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☆ Liberty University sued by former IT staffer fired after disclosing she’s a trans woman
▼ + stars: | 2024-10-31 | by ( The Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +3 min

The bitter nationwide debate over transgender rights is playing out on a very personal level in a federal court lawsuit filed in Virginia by a former Liberty University employee. She was fired by the evangelical Christian school after disclosing her identity as a transgender woman. The lawsuit on behalf of Ellenor Zinski was filed in July by the American Civil Liberties Union of Virginia and the Richmond law firm of Butler Curwood. Earlier this month, the conservative legal organization Liberty Counsel filed a brief on behalf of the university asking the federal district court to dismiss the lawsuit. Wyatt Rolla, the ACLU of Virginia’s senior transgender rights attorney, rejected the claim of a set-up.

Persons: Ellenor Zinski, Butler Curwood, Phuong Tran, Jerry Falwell, Jerry Falwell Jr, Zinski, ”, Mat Staver, Wyatt Rolla, Virginia’s, “, ” Zinski, — Organizations: Liberty University, Christian, American Civil Liberties Union of Virginia, Technology, U.S . Civil, Liberty, Civil, Trinity Episcopal Church, AP Liberty University, Liberty Counsel’s, Associated Press Locations: Virginia, Richmond, Lynchburg, Phuong, Lynchburg , Virginia

His father, Frank Radcliff, is the church's senior pastor. The date of offense for the charges against Radcliff is June 27, 2014, according to court records. But the church, which is cooperating with the police investigation, shed more light on what Radcliff is accused of doing in its statement. An ardent supporter of former President Donald Trump, Radcliff also posted a video on YouTube of himself performing his patriotic anthem “I’ll Stand” in November 2019 as part of the convocation at Liberty University. Donald Trump Jr. can be seen in the background along with then Liberty University President Jerry Falwell Jr.

Persons: moonlights, Zachary Radcliff, Frank Radcliff, “, Radcliff, Zachary, ” Radcliff, Ann Arbor, ”, Donald Trump, Donald Trump Jr, Jerry Falwell, Kimberly Guilfoyle, Becki Falwell, Tim Lee, Charlie Kirk Organizations: Oakwood, Michigan State Police, Liberty Music Group, Liberty University’s School of Music, Conservative Political, YouTube, Liberty University Locations: Michigan, Ypsilanti, Ann Arbor suburb, Ann, Saline, Radcliff

☆ Liberty University Fined $14 Million for Mishandling Sex Assaults and Other Crimes
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-05 | by ( Zach Montague | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Liberty University, the evangelical Christian university in Lynchburg, Va., agreed to pay a record $14 million fine for breaking federal campus safety laws, the Education Department announced on Tuesday, accusing the school of creating a “culture of silence” that discouraged the reporting of crimes and repeatedly mishandling sexual assaults. In a 108-page report, the department found particular problems with how the university handled sexual misconduct, including that it had punished several sexual assault victims for violating the student honor code, which prohibits premarital sex, while failing to punish their assailants. As a result, sexual assaults commonly went unreported, the department said. The report also said Liberty discouraged staff members from sending out emergency notifications, failing to notify students of dangerous events such as campus bomb threats and gas leaks. Mr. Falwell’s son, Jerry Falwell Jr., resigned as president in 2020 amid a sex scandal, and was sued by the university for $40 million in damages the next year for various breaches of contract.

Persons: Jerry Falwell, Falwell’s, Jerry Falwell Jr Organizations: Liberty University, Christian, Education Department, Liberty Locations: Lynchburg, Va, aggrandizing

Vivek Ramaswamy, a brash multimillionaire former biotech executive, took a swipe at Florida Governor Ron DeSantis over his cowboy boots, echoing speculation the shoes contain hidden lifts to boost his height. Five Republican candidates took part in Wednesday's debate. Trump allies have relentlessly hammered DeSantis over his cowboy boots, suggesting that DeSantis has hidden lifts inside them. DeSantis has said the boots are standard boots from Lucchese, a Texas-based western style shoe maker. Haley, who clashed with Ramaswamy several times during Wednesday's debate, corrected him, saying she actually wears five-inch heels.

Persons: Ron DeSantis, Jerry Falwell, Vivek Ramaswamy, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, Dick Cheney, Ramaswamy, you've, Nikki Haley, Cheney, George W, Donald Trump, DeSantis, Haley, Alexandra Ulmer, Dan Whitcomb, Eric Beech, Ross Colvin, Howard Goller Organizations: Florida, Republican U.S, Liberty University, Christian, Republican, Florida Governor, United Nations, Trump, Lucchese, Thomson Locations: Miami, Texas

☆ Mike Johnson symbolizes a new turn for the religious right
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-31 | by ( Ronald Brownstein | Analysis Ronald Brownstein | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +18 min

CNN —The arc of Rep. Mike Johnson’s career encapsulates the shifting priorities of the religious right in the era of Donald Trump. More than half of White evangelicals agreed with that statement as well – the only major religious denomination in which it found majority support. Yet both groups are much more influential inside the GOP coalition, with evangelicals representing nearly one-third of Republican voters and all White Christians about two-thirds. But in Congress, Johnson has also identified more with some of the party’s Trump-era priorities that revolve around demographic change. But each man appears equally committed to a vision of America that elevates the moral and political preferences of conservative White Christians over any other group.

Persons: Mike Johnson’s, Donald Trump, Barack Obama’s, Johnson, MAGA, Long, Trump’s, Trump, Robert P, Jones, Johnson “, ”, Mike Podhorzer, ” Podhorzer, Jimmy Carter, Jerry Falwell, Pat Robertson, James Dobson, ” Jones, Dobson, CNN’s KFile, KFile, he’s, Ron DeSantis, Marjorie Taylor, it’s, ” Johnson, He’s, “, Biden, who’s, PRRI, there’s, Tresa Undem, Undem, White, George W, Bush, Obama, Pete Wehner, Wehner, David Barton, Barton, that’s, ” Wehner, ‘, ” Barton Organizations: CNN, Louisiana Republican, Republican, GOP, Yorker, Trump, Survey, Religion Research Institute, White, AFL, CIO, Republicans, Representatives, Alliance Defense Fund, Defending, Gov, Georgia Rep, Whites, Trinity Forum, ”, NBC News, Trump - Locations: Louisiana, America, White, “, Florida, Mexico

WASHINGTON (AP) — Before House Speaker Mike Johnson was elected to public office, he was the dean of a small Baptist law school that didn't exist. “The law school deal was really an anomaly. As dean of the proposed law school, Johnson embarked on a major fundraising campaign and described a big-dollar event in Houston with former Arkansas Gov. Bobby Jindal and Pressler, according to an account Johnson wrote in a 2011 alumni magazine. Meanwhile, the historic former federal courthouse in Shreveport that was selected as the law school’s campus required at least $20 million in renovations.

Persons: Mike Johnson, Johnson, Kevin McCarthy, It's, “, ”, Gene Mills, Johnson's, ” J, Michael Johnson, Southern Baptist Convention luminary, Tony Perkins, Jerry Falwell, “ I’m, Joe Aguillard, Mike Huckabee, Bobby Jindal, Aguillard, “ Mike, Gilbert Little, ” Johnson, Perkins, Little, Barack, Kelly, Kelly Johnson, Louis “ Woody ” Jenkins, Jenkins, Democrat Mary Landrieu, Moon Griffin, Eugene Mills, Mills, ” Mills, Johnson’s, George W, Bush’s, it’s, Lamar White Jr, Lamar, Richard Lardner, Trenton Daniel Organizations: WASHINGTON, Paul Pressler School of Law, Louisiana College, Louisiana Christian University, Republican House, Southern Baptist Convention, Family Research, Southern Poverty Law, Liberty University, Daily, ”, Arkansas Gov, Louisiana Gov, Freedom Guard, Southern Baptist Conference, Shreveport Times, ABC News, Louisiana State University, Democrat, Louisiana Family, Alliance Defense Fund, Alliance Defending, ADF, CNN, Democratic, Civil, Associated Press Locations: Louisiana, Washington, Alexandria , Louisiana, Houston, Pressler, Africa, Shreveport, Shreveport , Louisiana, everyone’s, America, New Orleans, Texas, Orleans Parish, Trump’s, Baton Rouge, New York

LYNCHBURG, Va. (AP) — Liberty University failed to warn its Virginia campus community about safety threats, including from individuals accused of sexual violence, and systematically underreported crime statistics, according to a Washington Post report on the preliminary findings of a long-running federal investigation. Political Cartoons View All 1196 ImagesLiberty repeatedly violated a law known as the Clery Act, according to the preliminary report. The federal law requires colleges and universities that receive federal funding to disseminate an annual security report to employees and students. The litigation was filed under under Title IX, the federal law that protects against sex discrimination in education and often overlaps with Clery. The women alleged that Liberty’s strict honor code made it “difficult or impossible” for students to report sexual violence.

Persons: Larry Nassar, Dondi Costin, Jerry Falwell, Liberty, Jerry Falwell Jr, Falwell Organizations: — Liberty University, Washington Post, Christian, U.S . Education, Liberty, Department of Education, Associated Press, Michigan State, Education Department, “ Liberty University, Clery Locations: LYNCHBURG, Va, Virginia, USA, Michigan, Lynchburg

☆ Opinion | America’s Shift Away From Religion
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-03 | by ( ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

To the Editor:Re “Americans Are Losing Their Religious Faith,” by Nicholas Kristof (column, Aug. 24):Mr. Kristof writes that Americans’ loss of faith results from religious scandals and the bad behavior of “charlatans” such as Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson. The trend is a problem, he argues, because religion is central to our country’s social capital. First, Americans are also becoming less religious because there is zero evidence to support any of the central claims religious institutions make about God and the supernatural. And second, what worries me is not that people are less religious, but that they transfer their blind faith in religion and religious leaders to charismatic politicians like Donald Trump. But Americans aren’t losing their underlying spiritual and religious beliefs; they are defining and seeking connections to “higher powers” in other ways.

Persons: ”, Nicholas Kristof, Mr, Kristof, Jerry Falwell, Pat Robertson, Donald Trump, Mark K, Cassell Washington, aren’t Organizations: charlatans, Cassell, Kent State University

☆ The ground has shifted on gay marriage for conservative Christians.
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-30 | by ( Ruth Graham | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

For decades, opposition to same-sex marriage was a marquee issue for the religious right in the United States. Activists like Anita Bryant, Jerry Falwell and James Dobson characterized homosexuality as a threat to traditional family life. Public opinion on same-sex marriage has turned rapidly toward acceptance this century. In the early 2000s, about 60 percent of Americans opposed it, according to the Pew Research Center. Another poll by Pew found that almost half of white evangelicals born after 1964 favored same-sex marriage in 2017, compared to about a quarter of older white evangelicals.

Persons: Anita Bryant, Jerry Falwell, James Dobson, Hodges, Tony Perkins, ”, Franklin Graham, Pew Organizations: Family Research, Christianity Today, Pew Research Center Locations: United States, Obergefell

CNN —Pat Robertson, the prominent televangelist who founded the Christian Broadcasting Network, made the Christian right a powerful political force and unsuccessfully ran for president in 1988, died on Thursday, the network said in a news release. “Pat Robertson, longtime TV host, religious broadcaster, educator, humanitarian, and one-time presidential candidate died at his home in Virginia Beach early Thursday morning. Pat Robertson (right) hosted the show "The 700 Club" on his Christian Broadcasting Network from 1966 to 2021. Linda C. Culpepper/APRobertson helped transform the conservative evangelical movement into a political force on the American right that helped elect Ronald Reagan. His wife of 70 years, Dede Robertson, died last year at the age of 94.

Persons: Pat Robertson, “ Pat Robertson, Robertson, “, Academic Affairs William L, Hathaway, “ Dr, Jesus Christ, ”, ” –, Linda C, Culpepper, Ronald Reagan, George H.W, Bush, Bob Dole, Jerry Falwell, ’ ” Falwell, ” Robertson, Donald Trump, Trump, Gordon, Dede Robertson Organizations: CNN, Christian Broadcasting Network, Regent University, ” Regent University Executive, Academic Affairs, Southern Baptist, Republican, Christian Coalition of America, ”, ACLU, People, Trump Locations: Virginia Beach, Virginia, America, Haiti

☆ Trump isn't the only former president to be embroiled in a hush-money scandal. Here are 10 public figures, including 3 US presidents, who have been accused of making payments to keep people quiet.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-22 | by ( James Pasley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Donald Trump was indicted on 34 felony counts of falsifying documents related to alleged hush-money payments. Several public figures also have similar scandals, including Harvey Weinstein, Michael Jackson, and Bill O'Reilly. US presidents Thomas Jefferson, Warren Harding, and Richard Nixon were all involved in hush money scandals. Other notable politicians who made hush money payments include former treasury secretary Alexander Hamilton and former Sen. John Edwards. Outside of politics, there have been several public figures who made hush money payments including Harvey Weinstein, Michael Jackson, Bill Cosby, Jerry Falwell Jr., and Bill O'Reilly.

☆ Charles Stanley, Atlanta Pastor Who Preached to the World, Dies at 90
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( Richard Sandomir | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Charles Stanley, an influential Baptist pastor who for more than 50 years preached a conservative message from his Atlanta megachurch, through an extensive network of television and radio stations, and in many books, died on Tuesday at his home in Atlanta. In Touch Ministries, Dr. Stanley’s nonprofit organization, announced his death but did not state a cause. As the senior pastor at First Baptist Church in Atlanta, Dr. Stanley was known as one of the leading American preachers of his time, alongside figures like the Rev. He was also a board member of the Moral Majority, the right-wing religious organization, and a close friend of its founder, the Rev. “Evangelicals just loved him,” Barry Hankins, a professor of history at Baylor University who, with Thomas Kidd, wrote “Baptists in America” (2015), said in a phone interview.

☆ In signing 6-week ban, DeSantis wades into thorny debate over abortion and 2024
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-14 | by ( Joseph Ax | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

April 14 (Reuters) - When Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed a 15-week abortion ban on April 14, 2022, he held a morning ceremony at a church in front of an enormous "Protect Life" sign, flanked by women and children. On Thursday, exactly one year later, DeSantis – now a likely 2024 Republican presidential candidate – signed a six-week ban with decidedly less fanfare. Republican presidential hopefuls, including former President Donald Trump, have largely sidestepped the issue. REPUBLICANS TREAD CAREFULLYOther Republican presidential contenders have also treaded carefully. In a social media post after November's midterm elections, he blamed the "abortion issue" for the party's underperformance.

☆ 'God Forbid' review: Giancarlo Granda opens up about the Falwells in Hulu documentary
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-01 | by ( Review Brian Lowry | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Granda proceeded to have a long relationship with Becki Falwell, alleging that her husband was fully aware of the arrangement throughout, and endeavored to create real-estate opportunities for Granda in part to keep his wife happy. He admits that he was ambitious but basically over his head dealing with the older Falwells, while being bedazzled by their money and connections. Jerry Falwell resigned from Liberty in 2020, acknowledging Becki Falwell’s affair with Granda, while stating he was “not involved.” He also claimed that Granda had sought to blackmail the couple, a charge Granda has denied. “God Forbid” clearly provides Granda a friendly forum to tell his story, which includes how he came out on the other side of his 15 minutes of notoriety. “God Forbid: The Sex Scandal that Brought Down a Dynasty” premieres November 1 on Hulu.

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