Eagle Forum of Alabama, an offshoot of Eagle Forum, petitioned the Alabama legislature in early 2020 in response to citizen concerns over the trivialization of gender dysphoria therapies.
The legislature enacted and the governor approved the Vulnerable Child Compassion and Protection Act in 2022, which prohibited using hormone blockers and cross-sex drugs on minors. It was immediately contested in federal court.
The Department of Justice under Biden has entered the civil case as an intervenor. The DOJ sent a subpoena to Eagle Forum of Alabama on August 10, despite the fact it is not a party to the action, wanting any documents connected to the VCAP statute.
Blatant Violation
Eagle Forum felt the subpoena violated their rights to free expression, assembly, and petition under the First Amendment. They are not solitary.
An amicus brief submitted in support of the motion to tamp down the subpoena was endorsed by over 35 institutions, persons, and elected officials.
It asserts in a clear and blatant breach of the First Amendment that the United States ordered a subpoena on Eagle Forum of Alabama for no lawful reason.
Instead, it was meant to terrorize and kick back the free speech, free association, and petitioning privileges of an entity whose viewpoints are currently in opposition to those of the United States.
So as part of discovery for the challenge blocking Alabama's ban on care for trans youth, DOJ requested documents from the Eagle Forum of AL about the bills' origins. Suffice it to say they really, really do not want us to know its origins. pic.twitter.com/TaOTkymbCR
— Gillian Branstetter (@GBBranstetter) September 13, 2022
Eagle Forum of Alabama’s stance on VCAP, and the fact it informed lawmakers and residents about the bill during the three years it was under consideration by the Alabama legislature, are totally public.
This disturbing attempt to suppress and punish anyone with divergent views on public policy questions should anger everyone. Yet, the traditional media remains silent.
Picture how the New York Times and Washington Post would respond if the Trump presidency subpoenaed pro-immigration groups who sued over Trump’s “Remain in Mexico” program or other organizations that took public positions against those it supported.
Joe Biden continues to weaponize the government against his political opponents. Now the DOJ has attacked the Eagle Forum of Alabama with a subpoena to try to muzzle their political activity.
If these attacks don't scare the hell out of you, then you aren't paying attention.
— Corey Gibson 🇺🇸 (@CoreyGibson) September 26, 2022
Freedom To Petition
Since the 1215 Magna Carta and the 1689 English Declaration of Rights, which stated the king’s subjects were “allowed to petition the King without being subjected to prosecution,” Americans have had the freedom to petition our authorities.
In the founding document, Thomas Jefferson emphasized the following:
“In every point of these systems of oppression, we have appealed for relief in the most modest terms; our repeated petitions have been met with repeated hurt.”
It is not surprising that the “annoying” First Amendment of the Constitution protects our rights to free speech, assembly, and petitioning the government.
In 1876, the Supreme Court stated in U.S. v. Cruikshank that the very concept of a republican government entails the right of its inhabitants to assemble peacefully for deliberation on public issues and to appeal for a redress of grievances.
The Department of Justice under Biden should take heed.
This article appeared in The Political Globe and has been published here with permission.
