What’s happening in California is exactly what happens when one political faction takes total control of a geographical area. Fascist Germany, Communist Russia, Maoist China, and Democratic California — the arrogance of an emboldened political class that feels it can do anything to anybody is obvious.
So the new legislation being proposed in the California legislature shouldn’t surprise anyone. The bill, AB 957, was amended to rewrite the California Family Code to list “gender affirmation” alongside a child’s need for “health, safety, and welfare.” Proponents claim the bill will only give judges “more information” on how a parent is raising their child. But the slippery slope is self-evident. Parents can be good providers for their children, do their best to keep them safe, and see to their welfare conscientiously.
But if they refuse to offer “gender-affirming care” to the child, they can be locked up for child abuse.
Sen. Scott Wilk (R-Santa Clarita) was the only member of the state senate to raise the issue.
I’ve been here and witnessed a full frontal assault on charter schools, taking away parents’ choice in how their children are going to be educated to the detriment particularly of children of color.
In recent years, we have put government bureaucrats between parents, children, and doctors when it comes to medical care—and now we have [AB 957] where if a parent does not support the ideology of the government, [children are] going to be taken away from the home…
“In the past when we’ve had these discussions and I’ve seen parental rights atrophied — I’ve encouraged people to keep fighting,” the senator added. “I’ve changed my mind on that.”
“If you love your children, you need to flee California. You need to flee,” said Wilk.
Related: AMA Doubles Down on Gender-Affirming Care for Kids
It may be extreme but what else can a parent do? Erick Erickson’s 2016 book You Will Be Made to Care: The War on Faith, Family, and Your Freedom to Believe is coming to life. There’s simply no choice. The government will brook no opposition and sees any defiance as a threat.
The dominance of Democrats in state government is total: supermajorities in both the Assembly and the Senate with radical left state judges to enforce legislative diktats.
An interesting exchange between Democrats on the committee writing AB 957 serves to illustrate what has happened to democracy in California.
Sens. Angelique Ashby (D-Sacramento) and Ben Allen (D-Hollywood) warned that failing to provide a definition of “affirmation” might get the bill in trouble with the courts. Not to worry, said another assembly member.
Rep. Lori Wilson, D-Suisun City, who authored the original version of AB 957, countered that “affirmation” was already clearly defined in other California law, that the ambiguous nature of the term was good to provide judges flexibility, and that no one should have difficulty defining “affirmation” as it’s a “plain language” word.
Though these reasons appeared at odds with one another, Democrats did not offer any further explanation, and all Democrats present voted “Yes” to pass AB 957 out of committee 8-1, with one absent.
Where are the Republicans? Besides Wilk, there’s some pro-forma dissent, but most Republicans in the state realize the situation. They must choose their battles carefully since their numbers are so few. The Assembly consists of 62 Democrats and 18 Republicans, while the Senate is composed of 32 Democrats and 8 Republicans.
That’s why fleeing the state if you’re a parent isn’t extreme. It’s common sense.
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