Oregon mom prevented from being foster parent due to Christian beliefs

Christian mother Jessica Bates is being barred by the state of Oregon from adopting foster siblings due to her Christian beliefs about human sexuality, the Daily Citizen reports. Bates happens to believe that boys and girls are distinctly different; this is apparently a huge problem for the state of Oregon.

After learning that Bates has decided she will not be compelled to use preferred gender pronouns or help out with a so-called child gender transition, Oregon state officials have determined she is unfit to adopt or even participate in the foster system.

Bates consequently filed a notice of appeal to the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals after the lower court had ruled against her.

Bates' case is called Bates v. Pakseresht, and she is being represented by Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), a well-known pro-freedom American conservative Christian legal advocacy group.

Attorneys for Bates say that under the existing foster care policies, “caregivers must agree to use a child’s preferred pronouns, take a child to affirming events like Pride parades, or sign the child up for dangerous pharmaceutical interventions like puberty blockers and hormone shots — no matter a child’s age, no matter whether a child actually desires these things, and no matter how deeply these requirements violate the caregiver’s religious convictions.”

ADF asserts the following three constitutional violations occurred when the state denied Bates of her ability to engage in foster care:

"1. Oregon’s policy violates Bates’ First Amendment rights to free-speech, assembly and free-association by requiring her to speak words that violate her faith beliefs, associate with messages that violate her faith beliefs and regulate her speech in content and viewpoint in order to adopt."

"2. The policy violates Bates’ First Amendment right to free exercise of her religion because the policy is not neutral or generally applicable. It categorically excludes people of faith from participation and serves as a religious litmus test."

"3. The policy violates Bates’ Fourteenth Amendment right to equal protection under the law because she is treated worse than other similarly situated people because of her religion."

Bates filed her suit against Oregon’s Department of Human Services for religious discrimination in federal court back in April, with arguments first being held in August. It was November when the federal district court ruled against her. The case remains ongoing.