On Monday, the U.S. Senate will return to Washington to debate and vote on the (Dis)Respect for Marriage Act. There are still a few ways we can block this bill. And it is imperative that we do so. We have circulated a legal memo to senators that has created a buzz. Some are now raising concerns that we have presented, and this information could help torpedo HR 8404. 

Some are now beginning to see the problem with child bride marriages. California law allows adults to marry children—of any age with parental and judicial approval. If HR 8404 passes in the Senate, every state will be forced to accept the marriage of “minor attracted persons” (the new euphemism for pedophilia). 

Help us give a voice to one of California’s child bride victims and share why it is so critical to stop the vile madness seeking to victimize and destroy our children. Members of the Senate must hear from you! —Mat

Fax the Senate and DEMAND they take a stand against perversion! Tell them to VOTE NO on HR 8404!

Dawn was just 13 years old when she was forced to marry a 32-year-old pedophile. This did not happen in some remote Third World country. No, this happened in California.

Dawn’s father and stepmother moved to Texas to start a new business. They left their young daughter in the care of a “family friend” so she could finish sixth grade in California. But the family friend turned out to be a pedophile who repeatedly raped and eventually impregnated Dawn.

Out of fear of punishment for leaving their daughter with a child rapist, Dawn’s father forced her to marry the 32-year-old man who had repeatedly molested her. However, if HR 8404 passes, then California can dictate the marriage policy for every state and territory and this federal policy will force all 50 states to honor incredible evil.

In fact, under the so-called “Respect for Marriage Act,” one “state, territory, or possession” of the United States can dictate the marriage policy for the entire nation. And who knows what a government “possession” includes? This is very odd. At any rate, a “possession” will be authorized to force its marriage policy everywhere.

“What’s a young girl to do,” asks Dawn, now an adult. “You’re not going to push back and stand up for yourself. These are your parents. You’re going to do what they say is best for you.”

In California, adults may marry a child if they have permission from the child’s parents. We all know that California is crazy, but the problem is that California’s crazy keeps infecting the rest of the country.

And if HR 8404 passes, EVERY “state, territory and possession” will be forced to honor California’s pedophile-promoting child bride laws, effectively making child sexual abuse legal in every state in America.

HR 8404 will force EVERY state to bow, not just to federal mandates on marriage, but to California’s “marriage” mandates as well—even the mandates that allow pedophiles to marry children like Dawn.

Don't let California's craziness infect all of America. Tell the Senate to Vote NO on HR 8404.

By the time Dawn was 15, she had already birthed two children to her molester and was forced to drop out of school. She tried to divorce her husband at age 16, but the judge refused to give her custody of her children until she was 18 because that is when she would be considered a legal adult. As a result, Dawn’s children remained with the pedophile who abused her for so many years.

PTSD from years of abuse sent Dawn into a spiral of substance abuse and homelessness. Though decades have passed, she continues to suffer from severe anxiety disorder because of her years-long trauma at the hands of the pedophile her father forced her to marry.

Dawn has reunited with her children, and now spends her time advocating for others, working and praying to end the abuse she was forced to endure. “The fix-all is to end (marriage under age 18),” she says. “No child should be getting married, period.”

And no federal law should ever attempt to codify perversion and child sexual abuse into law. But that is exactly what will happen if HR 8404 passes.

Liberty Counsel Action is working to protect girls like Dawn by fighting the oxymoronically named “Respect for Marriage Act” that destroys the meaning of marriage just as it forces California’s “child bride” laws onto the rest of the country.

Sen. Chuck Schumer is pressing for a final vote before the end of the year. The Senate could take up the bill as early as Monday, November 28. But, we can still stop it if we do not grow weary

Help us stop this madness and protect children NOW. Please fax the Senate, and tell them NO CHILD BRIDES! VOTE NO on HR 8404!

Our staff on Capitol Hill are working feverously to stop HR 8404. We need your prayers and your support.

Please consider making a recurring monthly donation. And you can DOUBLE YOUR GIFT with our Challenge Grant!

Mat Staver, Chairman
Liberty Counsel Action

P.S. If you haven't already, add your name to our petition to stop this radical bill.

Sources:

Boyd-Barrett, Claudia. “California Laws Don’t Prevent Minors from Marrying Adults.” California Health Report, September 10, 2021. Calhealthreport.org/2021/09/10/california-laws-dont-prevent-minors-from-marrying-adults/.

“California Marriage Age Requirements Laws.” FindLaw, August 14, 2020. Findlaw.com/state/california-law/california-marriage-age-requirements-laws.html.

“S.4556 - Respect for Marriage Act.” Congress.gov. July 19, 2022. Congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/senate-bill/4556.