Atheist News Oct 27 2018: Christian Outrage at Drag Queen in School, Religious Parents Let Baby Die

We discuss the latest news on religion and atheism in the past week 😃

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1. Ms. Jessica attended a middle school career day and gave an anti-bullying speech but a group of Christian parents are angry because she happens to be a drag queen. She was invited by a student who is a fan to share the stage with several other people to speak at the Rocky Top Middle School in Colorado. Jen Payer, one of the parents, said that the event was unacceptable and the presence of the drag queen on Career Day went against her religious beliefs and the school's secular policies. The principal of the school apologized and informed the parents that for the event next year, the school will share the guest list for all families before the event.

2. The Creationist Kent Hovind's attempt to disprove evolution is now saying that lettuce is a proof that evolution is false. He asked if there is any scientific evidence besides lines on paper. Last year, there was a peer-reviewed paper all about the evolution of lettuce published but Creationists like him do not want to hear it.

3. According to the New York Times reports, the Trump administration is planning to redefine "gender" in narrow enough terms that transgender people would be locked out of federal civil rights protections. The proposed definition of sex would be either male or female and that it is unchangeable. It is also determined by the genitals that a person is born with.

4. Paul Dorr, an Iowa religious activist and the director of an anti-abortion group called Rescue the Persishing, burned several LGBTQ books as a protest to a local Pride event. Dorr talks about his displeasure with all things LGBTQ in a 28 minutes long video.

5. A National Committeewoman to the Republican Party from Oklahoma, Carolyn Mclarty, wrote an email that bashes progressive Christians and was sent to every subscriber of the party's mailing list. An excerpt from her email:

"What is a Progressive Christian? A Progressive Christian is not a Christian at all!

Progressive Christianity is another liberal theology. It is a feel good, do good, humanistic attempt to co-opt the truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ…"

6. The Washington, D.C. museum just discovered that five of the "Dead Sea Scrolls" stored at the Museum of the Bible are fake. The scrolls underwent forensics testing. The German-based scholars tested the fragments and they show characteristics inconsistent with ancient origin. They will no longer be displayed at the museum.

7. Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, a Malaysian politician and opposition leader, spoke at the Dewan Rakyat Today during Question Time and said that the earthquake and tsunami in Indonesia were "punishment of Allah" for LGBTQ+ activity and the same will happen in Malaysia if the government does not rehabilitate gay citizens. If it does not happen, the country could face a deadly natural disaster. He added that the earthquake and tsunami in Palu has more than 1,000 members of their community who were involved in LGBT activities. The entire area was destroyed as it was a punishment of Allah. He has support from other officials.

8. In Yemen, 14 million people or half the population are facing "pre-famine conditions". Food prices are too high that no one can afford them. Medics say that the number of deaths linked to food-related factors is rising. The country has been devastated by a conflict that escalated in 2015, when a Saudi-led coalition intervened after the rebel Houthi movement seized control of much of the west of the country and forced President Hadi to flee abroad.

9. In order to empower trans individuals, there is a movement in Tasmania to remove information about "gender" on birth certificates. However, the Tasmanian government disagrees. Attorney General Elise Archer has pushed back against it because "no other state or territory" has made that change. She added that it will expose the state to a range of potentially serious unintended consequences. Rodney Croome, an LGBTI advocate, said Tasmania had some of the most discriminatory laws in Australia for transgender, gender diverse and intersex people.

10. Jennifer and Jeromie Clark, religious fundamentalists, were arrested for failing to take their 14-month-old son John to the hospital until he was actually near death, were convicted by a jury in Calgary. John was malnourished and died from a staph infection, according to the forensic pathologist's report. He died the day after he was brought to hospital where he had a seizure and two cardiac arrests.