The ACLU
The Equal Protection for Religion Act does not permit the governor to 'unilaterally suspend acts of the Legislature,' the organization stated.
Related Stories
5/1/2025
5/26/2025
'Respondents are continuing to wantonly violate clear state law at the request of the Governor,' it added later.
The suit names health officials and agencies as defendants, including the West Virginia Department of Health. It was brought on behalf of two parents in the state who oppose the governor's order.
The ACLU is asking the court to order the officials to fully comply with state law and not award any exemptions that conflict with the statute.
'Governors do not rule by decree,' Aubrey Sparks, legal director of the ACLU's West Virginia chapter,
The West Virginia Department of Health and Morrisey's office did not respond to requests for comment by publication time.
In response to pending lawsuits, the governor earlier in May
West Virginia before January was one of just five states that did not give any exemptions for non-medical reasons.
West Virginia law requires school students to be vaccinated against chickenpox, Hepatitis B, measles, meningitis, mumps, diphtheria, polio, rubella, tetanus, and whooping cough.

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Biden admin evacuated 55 Afghans on terror watchlist to US during botched withdrawal: DOJ watchdog
Biden admin evacuated 55 Afghans on terror watchlist to US during botched withdrawal: DOJ watchdog

New York Post

time25 minutes ago

  • New York Post

Biden admin evacuated 55 Afghans on terror watchlist to US during botched withdrawal: DOJ watchdog

US officials encountered 55 Afghan evacuees on the terrorist watchlist after the Biden administration's chaotic 2021 withdrawal from the Middle Eastern country, according to a Justice Department inspector general report. The report, released Tuesday, confirmed longstanding suspicions from Republican lawmakers that the Biden administration failed to properly vet US-bound refugees as the Taliban retook control of Afghanistan. 'I've sounded the alarm about the need to thoroughly vet Afghan evacuee applicants since August 2021,' Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) said in a statement, reacting to the DOJ IG report. 'The Biden-Harris administration, my Democrat colleagues in Congress and many in the media were quick to dismiss glaring red flags that a nonpartisan national security analysis now confirms.' 3 Grassley charged that the Biden administration endangered the lives of Americans by allowing improperly vetted Afghan refugees into the US. AP The FBI's Terrorist Screening Center (TSC) identified 55 Afghans that were either already on the terrorist watchlist and made it to a US port of entry or were added to the database during the evacuation and resettlement process, the report found. Of those, at least 21 were added to the terror list after they had already entered the US. After investigations, the FBI eventually removed 46 evacuees from the watchlist, determining that they posed no threat to the homeland. However, nine remained in the terror database as of July 2024 and eight were in the US. 'As if it wasn't already obvious, the Biden-Harris administration endangered American lives by allowing suspected terrorists to enter the United States and roam free for years,' Grassley argued, noting that his 'oversight of this matter will continue.' Roughly 90,000 Afghans were allowed entry into the US and became eligible for Special immigrant Visas under the Biden administration's Operation Allies Refuge (OAR) and Operation Allies Welcome (OAW) programs, which provided the foreign nationals immigration processing and resettlement support. 'According to the FBI, the need to immediately evacuate Afghans overtook the normal processes required to determine whether individuals attempting to enter the United States pose a threat to national security, which increased the risk that bad actors could try to exploit the expedited evacuation,' the DOJ IG report stated. Despite the 55 individuals flagged, the DOJ inspector general determined that overall 'each of the responsible elements of the FBI effectively communicated and addressed any potential national security risks identified.' 3 The Biden administration hastily evacuated tens of thousands of Afghans as the country fell to the Taliban in 2021. AFP via Getty Images 3 As of July 2024, eight Afghans on the FBI's terror watchlist were still in the United States. AP Last October, the DOJ charged an Afghan national brought into the US during the chaotic withdrawal with plotting an ISIS-inspired Election Day terror attack. Nasir Ahmad Tawhedi, 27, was living in Oklahoma City on a Special Immigrant Visa as he took steps to stockpile AK-47 rifles and ammunition to carry out an attack on US soil 'in the name of ISIS,' according to the Justice Department. Tawhedi entered the US on Sept. 9, 2021, just weeks after the Taliban regained control of Afghanistan and the last US troops departed from the war-torn nation. Tawhedi was charged with conspiring and attempting to provide material support to ISIS and is currently awaiting trial.

Arizona governor vetoes bill banning teaching antisemitism, calls it an attack on educators
Arizona governor vetoes bill banning teaching antisemitism, calls it an attack on educators

San Francisco Chronicle​

time38 minutes ago

  • San Francisco Chronicle​

Arizona governor vetoes bill banning teaching antisemitism, calls it an attack on educators

PHOENIX (AP) — Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs has vetoed a proposal that would have banned teaching antisemitism at the state's public K-12 schools, universities and colleges and exposed educators who violate the new rules to discipline and lawsuits. The proposal would have prohibited teachers and administrators from teaching or promoting antisemitism or antisemitic actions that create a hostile environment, calling for the genocide of any group or requiring students to advocate for an antisemitic point of view. It also would have barred public schools from using public money to support the teaching of antisemitism. Hobbs, a Democrat, said Tuesday that the bill was not about antisemitism but rather about attacking teachers. 'It puts an unacceptable level of personal liability in place for our public school, community college, and university educators and staff, opening them up to threats of personally costly lawsuits," she said in a statement. "Additionally, it sets a dangerous precedent that unfairly targets public school teachers while shielding private school staff." Hobbs described antisemitism as a very troubling issue in the U.S., but said students and parents can go through the state's Board of Education to report antisemitism. The measure cleared the Legislature last week on a 33-20 vote by the House, including a few Democrats who crossed party lines to support it. It's one of a few proposals to combat antisemitism across the country. Democrats tried but failed to remove the lawsuit provision and swap out references to antisemitism within the bill with 'unlawful discrimination' to reflect other discrimination. The bill's chief sponsor, Republican Rep. Michael Way, of Queen Creek, has said his proposal would create accountability when educators fail to protect students from the rise in antisemitism since the start of the Israel-Hamas war. Opponents said the bill aimed to silence people who want to speak out on the oppression of Palestinians and opened up educators to personal legal liability in lawsuits students could file. Students over the age of 18 and the parents of younger pupils would have been able to file lawsuits over violations that create a hostile education environment, leaving teachers responsible for paying any damages that may be awarded, denying them immunity and prohibiting the state from paying any judgments arising from any such lawsuits. Last week, Lori Shepherd, executive director of Tucson Jewish Museum & Holocaust Center, wrote in a letter to Hobbs that if the bill were approved it would threaten teachers' ability to provide students with a full account of the holocaust. Under the bill, 'those discussions could be deemed 'antisemitic' depending on how a single phrase is interpreted, regardless of intent or context,' she said. The bill would have created a process for punishing those who break the rules. At K-12 schools, a first-offense violation would lead to a reprimand, a second offense to a suspension of a teacher or principal's certificate and a third offense to a revocation of the certificate. At colleges and universities, violators would have faced a reprimand on first offense, a suspension without pay for a second offense and termination for a third offense. The proposal also would have required colleges and universities to consider violations by employees to be a negative factor when making employment or tenure decisions. Under the proposal, universities and colleges couldn't recognize any student organization that invites a guest speaker who incites antisemitism, encourages its members to engage in antisemitism or calls for the genocide of any group. Elsewhere in the U.S., a Louisiana lawmaker is pushing a resolution that asks universities to adopt policies to combat antisemitism on campuses and collect data on antisemitism-related reports and complaints. And a Michigan lawmaker has proposed putting a definition of antisemitism into the state's civil rights law.

GOP lawmaker presses for de-escalation in LA
GOP lawmaker presses for de-escalation in LA

The Hill

timean hour ago

  • The Hill

GOP lawmaker presses for de-escalation in LA

Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-Texas) on Tuesday called for de-escalation in downtown Los Angeles following the federal troop deployment to quell protests. In an interview on NewsNation's 'The Hill,' the moderate Republican said the massive show of force in L.A. is important to send a message against 'lawlessness' in the city but that the situation should de-escalate going forward. Asked about the 'rules of engagement' for the 700 active-duty U.S. Marines deployed to the L.A. area, Gonzales stressed that they are there as a 'support mechanism' for the law enforcement and federal agents on the ground. He also said the Marines contributed to 'the overwhelming force to be able to go, 'This is not going to be tolerated. Lawlessness will not be tolerated in our country.'' 'But we also need to de-escalate things right after you've accomplished that. Now you de-escalate. Now you start to, you know, you start to calm things down,' Gonzales added. Gonzales said lawmakers and others with public platforms can play a role in toning things down. 'Those of us in the political arena, we need to do that. We need to get back to going, 'Wait a second here. We can have laws. We can also have protests. Let's do it peacefully. Let's calm the jets and let's go back to our corners,'' he added. Gonzales — who represents the largest stretch of the U.S. southern border — said it's important for Republicans to focus on deporting convicted criminals, both in practice and in messaging. 'I'm all about somebody protesting — whether you agree with it or don't agree with it — that's what we need. Perfectly okay with that. But burning a city to the ground? I don't want to see that happen in L.A. I don't want to see that happen anywhere else. 'So to me, what brings us together is if we focus on convicted criminal illegal aliens. There's over 600,000 of those people in our country,' he added. Gonzales was asked about concerns that individuals getting caught up in immigration enforcement operations are not only convicted criminals, but also people who have not committed any violent crime. He said 'details matter' and said he'd continue pressing for more information about who the individuals are that are getting swept up in so-called ICE raids. 'I've talked to DHS officials, and I've asked for — and there'll be more of this — I've asked for, well, who are the people that are apprehended? Are they, indeed, these convicted criminals? Are they somebody who overstayed their visa, or are they somebody who, you know, finished their adjudication process and were denied? Like, who are they?' 'I want to get the breakdown of it,' he continued. 'But once again, those are more sensitive cases. If you're focused on going after the convicted criminal, everybody gets behind you.'

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store