Friend,
Welcome to the Friday Five! Every Friday we share our top five
articles, stories, and quotes for you to read and share with your
friends and church families.
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or $10 today towards our work producing these Friday Fives and
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1. CBS 17: Today is the last day
for Governor Cooper to sign, veto, or let the Human Life
Nondiscrimination Act (HB453) become law
"A bill that would ban abortions on the
basis of race or the presumed presence of Down syndrome likely faces a
veto from Gov. Roy Cooper but Republican lawmakers are calling on the
governor to sign it.
In a letter, state representatives Pat
McElraft (R-Carteret) and Dr. Kristin Baker (R-Cabarrus), who are both
primary sponsors of the legislation, want the governor to “put
politics aside” and sign the bill.
House Bill 453, or the Human Life
Non-Discrimination Act, prohibits abortions based on race or the
prenatal diagnosis of Down syndrome.
“I implore the governor to put politics
aside and join us in protecting these unborn children from
discrimination,” said Rep. McElraft. “No one should be denied the
right to life because of his or her race or disability.”
Under the bill, doctors would have to
attest that the woman did not tell them race, sex or Down syndrome
were factors in their decision or that they do not have reason to
believe a woman sought an abortion for those reasons."
2. FOX NEWS: GOP slams Biden
admin for using tax funds on gender-transition surgery for
veterans
“Republicans
on the Hill are firing back at the news that transgender veterans will
soon be able to receive gender transition surgeries through the
Veterans Affairs health care coverage."
3. NZ HERALD: Tokyo Olympics:
Kiwi weightlifter Laurel Hubbard to become first transgender athlete
to compete at the Games
"Hubbard's historic achievement for trans
athletes will likely also spark controversy from others who insist she
has an unfair advantage.
In 2015, the IOC issued new guidelines
allowing athletes who transition from male to female to compete in the
women's category provided their testosterone levels are below 10
nanomoles per litre for at least 12 months prior to their first
competition – a rule also followed by the International Weightlifting
Federation.
However, recent studies suggest
transgender women maintain an athletic advantage over their cisgender
peers even after a year on hormone therapy.
Hubbard has competed in men's
weightlifting competitions before transitioning in 2013 but didn't
compete internationally.
Her gold medal wins at the 2019 Pacific
Games in Samoa, where she beat Samoa's Commonwealth Games champion
Feagaiga Stowers, sparked outrage in the island nation."
See
also this related story from Fox News: Brett
Favre: 'Unfair' Laurel Hubbard, other transgender female athletes
competing as women
4. FOX NEWS: Parents torch Loudoun
County school board over critical race theory, 'pornographic' books in
school
"The embattled school board of Virginia’s Loudoun County cut off
public comments during a fiery meeting Tuesday as residents traded
barbs over new transgender policy proposals. The meeting followed
weeks of protests from district parents who oppose some of the
measures, which they have criticized as potential left-wing
indoctrination and a violation of parental rights. The policies affect
transgender student rights, privacy and restroom accommodations and
would require Loudoun County Public Schools employees to use students’
preferred names or pronouns. An official school board vote on the
proposal is not expected until at least Aug. 10.”
5. NBC NEWS: World’s most
premature baby beats the odds, celebrates first birthday
WEEKLY PRAYER: OFFICIALS
LORD, you also have instructed us to pray for our governing
officials, and we come to you in the spirit of this petition. We pray
for our national government and its executive, legislative, and
judicial servants. May they indeed be servants unto the people, and
govern in a manner that protects liberty and virtue. In the same
spirit, we pray for public servants across our state and local
governments. May they all heed your mandate in Romans 13:4 to be in
positions of authority as "God's servant" and for the "good" of the
public. They govern in what we confess are difficult times. May they
plead with you to give them wisdom, and may your grace respond in
provision.
Protect we, the People, from this virus, and help
quicken our social, physical, emotional, and economic
recovery.
Amen
Will you chip in $100, $50, $25, or even $10 to help
the NC Values Coalition continue to fight for your rights? You can
donate by clicking here.
Sincerely,
North Carolina Values Coalition
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