That's never been more crucial than right now. In just the past week, the Supreme Court handed down four decisions that underscore how high the stakes are, and how much it matters that we continue to stand for objective truth, both in our personal advocacy and through the policies we champion in Pennsylvania.
A win for parental rights
In Mahmoud v. Taylor, a public school mandated that elementary school students read books designed to present LGBTQ ideology as things to be celebrated, and contrary values and beliefs as things to be rejected, all without prior parental notification or the option to opt out. This case involved families in Maryland—Muslim, Catholic, and Orthodox—who, after discovering the hidden ideological lessons, simply wanted the right to opt their elementary-aged children out of mandatory LGBTQ-themed storybooks that conflicted with their faith.
The Supreme Court rightly recognized that forcing kids into instruction that undermines family beliefs violates parental rights. Our team at the Independence Law Center filed a friend-of-the-court brief in support of these parents. As articulated in our brief, just as parents have the right to prevent coercion into specific religious doctrines, they also have the right to protect their children from gender-identity indoctrination in schools. We're grateful the Court drew a bright line that should guide local school boards across our Commonwealth.
Protecting kids online
Then, in Free Speech Coalition v. Paxton, the Supreme Court upheld Texas' law requiring age verification to access online pornography, recognizing that states have a compelling interest to protect children from obscene content. With one in four kids encountering porn by age 12, this is a crisis we can't ignore.
This ruling clears the path for Pennsylvania to pass Rep. Jill Cooper's commonsense age verification bill, so we can safeguard children in our state from the porn industry's grasp. It's a clear call for our lawmakers to act, and a call to parents to speak up for the safeguarding of their children.
Protecting kids from mutilations of their bodies in the name of gender ideology
In U.S. v. Skrmetti, the Supreme Court upheld Tennessee's law protecting children from harmful medical experiments involving puberty-blocking drugs and sexual cosmetic surgeries. The ruling affirms what many parents, doctors, and legislators have been saying for years: protecting children from irreversible medical harm is both constitutional and necessary.
This decision couldn't come at a more critical time for Pennsylvania. Senate Bill 843—the "Do No Harm Act"—is pending in the Pennsylvania legislature. This commonsense measure would prohibit puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, and gender transition surgeries on minors and ensure that taxpayer funds are not used to finance these interventions. The Supreme Court's decision reinforces that states have the authority to protect children from risky and experimental medical practices.
Stopping taxpayer funding of Planned Parenthood
Finally, in Medina v. Planned Parenthood, the Court upheld South Carolina's right to exclude abortion providers like Planned Parenthood from its Medicaid program, reinforcing that states can, and should, set their own healthcare priorities.
This is exactly why Pennsylvania must move to ensure our tax dollars don't flow to abortion giants that prioritize politics and profit over women's and their children's health. The Independence Law Center filed a brief on behalf of 36 state family policy organizations in urging this outcome.
Back in February, we shared a New York Times article that exposed numerous failures within Planned Parenthood facilities nationwide, including unsafe conditions, negligent practices, and severe harm to women. These revelations reaffirm the necessity of redirecting public funds away from Planned Parenthood to trustworthy healthcare providers. Pennsylvania has witnessed firsthand the devastating impact of unregulated abortion facilities, epitomized by the horrors of Kermit Gosnell's clinic.
A shared calling
These victories are more than legal milestones; they're reminders of why we do this work. In a culture that often reaches for cowbells instead of conversation, we're called to speak truth, without compromise, but always with compassion and despite opponents' efforts to silence us.
That means showing up at school board meetings. It means calling your legislators about bills that protect children online and stop taxpayer funding of abortion. And it means modeling to our neighbors that we stand on these truths not out of anger, but out of a deep love for people made in God's image—born and unborn, friend and critic alike.
Thank you for being part of this mission with us. Your prayers, engagement, and support fuel every step we take in the courts, the Capitol, and communities across Pennsylvania.
Together, let's keep speaking the truth—and doing it with love.
For life, family, and freedom,
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