Save Our Schools Arizona (SOSAZ), a teachers union activist group, falsely claimed that public schools don’t discriminate.
SOSAZ claimed that the state’s universal school choice program was “taxpayer-funded hate” targeting LGBTQ+ children and families. They then claimed that public schools are accepting of all students.
“Public schools accept ALL students, which is why public funds belong in public schools,” stated SOSAZ.
Universal ESA Vouchers = State-Funded Hate 😡 Taxpayer-funded private schools are openly discriminating against LGBTQ+ children & families 😞
Public schools accept ALL students, which is why public funds belong in public schools.
Former Senate President Karen Fann responded to SOSAZ with a reminder that public schools do discriminate against Christians. Fann was likely alluding to the controversy with Washington Elementary School District (WESD), in which governing board member Tamillia Valenzuela — a self-identified neurodivergent queer furry — led a crusade to purge Christians from WESD.
“Wrong but we do know some public schools don’t like Christian teachers,” wrote Fann.
Wrong but we do know some public schools don’t like Christian teachers https://t.co/3wyYoz42xT
Valenzuela said during a board meeting last month that Arizona Christian University (ACU) didn’t align with WESD priorities because of their Christian beliefs. As a result, WESD terminated its contract with ACU to have university students complete their teaching and practical coursework at one of WESD’s campuses.
After the board voted to end its contract with ACU, Valenzuela published a celebratory post.
“I am so happy to announce that our board unanimously decided to no longer continue the partnership with Arizona Christian University,” said Valenzuela. “Thank you to our community members who made their voices heard.”
SOSAZ responded to Fann by condemning Christian schools who don’t enroll students that advocate for or practice sinful lifestyles such as adultery, fornication, homosexuality, bestiality, incest, pornography, and transgenderism. SOSAZ specifically highlighted Dream City Christian School, launched through Turning Point Academy Association and Valley Christian Schools.
Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) sued WESD last week for its contract cancellation with ACU, alleging unconstitutional religious discrimination. ADF Senior Counsel David Cortman asserted that WESD was forcing ACU to choose between its religious beliefs and career opportunities for its students.
“Washington Elementary School District officials are causing irreparable harm to ACU every day they force it to choose between its religious beliefs and partnering with the area’s public schools,” said Cortman.
During last Thursday’s board meeting, Valenzuela claimed that those opposed to her crusade against Christians were actually bullying LGBTQ+ students. Valenzuela also claimed that sexuality exploration fulfilled one’s humanity, and that true Christianity accepted sin.
“There is a difference between acceptance and tolerance, and members of our society have been merely accepted, merely tolerated for their existence. We have watched as our children have been bullied for having autonomy,” said Valenzuela. “Know what Christ’s teachings were: it was love, it was acceptance. It was not cursing people out on Facebook and Twitter, it was not spreading misinformation.”
Valenzuela was also responsible for having all board members put their preferred pronouns — in English and Spanish — underneath their names on the dais. On her board member Facebook page, Valenzuela advocated for GLSEN: the organization attempting to sexualize minors.
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
Former Arizona Senate President Karen Fann said Rep. Ruben Gallego’s (D-AZ-03) support for abortion was a crime.
Gallego lamented that Arizona could limit abortions on Monday, which marked 50 years since the Roe v. Wade Supreme Court (SCOTUS) decision legalizing abortion.
“Today, we should have been celebrating the 50th anniversary of Roe v. Wade. Instead, extremist officials ripped away the right to choose, leaving women in Arizona and too many other states without basic reproductive freedom,” wrote Gallego. “But make no mistake: this fight isn’t over.”
SCOTUS determined that the Roe v. Wade decision invented a constitutional right based on the “right to privacy”: a legal theory created by the late SCOTUS Justice Louis Brandeis in the 1890s. Brandeis’ invention informed the landmark decision Griswold v. Connecticut, the precursor to Roe v. Wade.
The state currently has a ban on abortions after 15 weeks’ gestation in place, enacted last year. The Arizona Court of Appeals ruled last month that the state may not prosecute doctors under the pre-statehood ban on abortion. However, the court didn’t repeal the law. Instead, the appeals court clarified that the later laws, including the 15-week ban enacted last year, were the standard to follow.
State abortion laws also limit abortion access in other ways. Telemedicine health care may not be used to obtain abortion pills. However, the state doesn’t have bans on funding travel and procedure costs for women obtaining abortions outside the state past the 15-week period.
The SCOTUS decision overturning Roe v. Wade was leaked early last May. SCOTUS announced last week in a 20-page report that they were unable to identify the source of the leak. Politico published the draft opinion; it appears they’re unwilling to reveal their source.
Gov. Katie Hobbs, at the time the Secretary of State, responded to the draft leak last year with an expletive railing against those she perceived to be ruling the state.
“F**k the patriarchy,” tweeted Hobbs.
The draft leak incited mass protests and riots at the Arizona Capitol and nationwide. An activist group with the University of Arizona (UArizona) and Planned Parenthood ties petitioned to make abortion a constitutional right in the state — an effort which ultimately failed.
In a Sunday statement, President Joe Biden called on Congress to codify the legalization of abortion. Biden characterized abortion as a “constitutional right.” The president also promised a Presidential Memorandum ensuring a right to abortive medications, which Vice President Kamala Harris announced during a visit to Florida. Ahead of the announcement, Harris declared that those opposed to abortion were “extremist,” and in violation of women’s constitutional and reproductive rights.
“We are looking at a situation where extremist so-called leaders in states around our country are depriving women of the right to have access to reproductive health care,” stated Harris.
On the commemoration of the 50th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, I’m in Tallahassee, Florida to discuss the fight for reproductive rights. Tune in. https://t.co/1cX4gFt96L
Maricopa County may have to add its new branding to its growing list of controversies.
Critics of the county’s new brand remark that the letter “I” in Maricopa looks like a bright orange middle finger. It appears the design was intended to be a minimalist cactus.
Among the online critics was former State Senate President Karen Fann.
“Honestly, it looks like they are giving us the finger… again,” stated Fann.
even once you realize the symbol is meant to be a cactus, it doesn't read as an i – mar🌵copa in the less stylized form. my brain goes 'martcopa??' 'marycopa?'
The county unveiled the rebranding on Wednesday. In a press release, the county shared that the rebranding took over three years to produce, beginning several years before the pandemic. The rebranding will be uniform across all county departments and several elected offices. The county shared that it would also issue rebranding updates to other, unspecified areas throughout the year.
The county worked with the advertising and marketing agency HAPI to produce the branding.
The agency worked previously with Scottsdale Parks & Rec to create summer lifeguard help-wanted ad campaigns, and the city of Phoenix for general city advertising.
Board of Supervisors Chairman Clint Hickman justified rebranding due to reported resident confusion over distinguishing the county from other cities and towns due to similar, vague branding.
“What we found over a few years of research is that residents often confuse us with other governments or can’t distinguish between what the County provides and what their city or town handles,” said Hickman. “Some of this is the result of how we have presented ourselves over the years: as distinct departments instead of one unified County. That changes today.”
County Manager Joy Rich predicted that the new branding would improve employee recruitment and retention.
“A cohesive countywide identity means more people who need assistance will know where they can find it,” said Rich. “It will also help us recruit and retain the best workforce, which translates into better service for residents.”
The county also released a video to announce their rebranding. The narrator likened Arizonans and the county’s culture to the desert lands and, specifically, cacti.
“Our roots go deep and no matter what, we stand tall. Solving problems, removing barriers, growing a better future: we are Maricopa County, Arizona,” said the video.
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
On Monday, Arizona Senate President Karen Fann appointed Dr. Theodore Cooke, Central Arizona Project (CAP) general manager, to the Water Infrastructure Finance Authority (WIFA) Board.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Senate President Karen Fann Announces Appointment to Water Infrastructure Finance Authority Board pic.twitter.com/cD86SYicVn
In June, Governor Doug Ducey increased WIFA’s responsibility to manage a $1.2 billion appropriation to ensure the state has an adequate water supply over the next century. The increased authority came through SB1740, introduced by State Senator Sine Kerr (R-Buckeye) and backed by a bipartisan majority of all but two votes in the legislature. Current members of the WIFA Board are Misael Cabrera, Keith Watkins, Paul Gardner, Alan Baker, Kevin Rogers, Lynne Smith, Briton Baxter, Fernando Shipley, and Ray Montoya.
The WIFA appointment comes as Arizona continues to grapple with its declining water supply.
Last year, the federal government cut back on Arizona’s largest renewable water supply, the Colorado River, when it reclassified the river to Tier One drought status. Then last month, the Interior Department announced that it would again cut back Arizona’s water allocation for next year.
In response, Cooke and Arizona Department of Water Resources (ADWR) stated in a joint press release that Arizona isn’t responsible for it’s water supply struggles. Rather, the two authorities indicated that other states were to blame. CAP and ADWR outlined how Arizona did its part to conserve the Colorado River system supply, such as leaving 800,000 acre-feet in Lake Mead alone this year, in addition to 37 feet of increased elevation contributed to that lake since 2014.
“It is unacceptable for Arizona to continue to carry a disproportionate burden of reductions for the benefit of others who have not contributed,” stated the CAP and ADWR. “Discussions among the Basin States and the United States have only led to a framework relying entirely on short-term, voluntary contributions for 2023 that fall far short of the water volumes needed to protect the system.”
State officials have been exploring options to reverse Arizona’s declining water supply, such as adopting Israel’s desalination techniques.
Cooke will retire as CAP general manager in November. As a WIFA Board member, he will oversee loan and grant distributions for importing, conserving, and reusing water, as well as new technologies to improve the state’s water situation.
Fann asserted that Cooke was the best qualified candidate to improve the state’s water security at the most affordable cost to taxpayers.
“We closely examined every applicant and determined Dr. Cooke’s wealth of knowledge and incredible industry insight make him a highly qualified person for this position,” said Fann. “He understands the very different needs of municipalities, the agriculture industry, home builders and economic developers, as well as conservation.”
Cooke expressed gratitude for the appointment.
“I will do my very best to meet the high expectations for this role in the governance of Arizona’s fiscal, infrastructure, and water resources,” said Cooke.
Thank you, President Fann, for the appointment and for your confidence in me. I will do my very best to meet the high expectations for this role in the governance of Arizona's fiscal, infrastructure and water resources.
The reactions to Friday night’s initially peaceful protest at the State Capitol which was turned into a melee by agitators eerily echo the response to the January 6, 2021 events in Washington DC, only this time the political shoes are on different feet.
Many Republicans back in 2021 urged Americans to not paint all attendees at protests and rallies across Washington DC on Jan. 6 as criminals. In fact, less than 2,000 of the estimated 40,000 who gathered in the city that day have ever been investigated or charged for engaging in criminal conduct.
Yet some leaders of the Democratic Party have sought since then to paint anyone who attended a “J6” protest or rally as domestic terrorists.
Their tune has changed, however, at least as it relates to Friday night’s gathering of what an Arizona Department of Public Safety spokesman said was 7,000 to 8,000 people present to protest the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in Roe v. Wade.
Among those who promoted the protest was Raquel Teran, the chair of the Arizona Democratic Party and a LD30 state representative. Teran tweeted a flyer which called on those who opposed the SCOTUS ruling to show up at the Capitol on Friday at 7 p.m.
— Raquel Terán #BlackLivesMatter (@RaquelTeran) June 24, 2022
The same event was publicized by a group going by the name RadicalWomenPHX which advised those attending to use a Sharpie to write the group’s arrest hotline on their arms “as an extra safety precaution” if the protest went “sideways.”
Teran is another Arizona Democrat who does not shy away from calling on supporters to “fight” in the streets, despite national Democrats who continue to blame former President Donald Trump’s call for supporters to fight election fraud as the cause of the incursion into the U.S. Capitol in 2021.
We are going to have to continue the fight for our freedoms, including access to legal and safe abortion. At all levels, the courts, the streets, and polls!
— Raquel Terán #BlackLivesMatter (@RaquelTeran) June 24, 2022
Twenty-four hours later, Teran had not tweeted any condemnation of those seen in multiple videos attempting to kick in doors at the Senate Building. Or those belonging to what an Arizona Department of Public Safety spokesperson called “splinter groups” who turned the initially peaceful protest into “anarchical and criminal actions.”
According to Graves, when some of the attendees realized the Arizona Legislature was in session, “they attempted to breach the doors of the Arizona Senate and force their way into the building. The violence of their efforts literally shook the building and terrified citizens and law makers who occupied the building.”
At one point some of the glass doors of the Senate building bowed from the attempts of forced entry, which Graves said triggered security and law enforcement officials to instruct everyone inside the building to move to secure locations.
“Due to the direct threat to the occupants of the Senate building and damage to the building itself, Arizona State Troopers took immediate action and utilized tactics including the deployment of field force teams and tear gas,” Graves noted.
On Saturday, Senate President Karen Fann tweeted a short video recorded by Sen. Michelle Ugenti-Rita from inside the Senate building. The video shows protestors outside the building, which has several glass doors and windows on the ground floor.
So proud of our senate staff and Police officers keeping us safe from the insurrection at the Az Capitol last night pic.twitter.com/4rqzFLXQ3u
In her tweet, Fann described the crowd as an “insurrection” but the DPS statement makes clear no one unlawfully entered any of the Capitol buildings. In fact, the video taken by Ugenti-Rita shows most of the large crowd of protestors yelling and carrying signs. Only a handful of agitators are seen pounding on the windows and kicking at the glass doors.
There were also false social media reports about educators “invading” the Arizona Senate as part of the protests, which Fann quickly refuted. She noted the educators seen in photos wearing Red for Ed shirts on the Senate floor were guests seated in the gallery and then brought to the floor in an effort to get them to safety along with Senators and staff.
Ugenti-Rita tweeted a second video taken later on Friday night when a DPS tactical team was deployed inside the Senate building. By then many of the protestors and rioters had left the area after tear gas was fired at the unruly crowd. .
— Michelle Ugenti-RITA (@MichelleUgenti) June 25, 2022
Sen. T.J. Shope supported the decision by DPS command to utilize tear gas when the crowd failed to stop the attack on the building.
Good! The situation was escalating beyond control and was no longer a “peaceful protest” but a riot that was endangering the safety of everyone inside the Senate and House of Representatives buildings. #AZLeghttps://t.co/VQgM8YnCyV
However, the situation at the Senate building was not the only one which triggered a law enforcement response in the area.
“As the riotous behavior at the Legislature was taking place, concurrent and spillover criminal misconduct in the form of felony criminal damage and the defacing of state memorials was occurring in Wesley Bolin Plaza,” Graves said.
The response of troopers and other law enforcement officers was complicated by the fact some people had brought children to the protest which turned into unlawful assembly, according to Graves.
“After multiple warnings, and notifications of trespass and unlawful assembly, state troopers deployed gas and strategically moved to clear the plaza,” Graves said, adding that as rioters were cleared from one area they damaged state property in the next area. Those properties and publicly funded memorials which suffered what Graves called “significant criminal damage” include:
Arizona Law Enforcement Canine Memorial
Arizona Peace Officers Memorial
Lt. Frank Luke Jr. Memorial
Korean War Memorial
Operation Enduring Freedom Memorial
Wesley Bolin Memorial Amphitheatre
158th Regimental Memorial
Estimates for the cost of cleaning and repairing the damage is not yet available. DPS released no information about any arrests which may have been made in connection with the damage, but among those calling for prosecution of those who marred the various memorials is Republican gubernatorial candidate Karrin Taylor Robson, who shared several photos taken by Sen. Kelly Townsend the morning after.
Every Arizonan should be outraged by the senseless vandalism of our monuments and memorials dedicated to fallen servicemembers and law enforcement.
