BAILEY, Colorado (LifeSiteNews) — A Colorado Christian camp will no longer be forced by the state to allow men to shower next to girls, following a federal lawsuit filed by Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF).
Colorado’s Department of Early Childhood originally wanted to force Camp IdRaHaJe (“I’d Rather Have Jesus”) and all other “licensed resident camps to allow campers to use the private facilities of the opposite sex,” according to ADF.
The settlement applies not just to this camp, but all others of a religious nature. State policy “[requires] children’s camps to allow campers to access bathing, dressing, and sleeping facilities designated to the opposite sex,” according to ADF.
“When IdRaHaJe requested to run its camp in line with its religious beliefs, the department denied the request, forcing the camp to choose between upholding its beliefs about biological sex and risk losing its license or abandoning its beliefs and mission to minister to children,” the religious liberty legal group stated when it first filed its federal lawsuit in May.
Now it is celebrating its victory for biological reality and religious freedom.
“As part of the settlement, Colorado agreed not to take any enforcement action against Camp IdRaHaJe for violation of the gender identity requirements,” ADF announced. “The state is also clarifying in a memo on its website and in administrative guides that ‘churches, synagogues, mosques, or any other place that is principally used for religious purposes’ are exempt from the requirements,” the group announced.
An ADF attorney criticized the state for attempting to put “dangerous ideology ahead of kids.”
“State officials must respect religious ministries and their beliefs about human sexuality; they can’t force a Christian summer camp to violate its convictions,” Legal Counsel Andrea Dill stated. “We’re pleased that Camp IdRaHaJe is again free to operate as it has for more than 75 years: as a Christian summer camp that accepts all campers without fear of being punished for its beliefs.”
The camp is open to all faiths, but its purpose is to spread Christian beliefs. It serves kids as young as six years old, meaning even very young children could have been forced to share single-sex facilities with someone of the opposite sex who claims to be “transgender.”
Colorado public officials have a history of violating the religious freedom rights of individuals and imposing gender ideology onto parents.
For example, Democrat Governor Jared Polis supports the prosecution of baker Jack Phillips for declining to bake a cake for homosexual “weddings.” Polis is often celebrated by libertarians because he supports widespread marijuana legalization.
Public school officials in Jefferson County have also come under legal fire from ADF after they forced a young girl to share a hotel room on a school trip with a male who claimed to be a girl.
“Parents, not the government, have the right and duty to direct the upbringing and education of their children, and that includes making informed decisions to protect their child’s privacy,” ADF attorney Kate Anderson previously said. “This fundamental right is especially vital for parents to protect their children from violations of bodily privacy by exposure to the opposite sex in intimate settings, like sleeping arrangements or shower facilities.”