Special Video Update: How Does the Coronavirus Affect Your Texas Values?

In this unprecedented time caused by the COVID-19 Pandemic, our entire Texas Values team remains steadfast in our commitment to ensure faith, family, and freedom are protected across Texas. Our concern for you and your family, and our great state and nation, is central to our work. In addition to encouraging everyone to take the protective measures of “social distancing” among other measures that have been recommended, we encourage you to be in prayer.

Our entire team prayed for you in our staff meeting this week, as well as all our elected officials at the local, state, and national level. We are so grateful for your support and encouragement of our organization throughout the years, and you can know that we are committed to standing with you and your family during this trying time. By standing together in unity, with full reliance on God, we can overcome this current crisis.

Our President Jonathan Saenz recently recorded an important video for our supporters with updates on our work, including information on the growing number of governmental pronouncements that are impacting our churches. This current crisis is an opportunity for the Church, the Body of Christ, to thrive in ministering to the spiritual and physical needs of people, and we are committed to ensuring that our religious freedom rights remain protected.

Additional recommended resources for Churches, Pastors, and Parents:

•    Our friends at First Liberty recently released Guidelines for Churches and Religious Institutions to help during this crucial time, which you can download here. We urge you to share this resource with your local church and pastor.
•    With many public schools closing for an extended period, we encourage you to check out helpful resources from our friends at Texas Home School Coalition with some good tips on how to get started home schooling. 
•    We encourage you to review our recent resource educating parents on the 4 Things Every Texas Parent Needs to Know About Sex Education, including your right to opt-out.

Community Response to Austin ISD Radical Sex-Ed Grows

Adding to the growing list of pushback against Austin ISD’s radical sex education – two new developments were announced recently. First, The Catholic Diocese of Austin recently encouraged its followers on social media, through a specific website, and during church services on March 7th and 8th, to opt out of the radical sex education scheduled to be taught in Austin ISD this year. Bishop Joe Vásquez, of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Austin, said in a letter to parishioners that the new curriculum “misinforms students regarding human sexuality, promotes grave immorality, and exposes children to unwarranted risk of harm.”

Secondly, Stand Up for Children – ATX, a coalition of parents and community leaders as well as Texas Values had planned a series of town halls across Austin ISD to educate more parents about the curriculum and equip them with resources to opt out, and join a planned sit out on May 19th. In light of new rules surrounding the spread of coronavirus, the coalition is exploring options to turn those town halls into livestream events before the sex education lessons are scheduled to be taught in May.