Katie is a Child & Family Therapist who works with children who have experienced trauma or abuse. She currently resides in beautiful British Columbia, Canada.
To regulate or not to regulate, this should NOT be the question. As if the tax breaks, exemptions, special treatment and hypocrisy of the church and government relationship were not enough, now we return to address the safety and welfare of our children. Currently, Indiana law (and the law in many other states) permits religious nonprofits to simply register their daycares, and not actually license them, thus avoiding most state oversight. Most faith-based daycares obviously choose that route, fearing more… Read more
Today is International Women’s Day and to get the day off to a good start, the Nude Photo Revolutionary Calendar is going to be launched. This calendar is a tribute to Aliaa Magda Elmahdy, the Egyptian blogger who posted nude pictures of herself to protest against sexual discrimination in Islam. Aliaa, a student of Media and Communication at the American university in Cairo, originally published the pictures to complain against the ban on nude models on Egyptian universities and books…. Read more
On Friday, the Vermont Senate passed a bill and sent it on to the House, ending the ability for parents to exempt their children from mandatory vaccinations before they enter school for philosophical reasons. The ability to exempt for religious reasons however remains in place. Not surprisingly, senators and state Health Department officials agreed that there are no standards in Vermont law for what constitutes religious belief. All a parent needs to do in order to exempt their child on… Read more
The Supreme Court of Canada is battening down the hatches on potential claims that laws or educational programs infringe on a person’s right to freedom of religion and conscience. In a key Charter of Rights decision on Friday, the court endorsed a religious instruction program that became mandatory in Quebec schools in 2008. The court said that anyone who challenges a program cannot simply assert that it offends their religious rights without furnishing tangible proof of harm. Hmm I wonder… Read more
As most of you likely know, there is a contest underway through the Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason and Science. The winner will receive two free plane tickets from any North American city to the Reason Rally in Washington, D.C. and will meet Richard Dawkins — every atheist’s dream. The judges have selected 7 finalists… one of those happens to be created by Noelle George and Donna Swafford, two “Mothers Beyond Belief.” Check out their video (entitled “Equality, Freedom, Respect”)… Read more
