If it’s okay for drag queens to host story hour, what about prostitutes? At one Austin, Texas elementary school, students got both! In what some parents are calling “a sign of things to come” under the city’s radical new sex ed, the kids at Blackshear Fine Arts Academy had an unexpected visitor — with an even more unexpected background. But as shocked as parents were to learn that “Miss Kitty Litter ATX” was a convicted criminal, they were even more horrified to find out that the school district knew it!

That’s the most astonishing revelation from the open records request that Texas Values filed. Thanks to internal communications between Miss Kitty Litter (real name David Robinson) and the school librarian Roger Grape, moms and dads now know that not only did Blackshear expose their children to this wild and deviant ideology but to a felon too! In texts to Grape, David admitted that he might not pass the school background check. “the guidelines for submission automatically disqualify me if the deferred adjudication for prostitution is considered a conviction… so I don’t know if [it’s] ethical to submit.”

So either the school didn’t go through with the background check — or ignored it altogether. Either option is equally distressing. “According to emails sent to parents,” Texas Values points out, “the reading event was scheduled to take place at 11 a.m. and all readers had been screened by Austin ISD.” No one knows what that screening could’ve possibly entailed, since an arrest and conviction are the first things a basic search would uncover. Or maybe Austin officials don’t see the problem in bringing in a man who sells himself for sex as an acceptable guest speaker. Based on their latest curriculum decisions, which are stunningly pornographic, it wouldn’t surprise us.

Just as startling, the records from the October 7th day when Robinson came to school show that neither he nor the school were in any hurry for him to leave. Dressed head-to-toe as a woman, he walked through the doors at 7:25 a.m. and didn’t leave until the bell almost rang at 2:11 p.m. Why was he there for so long? No one seems to know. Maybe he did more than read to the first-, second-, third-, and fourth graders. Maybe he was consulting on the recently adopted lessons about anal sex (“What’s the best way to have it?”) or contraception (“What ages you can get birth control, abortions, or other health care without your parents”).

Unfortunately for the moms and dads in the area, this isn’t their first brush with the extreme. On the Willis side of the district, a man with the stage name Lynn Adonis also visited class — this time as a guest cosmetologist. There’s just one problem: he isn’t one. He’s an entertainer — and a drag queen one at that. Like Robinson, he spent twice as much time at the school as other visitors that day. When the inviting teacher was asked, she admitted that Jerred Bridges (his legal name) spent the day putting make-up on kids, “despite having no license to do so.”

Usually, the fact that a district is willing to host one of these drag queen events is sickening enough. Imagine finding out that the person they invited wasn’t even vetted — or worse, a confirmed sex trafficker. Schools are supposed to be safe learning spaces, not a catwalk for prostitutes. Their actions would suggest that Austin officials are more interested in the sexual exploitation of kids than their actual wellbeing. In any classroom, including this one, the only thing these drag queens should be reading are the directions to the nearest exit.

Originally published here.

Sheriff’s Office to Extremists: ‘Get behind Me, Satan!’

Usually, the local law enforcement is finding the offenders — not doing the offending. But at the Freedom from Religion Foundation, where indignation is literally a full-time job, it’s tough to do anything without insulting someone. When the Walker County sheriff called the town to pray after a tragedy, the foundation was irate. That’s because, as far as they’re concerned, embracing faith is the real crime.

In the tight-knit Alabama community, the news that a nearby Lowndes sheriff, John Williams, had been shot and killed was devastating. The death of the beloved Williams was such a shock that it made national headlines. “Our prayers are with the Lowndes County Sheriff’s Office family as they deal with this senseless tragedy," Walker County Sheriff Nick Smith posted on the office’s Facebook site.

Within five days, Sheriff Smith got a letter from Madison, Wisconsin — headquarters of the activist organization — warning him to back off of his religious tone. "A concerned Walker County citizen contacted us," attorney Sam Grover claimed, "to report that your office has a pattern of calling on citizens to pray during times of tragedy. We write,” he insisted, “to encourage your office to use more inclusive language when posting on social media.” They invited everyone to pray. What’s more inclusive than that?

Still, Grover went on, “It is laudable for your office to support those in mourning and to facilitate community recognition for those who have lost their lives serving the public,‘” FFRF attorney Sam Grover wrote. “However, a senseless and tragic death is not an excuse to disregard the Constitution, which prohibits government entities like the Sheriff’s Office from promoting religious activity.”

Well, it may come as news to the Freedom from Religion Foundation, but the Constitution doesn’t discourage prayer and religious expression — it encourages it! Either way, Nick Smith and his staff couldn’t have been less interested in what these intolerant outsiders had to say. In fact, they made fun of it, posting, “We consider it a great honor to be considered and to have received a wonderful letter from the 'Freedom From Religion’ organization,” Sheriff’s Office community relations officer T.J. Armstrong responded. “Proud to have a Sheriff that won’t bow to political pressure or the devices of the enemy!”

Then, in a feisty response that probably blew FFRF’s gasket, Armstrong invoked Chief Deputy Anthony Leach’s response, quoting Matthew 16:23: “Get behind me, Satan!” In an interview with the local CBS station, he was asked about any potential blowback. The officer, who also happens to be a minister, was completely unconcerned. “As far as the department, we don’t push one religion over another. However,” he made clear, “the Constitution gives us the freedom to express our religions.” Besides, he shrugged, “These people are just looking for a fight,” Armstrong said. “I don’t think they’re offended; they’re just looking for a fight.”

Talk about fearless! Our hats go off to the Walker County Sheriff’s Office for showing the same kind of courage in the line of liberal fire as the do in the real one. As a former police officer, it makes me proud to see law enforcers like these refuse to cave to the Left’s empty threats. Fortunately, in Walker County, this sheriff’s team knows that the most important convictions happen on the inside.

You can show your support for Walker County by standing with Sheriff Smith. Help us send a message to the anti-faith bullies at FFRF that Americans won’t bow to their political pressure. Visit our website to add your name!

Originally published here.

This is a publication of the Family Research Council. Mr. Perkins is president of FRC.