A faith-based women’s shelter in downtown Anchorage filed a lawsuit in federal court this week to once again stop Anchorage officials from using a new ordinance to force the Hope Center shelter to admit males and let them sleep alongside women who have suffered physical and sexual abuse.
The controversial ordinance, passed last month, also shuts down the Downtown Hope Center’s ability to communicate about its religious beliefs on its website and on other signs posted around the center.
“Downtown Hope Center serves everyone, and its overnight women’s shelter exists to provide a safe place for women, many of whom have suffered due to sex trafficking, rape, or domestic violence at the hands of men,” said Alliance Defending Freedom’s Senior Counsel Kate Anderson.
“Women deserve a place to sleep where they can feel secure. City officials have no business trying to force the center to violate its beliefs by demanding that the shelter allow biological men to sleep mere feet from vulnerable women. This is the second attempt by the city to force Downtown Hope Center to violate its religious beliefs to the detriment of the women it serves,” she said.
Read: Targeting women and faith, Anchorage women’s shelter is made illegal by Anchorage ordinance
This is the second time the center has had to defend its practice of allowing only biological women to spend the night. In 2018, the faith-based group filed a federal lawsuit against the city after the shelter referred an inebriated and injured man to a hospital to get the care he needed and paid for his taxi ride there.
Read: Transgender files lawsuit against faith-based women’s shelter
The man later filed a complaint with the Anchorage Equal Rights Commission alleging the center didn’t let him stay at the shelter, where he would have been sleeping next to abused and homeless women. The city then chose to pursue the complaint against the center, prompting ADF attorneys to file suit on the center’s behalf.
The city eventually dropped the complaint, and both the city and the center agreed to make the court’s temporary order against the city permanent. But since the city’s first loss in federal court, the Anchorage Assembly has amended the city ordinance in an attempt to find a new way to target Downtown Hope Center and force it to let males sleep next to women who have been abused.
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“All Americans should be free to live out their faith and serve their neighbors—especially homeless women who have suffered sexual abuse or domestic violence—without being targeted or harassed by the government,” said ADF Senior Counsel Ryan Tucker, director of the ADF Center for Christian Ministries. “Downtown Hope Center is once again in court standing up for its religious beliefs. No woman—particularly not an abuse survivor—should be forced to sleep or disrobe next to a man.”
Sonja Redmond, one of nearly 3,500 attorneys allied with ADF, is local counsel for Downtown Hope Center in the case, The Downtown Soup Kitchen d/b/a Downtown Hope Center v. Municipality of Anchorage, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Alaska.
Mentally ill transgenders should be sleeping at API because that’s where the mentally deficient belong.
You know, we do have a new mayor who can make a decision not to fight in court in support of the ordinance. Lefties have been doing that for years. Its about time Our Side did the same thing. Cheers –
Anchorage, with the exception of Public Buildings and Spaces, needs to freely post “ We reserve the Right to refuse Service to Anyone “. Separation of Church and Government goes both ways! The Municipal Assembly must uphold their Oath of Office. Assembly, make no Laws that take away the Rights of one Group in favor of another Group. Alaska along with Anchorage used to have a saying “ We don’t give a damn how they do it Outside “, time for the saying to come back! Anchorage is becoming a lawless City, thanks to a mostly lawless Assembly., pick and choose which Laws they like.The Assembly needs to get rid of the Municipality of Anchorage’s Vote by Mail Scam and don’t even think about Rank Choice Voting.
For a party that claims to promote women’s rights,, they are doing their best to throw women under the bus. Males in women’s sports, males in women’s shelters, and now males in beauty pageants.
I guess I just don’t understand progressive thinking and never will.
AKVOTER, perhaps you need to consider this, it’s not about whether their argument is logical , ( it is not). It is about humiliation. It is about destruction of cultural norms. In summary it is about power, absolute power. It is about crushing resistance to their twisted agenda. I hope that helps.
The assembly, specifically just a few have put the city into this position, it’s waste and mismanagement knowing good and well this will occur. Nothing like burning a cool million off the backs of anchorage residents huh assembly members? There are just a few of you leftist assembly members lacking fiduciary responsibility and we know who you are, I thank God the mayoral race went the direction it did, common sense clearly is not your forte.
Our Anchorage assembly – where all women are equal. But some “women” are more equal than others.
It’s not just about religious beliefs. It’s about psychological trauma for some.
Should be a slam/dunk case for any court which has a judge that is not on the far left. Hope Center is all about just what its name says…”Hope” and these ladies need all the Hope and care the center can give them….
Looks like Mayor Bronson’s being tested…
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Seems reasonable to expect the Mayor will: (a) refuse to enforce any “ordinance” requiring men, mutant or otherwise, to be housed in a women’s shelter, and (b) fire city employees attempting to enforce such an ordinance.
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One hopes Hope Center petitions the Court to find certain Assembly members to be in contempt of Court, and to be acting illegally under 18 U.S. Code 242 – Deprivation of rights under color of law:
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“Whoever, under color of any law, statute, ordinance, regulation, or custom, willfully subjects any person in any State, Territory, Commonwealth, Possession, or District to the deprivation of any rights, privileges, or immunities secured or protected by the Constitution or laws of the United States… shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than one year, or both
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…and if bodily injury results from the acts committed in violation of this section or if such acts include the use, attempted use, or threatened use of a dangerous weapon… or if such acts include kidnapping or an attempt to kidnap, aggravated sexual abuse, or an attempt to commit aggravated sexual abuse, or an attempt to kill, shall be fined under this title, or imprisoned for any term of years or for life, or both, or may be sentenced to death.”
AKVOTER, the democrat party doesn’t support womens rights, unfortunately 60% of women support the democrat party that is at war with America and women!
Here’s an idea, let the Anchorage Assembly of Idiots take the sick perverts back to their homes for the night. Enough stupidity from liberal fools! Anchorage needs to clean out the assembly cesspool.
Recall Meg!
Move out of their jurisdiction, for we welcome you in the Mat-Su Valley.
What about:
SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES (Syllabus)
FULTON ET AL. v. CITY OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, ET AL.
CERTIORARI TO THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR
THE THIRD CIRCUIT
No. 19–123. Argued November 4, 2020—Decided June 17, 2021
When are muni employees back to work, their working from home is a laugh.
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