The Daily Signal - How the United Nations Promotes an Anti-Family Agenda

Episode Date: August 17, 2020

Kimberly Ells arrived at the United Nations excited to engage in work to strengthen families around the world. What she found was an agenda to dismantle the traditional family, promote sexuality to children, and reduce parenthood to a burdensome civil construct.  Kimberly Ells, a policy adviser for Family Watch International and author of the new book, “The Invincible Family: Why the Global Campaign to Crush Motherhood and Fatherhood Can't Win,” joins the podcast to explain the anti-family agenda being promoted by the United Nations.  Also on today’s show, we read your letters to the editor and share a good news story about peaceful gatherings of prayer and worship taking place in cities that have been most hurt by riots.   To watch Sean Feucht's full Fox News interview, click here. Visit the Hold The Line website here. Please take five minutes to complete The Daily Signal Podcast survey here. Enjoy the show! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This is the Daily Signal podcast for Monday, August 17th. I'm Robert Louis. And I'm Virginia Allen. On today's show, we share my recent problematic women podcast interview with Kimberly Ells, author of The Invincible Family, Why the Global Campaign to Crush Motherhood and Fatherhood can't win. Al's explains an anti-family agenda that is infecting not only America, but nations all over the world. We also have your letters to the editor and a good news story about peaceful, gatherings of prayer and worship that are taking place in cities that have been most negatively

affected by violent riots. Before we get to today's show, we would like to ask you to take five minutes at the end of today's show to complete a brief Daily Signal listener survey. It is a critical time in our nation's history, and now, more than ever at the Daily Signal, we are committed to equipping you with the best information and insight that we possibly can, and to do that, we need your help. By sharing your thoughts, thoughts and suggestions through our five-minute online survey, you'll be able to help the Daily Signal improve our reporting and reach more Americans with a message of freedom. Find the five-minute survey at DailySignal.com slash survey. Again, that'sdailysignal.com

slash survey. Now stay tuned for today's show. Coming up next. I am joined by Kimberly Ells, a policy advisor for Family Watch International and author of the new book, The Invincible family, why the global campaign to crush motherhood and fatherhood can't win. Kimberly, welcome to the show. Thank you so much. Now, you have a really, really interesting background, which includes work that you've done at the UN and work that really ultimately led you to write this book. Could you begin just by sharing a little bit about your background and how you came to be involved in issues pertaining to children and the family? Sure.

So several years ago, I think it was 2013. I found a document online in the course of just research and so forth. And it was a document all about children's sexual rights and promoting sexual rights for children. And up to this point, I didn't know that that existed in the mainstream. And I, as a mom, I was very concerned about that. and just as a citizen, I was concerned about that. And so that's what led me down the road to being involved with family advocacy, as well as fighting the children's sexual rights agenda.

And what I mean by children's sexual rights is this document that was published by International Planned Parenthood Federation presented sexuality to kids and to youth as if it was their human right, as if pursuing sexual pleasure in and of itself was a human right. for everybody, including youth, not connected to childbearing, not connected to long-term commitment, not connected to family, really in any way, and that it's just sexual pleasure is just a right for all people. And so, you know, many people feel that that's problematic as I did, and that led me down this road. Wow. So then take us a little bit further down that road. You discover this kind of agenda being pushed forward of telling kids,

You can have sex. It's your right to have sex. And then as you continue to kind of pursue this idea of, wait a second, no, that that's not right. That doesn't line up with maybe my traditional values. Where does that road continue to take you? Well, very soon I was able to connect with like-minded people and I discovered Family Watch International who would, who had already been fighting the children's sexual rights agenda at the international level for some time. And so, I immediately wanted to jump on board. And that's when I became involved internationally at the United Nations and saw for myself that not only was this agenda being pushed by international plan parenthood and other organizations, but it seemed to be systemic at the United Nations. And many of the United Nations agencies such as UNESCO, UNICEF, UNF, UNFPA are all on board with this.

and it's somewhat chilling to see it. Now, that I think is one of the most fascinating things that you have really highlighted so well in your book, is this agenda at an international level, that you went to the UN with this idea that I'm going to work to protect children and families and guard them from sexual predators. And what you actually found is that within the UN,

there's this kind of network of connection between socialists and feminists that are working, working with insiders at the UN to further this progressive message. Can you tell us a little bit more of that, of just regarding that connection between socialists, feminists, and the UN? Sure. So there's a huge socialist presence at the United Nations. There's a huge feminist presence at the United Nations. Sexual activism is rampant.

Now, I will say not everything that goes on at the United Nations is necessarily bad. and many people who work there have good intentions. But the problem is that it appears that many of the agencies have been corrupted by these various agendas. And International Planned Parenthood specifically has a huge presence at the United Nations and very frequently partners with UN agencies to sponsor events, to push forward programs, and so forth. The current Secretary General of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres, is the former president. president of socialist international. And I don't think those things that's widely known. And there are many other examples that I get in the book. Open socialists who are in leadership positions at

the United Nations. And so those of us who value free markets and representative government and different things, that's very concerning. So we're talking with Kimberly Ells about her new book, The Invincible Family, while the global campaign to crush motherhood and fatherhood can't win. And Kimberly, we're talking about this progressive message that we're seeing really being pushed by international leaders and specifically by the UN. Could you just tell us kind of in a nutshell, what is the agenda here? Well, the agenda broadly for the United Nations is to be the world governing box. That's not very hidden.

In fact, just last week, the head of the UN, the Secretary of Earl said that a new model for global governance is on the way. Those are his words. And he said that part of that is redistributing wealth and power, which is a very socialist idea. And so part of this. So how does the sexual agenda fit into that? Well, it fits in in a huge way because there's an inherent power. in the family, which isn't often given the recognition that it should be, but it's there. And fathers and mothers in concert produce life, they produce their children, and then they

raise their children, and they teach their children the values that they want them to live by. And so if there's an outside source outside the family that wants to really take control and have more power, what do they need to do? They need to break down the unit of the family. in order to usurp the power that the family naturally has. And it makes sense because as anyone knows, anyone who wants to have power in the world knows that you have to get to the young. And guess where the young begin? They begin in the family.

And so that puts the family and often particularly the mother, as well as the father, in a great position of influence. Because if you influence one child at a time and their beliefs, you influence the world. And so when you present sex to children, it is not connected to family, even though sex is the very thing that creates people and creates families and family connection, then you win a huge victory for dismantling the family. If you can couch sex as something that is simply just a fun activity that's not family-centric, then you've really gotten to the root of reeking the family. and helping children focus on their own pleasure rather than on their responsibilities in society, seeking out stable commitments and seeking marriage and family. And so all these things are very much connected,

but they all lead to weakening and even trying to destroy the families so that the power that resides there can be usurped. Well, in another way that you talk about how the UN is sort of trying to almost reframe the family And specifically motherhood is that they have talked about motherhood is almost being like a burden. Like, you know, poor women that they aren't compensated financially for raising children. And isn't that this travesty? Could you explain that a little bit further? Because I just find that really bizarre. Right.

So, yes, there's this, there's, when I first was involved with United Nations, there was a resolution put forward. this was just several years ago, basically framing any work that is not done for money as a great travesty and as oppression. And so, of course, parenthood, both mother and fatherhood fall under that umbrella. We're not necessarily paid for doing that work. And so this document that was negotiated basically told women, you know, you are oppressed if you're caring for your own children. And so the grand solution that was presented in the lines of this document is that nations should seek to establish national care centers for anyone that needed care. Sick people, old people, and of course children. And to those of us who value the family and see that it is the linchpin of society, that's very concerning.

And especially the very idea that only work done in the public sphere for money is value. is just untrue. And anyone who has been a parent recognizes that. So how do you think we got to this place? Because obviously, you know, as a society as a whole, not just Americans, but around the world, that, you know, family has existed since the beginning of time. And we've seen throughout history that often, you know, the role of the mother was highly valued. And, you know, during the Victorian era, there was this strong rooted idea that, you know, know, women sort of helped to instill values, often Christian, Judeo-Christian values into their children and that that was so critical for creating a strong society. What happened to get us off on this

track to where now world leaders are saying women, you're essentially oppressed if someone's not handing you a paycheck for changing your kids' diapers? It really is quite amazing, is it? Because when most women give birth and they see their beautiful child before them, the first thought is not, who's going to pay me to take care of this, right? Their first instinct is to want to care for the child. They love the child, most, almost in every case. And so how did we get to this point? I think it's a very valid question.

And I think it's the intertwining links of socialism and feminism and then more recently sexual radicalism. And socialism is perennially appealing to people. I think because of it promises equality, which of course is a valid concept, equality in itself. All men are created equal. There's a certain inherent equality. But socialism corrupts that idea, and it has from the very start framing the family as an enemy to equality. Because different situations exist in different families, right?

And that's okay. But if you're going to take socialism to its full conclusion, you have to, in a sense, achieve equality by destroying the family so that there can't be all these differences being taught. So I think the doctrine of equality has been corrupted and that is still appealing to people. Also, women's rights, of course, virtually everyone is on board with basic women's rights that have largely been achieved. you know, basic human rights, legal rights, wearing pants, all these things are great. But again, feminism, modern feminism has told women that there is no power in the family, which there is. And too many women, of course, if you're told that, you're going to look elsewhere.

And so these efforts have kind of combined to convince society and particularly women that if they want to have influence and power that they need to look outside the family and also convince people at large if we want to have equality. And if that is the grand goal, then we can't have families. And so it's a cooperative effort. And I think these movements are gaining steam, unfortunately. And it's time to return to revering the family, seeing the power of the family, and taking it by the reins.

So who are the key players that are really promoting and pushing this anti-family agenda, whether they be leaders at the UN or within certain groups around the world? Well, I mentioned International Plan Parenthood Federation. That continues to be a huge player. SICAS is kind of also heavily involved. UNFPA, that United Nations agency, is heavily evolved in population efforts,

but population control efforts. They've taken upon themselves to manage the population of the world. That's what they see. as their job, when really that responsibility resides in families with men and women together. And so there's huge pressure from that angle, as well as other UN agencies, the World Health Organization, has its hands in the pie as well. You mentioned that you're seeing, you refer in your book, that you're seeing this really anti-family messaging make its way into schools and into education.

education curriculum. Explain what exactly you mean by that and how and where we're seeing that take place. Okay, yeah, really important. UNESCO sees itself as the basically czar of education for the whole world, and they've taken upon themselves to manage the education efforts of the globe, and they've been driving towards that goal for many, many years, and they have made great strides recently. So there's UN agencies at the top. They've established the UN Sustainable Development Goals, which embedded in those are a lot of socialistic, feministic, sexually radical ideas, not overtly. You have to look carefully, but through interpretation, these things are there. Then there's various organizations, including the Organization

for Economic Cooperation and Development, and many other, I won't go into all the details right here. It's better to read it in the chapter in the book, but essentially these big agencies partner with smaller organizations and agencies on a national and then the local level. And this is happening in my conservative state. And one of the key players there that specifically mentioned in UN documents about education is the global partnership for education. And if you get looking closely into that, as I did, it's a very, it follows the communist model for education to a T.

They want schools, and they have lovely graphics showing all of this, they want schools. they want schools to be a full service care center, essentially, for children, that they provide for their nutritional needs, their education needs, their medical needs. Even they mentioned spiritual needs in some of the UN documents. And so that's concerning to those of us who are worried about local control and local curriculum. And there's many intertwining pieces of this that I explain in the book, but it's largely driven by digital, curriculum and digital learning. And one especially concerning thing is that through the OECD sponsors these assessments for kids. And these have been ongoing for some time now and they've kind of morphed from being academic assessments to being, to assessing what they call social and emotional

skills. But what they really mean by that is social and emotional attitudes, like children's attitudes about social issues. And it's been very savvy the way they've put this into place, which I explain to more detail in the book. And so many schools, even unknowingly at this point, are infiltrated with these UN ideologies. And if they're not yet, it's in the works. So please to be talking with Kimberly L's author of The Invincible Family, why the global campaign to crush motherhood and fatherhood can't win. Kimberly, right now, we, are at a pivotal point in American history. It really, gosh, I don't know what the history books are going to write about the year 2020, but I can only imagine we're seeing riots in the

streets that are costing cities millions of dollars in damage and statues are being torn down. And there just seems to be in general this complete disregard for authority, whether that's law enforcement or political leaders or even parents. And you draw a connection between the unrest that we're seeing in our streets today and this mission to kind of undo the traditional family. Can you explain that? Yeah. So we've been talking about these global forces and things coming down and those are very real and we need to look into those and push back against them. But as you say, if we look closer to home, we see all this mayhem unraveling around us.

And it's alarming to watch. And while there are many forces at play, I think that. major force at play is the breakdown of the family. I've often said that we all, back when things were normal even, we all sit and wait in lines at the grocery store and we all learned those kinds of things because our mothers taught us to, because our dads taught us to. And it used to be the expected place of parents to teach self-regulation, to teach patients, to teach self-control, to teach basic principles, to teach the lessons of history that support all of these good and positive and productive characteristics. And I think we have let go of that far too much.

And of course, I'm not the only one saying that, but I think we have to face the fact that the chaos we're seeing around us springs largely from our abandonment of our families. And I'm not just talking about deadbeat dads or something. I'm talking about seeding the power of parenthood to other places, to other sources, whether it be, you know, schools or care centers or other things, have we been paying attention at home? And I think in some cases, the answer has been not enough. And so I think if we want to pull ourselves out from this scary place that we're in, we absolutely have to refocus on the family, starting with our families. And then from there, making sure we're teaching our kids what we think they need to know,

not when somebody else think is politically correct for them to know, but what we believe and why. And then to as a society and as a state support the family. Even the United Nations documents themselves are peppered with references to the family. Even the Universal Declaration on Human Rights says that the family is the core unit of society and is entitled to protection by society and by the state. And I think we've fallen too far away from that. We need to return to that and recognize that the family is the building block of society. And if we're not going to use that building block anymore, society is going to crumble.

So tell our listeners where they can find the book. Right. Thank you. It's the Invincible Family. You can go to InvincibleFamily.com, as well as Amazon has it there, Barnes & Noble, anywhere you find books. Kimberly, thank you so much for your time today. We really appreciate you coming on the show. Thank you so much. Are you looking for quick conservative policy solutions to current issues? Sign up for Heritage's weekly newsletter, The Agenda. In the Agenda, you will learn what issues Heritage Scholars on Capitol Hill are working on,

what position conservatives are taking, and links to our in-depth research. The Agenda also provides information on important events happening here at Heritage that you can watch online, as well as media interviews from our experts. Sign up for the Agenda on heritage.org today. Thanks for sending us your letters to the editor. Each Monday, we feature our favorites on this show. Virginia, who's up first? In response to Jarrett Stepman's

Right Side of History podcast interview with Robert Riley entitled A Defense of Our Founding Ideas, Joe Keltzner writes, this is one of the best historical summaries I have ever heard. It is remarkably good. Thank you so much.

And in response to Kelsey Bowler's piece, this California law is ripping away American dreams. The left wants to take it nationwide. Jim Lawitzer of Collarville, Tennessee writes, thanks very much for this article on gig work and what California is doing to it. I sincerely hope you'll stay on this story and provide updates and increase visibility to the issue. Of all the many problems the country is encountering, I think this is one of the most important and will have the most enduring consequence. Not only that, but Kelsey's writing is

well crafted and easy to read. So thanks for that as well. Your letter could be featured on next week's show. So send an email to Letters at DailySignal.com. What the heck is trickle-down economics? Does the military really need a space force? What is the meaning of American exceptionalism? I'm Michelle Cordero. I'm Tim Desher. And every week on the Heritage Explains podcast, we break down a hot-button policy issue in the news

at a 101 level. Through an entertaining mix of personal stories, media clips, music, and interviews, We help you actually understand the issues. So do this. Subscribe to Heritage Explains on iTunes, Google Play, or wherever you get your podcast today. Virginia, you have a good news story to share with us today. Over to you. Thanks, Rob.

Peaceful gatherings of Christian worship and prayer are taking place in cities like Seattle and Portland. Worship Leader Sean Foyt and founder of the Christian Political Engagement Organization Hold the Line is hosting outdoor worship services in response to the violent riots across America. Foyt, who was a guest on this podcast in May, has dubbed the events, riots to revival. He recently joined Fox News to explain why he decided to respond to the chaos in America with prayer and worship events in the very cities most affected by the violence. We just believe that the church has the ability to change the narrative. You know, all of America has just seen these buildings burning and they've seen this destruction and this violence.

And the news, the mainstream media, seems to be infatuated with this. But I'm telling you, there's another story of what God is doing in these cities and the church is rising up. Foote and his team plan to continue the gatherings, despite even having received resistance and threats from rioters and members of Antifa. Evangelist and missionary Franklin Graham caught wind of what Foote is. is up to and wrote on Twitter, I love what at Sean Foyt is doing. He's going into cities that have some of the worst rioting and leading worship services outdoors. He knows Jesus Christ is the only answer for the human heart and people are surrendering their lives to Christ. God bless him. Take a listen to a portion of the worship gathering that took place in downtown Seattle recently

in the area formerly overrun by rioters known as CHOP. We'll be sure to link Foyt's full Fox News interview in today's show notes, along with a link to his website. Virginia, thanks so much for sharing that story and bringing us some good news each and every week. It's so meaningful to hear these good things that are happening. And we're going to leave it there for today. You can find the Daily Signal podcast on the Rikoschet Audio Network. All of our shows can be found at daily signal.com slash podcasts. You can also subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Google Play, or your favorite podcast.

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