RELIGION HEADLINES

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(SRN NEWS) – Abortion advocates will try to get more voters to pass amendments enshrining the procedure in their state constitutions.  Lawmakers in Hawaii and Virginia, where the legislature is controlled by Democrats, have proposed abortion amendments for 2026.  The Virginia resolution is moving through the legislature but would need approval from both chambers again next year before it can go to the people.  Voters in seven states approved abortion amendments in the November elections while three other states rejected such legislation. 

Lawmakers in several states that now ban abortion at all stages of pregnancy are considering further restrictions.  In Oklahoma, a GOP representative has introduced a bill that would allow women who obtain abortions to be charged with murder.  A similar measure was introduced in South Carolina in 2023 but quickly stalled.  A measure introduced in Mississippi, which echoes laws adopted in the past two years in Idaho and Tennessee, criminalizes helping a minor girl obtain an abortion without the consent of the child’s parent or guardian. 

Republicans in statehouses across the country are mounting an effort to roll back the LGBT agenda, emboldened by the results of the election.  Dozens of bills are pending in GOP-led legislatures aimed at transgender issues in particular.  Some are designed to keep men out of women’s restrooms and locker rooms in schools and other public buildings.  Other bills would ban males from competing against females in sports and would outlaw sex-change operations on children.  Republicans have filed more than 30 measures in Texas alone. 

A New York roller derby league has lost its bid to temporarily block a local ban on males playing against females in sports.  A Nassau County Supreme Court judge has denied a request by the Long Island Roller Rebels to prevent the government from enforcing its ban while its lawsuit is considered by the court. The county east of New York City banned men from competing on women’s sports teams at county-owned parks and recreational facilities last year.  The roller derby league says it will appeal while the litigation proceeds.