Religion and Reform

     The day’s group debate project was on Religion and Reform in America.  Their project focused mainly on the role that moral groups, secular or religious, play in modern society.  They also focused on how exactly these groups went about their business of reform.  Do they focus on grassroots social reform, are they in it just to gain political power, or are they using their political power as a vehicle to change society from the top down?

Image by Beverly & Pack via Flickr

     The majority of this group’s presentation was focused on the actions and beliefs of a group called “Focus on the Family.”  This group’s recent success has gained them a strong following as well as many dissenters regarding their true intentions.  Recently the group has been trying to get a newly established bullying law taken out of the law books.  This new bullying law states that, “any public school receiving funding from no child left behind must take strong action against bullying in their campuses, including discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.”  Focus on the Family believes that this law is caused by a direct influence from the “Gay Movement.”  They feel as though this law takes the side of the homosexual and transgendered community, and that it should be deemed unconstitutional.  However, opposing sides are saying that the bill is not due to influence from the gay community, but instead due to the increasing number of suicides among children that are being bullied.  The question was asked “Do you think that this group has the right to lobby on this topic.” It was agreed that yes, they do have the right to lobby for what they so choose, but that their motives for doing it are misguided.  Instead of pursuing this issue for the preservation of the validity of the constitution, Focus on the Family is hounding this bill in order to try to implement their own religious beliefs through the use of massive political power.