The Highwire with Del Bigtree - ICAN MAKES HISTORY IN MISSISSIPPI

Episode Date: May 6, 2023

ICAN once again made history this week by winning yet another lawsuit, this time actually reversing the draconian ban on religious exemptions for vaccines in Mississippi. ICAN lead attorney, Aaron Siri along with co-founders of Mississippi Parents for Vaccine Rights, Lindey Magee and MaryJo Perry, join Del to recount their uphill battle that led to this historic victory.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-highwire-with-del-bigtree--3620606/support.

This last week, Ican actually made history, especially when it comes to the issue of medical freedom and choice. This is what that looked like in the news. A federal judge rules that Mississippi must join most other states in allowing religious exemptions from vaccinations that children are required to receive in order to attend school. This ruling comes as a result of a lawsuit filed last year by several parents who say their religious beliefs have led them to keep their children. children unvaccinated and out of Mississippi schools. The deadline for the Mississippi Department of Health to allow religious exemptions is July 15th. This is an incredible story. We could just say, there it is, but I really want to get into the details of it because so many of you out there have been working with us trying to really make a difference in this space and make sure that

we maintain our right to body autonomy now and forever. This is going to be a huge milestone in that journey, especially for those other states that are still suffering from the same type of authoritarian pressure when it comes to your right to opt out of the childhood vaccine program. I want to, though, sort of talk about how we got here, because there's many years behind this work and a lot of brilliant people that were a part of it. So this story actually begins, for me, when I made the documentary Vax from cover up to catastrophe. We had got a bus that said, Baxter, on the side of it. We were traveling the nation and people were signing the names of their injured children on the side of it. Well, one day we pulled the bus up into Mississippi. And there it is.

You can see the signatures of all these children who have been either killed or damaged by the vaccine. It's a powerful site. That bus now sits on our campus here at the campus of I can decide. But there it was. We're in front of the Capitol. And something happened. A couple of mothers, warrior moms came up to me as I stepped off the bus. And we were usually there just, to speak out. We want to take you in the Capitol to meet with some of our representatives, our senators and assembly members. We think you should be talking to them. I had never done that before. And so as they dragged me into the Capitol, I found myself in these conversations with different political leaders there. And, you know, I have to say that the process was

super interesting, trying to figure out what really was their perspective, why they believe that you should have no religious exemption, one of the few states in the country that had that level of oppression on this conversation. And when the day was all over, I would say that my life was changed forever. I was reflecting on it and thinking, you know, as I'd done it, I walked out of the Capitol and thought, I actually really enjoy this. I mean, who would have ever thought talking to politicians would be fun or interesting? But the whole game of sizing them up, trying to figure out what things they cared about

and find that door that you could open up into the conversation was really interesting. And I thought to myself, you know, I'm pretty good at this. this is something I want to do more of, and I really changed my journey. After that moment, more and more, I was leaving the Vax bus and flying to different capitals to do exactly that. So word got out. Del likes talking to politicians. But these warrior moms blew me away at how much they knew about the political system, the relationships they'd already developed with many of these politicians. And that is sort of the root of what happened. This law would not have been changed, as it was, was last week, had it not been for the incredible work of mothers, and I mean moms, like very

few fathers anywhere to be seen. When we look back historically, it will be women that really fought to make a difference in this space. So it is my honor and pleasure to be joined by two of those warrior mothers, Lindy McGee and Mary Jo Perry. You guys were there. You dragged me off the bus. I still remember that moment. I remember being terrified. how these women just marching into Capitol talking to people they don't know. You know, Lindy, when you, you know, think about that moment, how long had you already been at this conversation before the Vax bus arrived? How long have you been fighting this, you know, removal of religious exemption in Mississippi?

Well, Vaxed was in 2016 and we founded MPVR in 2012. Wow. So we had been at the Capitol for a few years by then. and we're blessed to have been kind of had our hands held by some women that had been working on this ahead of us that were grandmothers by then. So at least three years since 2012. Mary Jo, when we think about this, is my understanding correct that Mississippi was the first one to lose the religious exemption? How long had that been gone when you guys really started ramping up this attempt to bring back the religious exemption?

They're freezing. Oh, am I frozen or they're frozen? Here we go. Technology. Okay. Mary Jo, how long ago did Mississippi? I'm not sure somebody was frozen, but I think we're back again. Yeah, great.

How long ago did you guys lose your religious exemption? So back in, up until 1979, Mississippi had on the books a religious exemption, but it required that the family either be clergy or that it was part of their religious. just tenants and practices that they could not take vaccines. And so in 1979, a chiropractor from Rankin County, which is where we live, filed a lawsuit against the state. And the state actually decided in the state courts that unconstitutional, that our vaccine law for a religious exemption

was unconstitutional. And so they revoked it. And then ever since then we've not been able to get something to replace it and the battle with our legislators has monumental and and even impossible we've been promised over and over again that if we you know if we would jump through certain hoops and get a certain number of legislators on board that they would pass it and we've had overwhelming support before almost the entire republican caucus and our speaker of the house philip gunn still blocked our bills for religious exemption so it's been impossible and it's really

disappointing that we wound up having to take it to federal court. But perhaps, perhaps this was the best way anyway, because now the state of Mississippi can never take it away from us. It's really amazing. 1979. And so over 40 years, Mississippi, I mean, for so many people in this movement, it was like California, SB 277, 2015, this horrific moment that they lost, you know, their religious or personal belief exemption. Right after that, Fair decision after that was Maine. Connecticut is hanging in the balance. But you guys have been at this longer than anybody, which is why I think this is so fascinating that you've been, you know, really on the forefront of this fight. Now, you know, Lindy, I think we had the schedule that you

had for me when we, when I first got off that bus, it was shocking to think, oh, I'm just going to talk to a bunch of moms. You sort of dragged me in there. And you, I mean, it was like, you know, at 9 a.m. He meets with this person, 9.30, this person, you know, and, and so we went through that process. What I think is interesting about this, really, is that when we think about the religious exemption, this is something I want to talk about. I had been there, so I went in, the first day went really well, we talked to politicians, you guys said, Del that was really effective. Now, part of it, it seemed that, unfortunately, this is, the politics can sort of be like a man show.

Do you find it was difficult, even though it was only women in there to really be taken, Seriously? Absolutely. Absolutely we did. Our lawmakers are misogynistic and paternalistic and saw a lot of us, or just saw our movement as a bunch of emotional mothers. We would come with the science and the VACS and leave the emotions behind and, you know, armed with the science and they were not hearing it. They dismissed us. And so when Vax came on the scene and you were speaking out in more, moral courage, that is why we wanted you to come in and speak to our lawmakers. And we did find that they were more receptive to you. You know, Mary Jo and I, so many people that are part of MPVR who were up there lobbying,

our husbands are back at home working so that we're able to do that. And we just were not taken seriously. Speaker gun, the speaker of the house, like Mary Jo said, would give us hoops to jump through. We would jump through every one of them. And he would just move the bar year after year so that we couldn't get anywhere. Well, I remember I visited several times over the first couple of years there, and it felt like we were really starting to get traction. And then one day you called me and said,

Del, we have finally got a hearing in front of, I believe it was the Senate Health Committee, if I remember correctly. House, yeah. But the House Health Committee. And you said it's going to allow us to have a speaker speak, and we would like you to do that. I remember I came down and said, of course. And that morning, I woke up and I was really actually, you know, praying and thinking about

how are we going to address this body of people. I had never done it before. We'd never really had that whole, like, health committee allowing us to, like, give a presentation. They said, you can do a PowerPoint. You said they're going to be open to a PowerPoint. And I remember that morning thinking, this is wild that we're in the Bible belt here. We are where, you know, religious belief really carries more weight than anywhere else I'm fighting this conversation, certainly more than.

than California, and it just dawned on me, you know, and I sort of, you know, was moved to think, you know, my dad is a minister. I grew up in church. Let me actually connect these two thoughts together. And I gave a speech that I have since sort of, you know, weaved in throughout speeches I've given since. But this was the first time I sort of, you know, also showed the science, but moved into a conversation about spirituality and even more specifically the Bible. This is fascinating. It's raw. You get to see me early days. Del does a little Bible thumping. Take a look at this. Genesis 27. So God created man in his own image. In the image of God he created him. Man and female he created them. Then God bless them. Then God said to them be fruitful and multiply. We are creating in the image and lax of God. seriously who said this that god needed this that perfectly created bodies need 72 back

days to survive here it goes on now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the feet little later on and the serpent said to the woman you will not surely die for god knows that in the day you eat a this tree your eyes will be like God knowing good and evil this is what we're supposed to protect ourselves up from this is what we're supposed to keep remembering that our egos and our ideas and they're wanting to beat God or do something better it makes us make mistakes we make mistakes when we get out of control when we start thinking we're better than God and then in the end they encounter themselves and leave and leaves and God's looking for him and says, so he said, I heard your voice in the garden and I was afraid because I was naked and I hid myself.

And he said, who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree which I command him that you should not eat? Who told you you were naked? Who told you you needed 72 vaccines to live in God's breath? Who told you that God had failed so miserably in creating you that you needed all of these fat things, grown up animals, and aborted to beelitian? Who told you that that was so? I still remember that moment.

And, you know, when we sort of showed the sign of Pharmakia that was so similar to that, you know, biblical image of Adam and Eve and the serpent wrapped around the snake, and there was this gasp. I mean, I've never experienced like an audible gasp through everyone in the room that I was looking at. And I honestly felt like that the conversations we started having from that moment on changed in a very serious way. Did you know, I mean, we really started gaining traction in Mississippi from that moment on. It was powerful. That speech was absolutely powerful.

And, you know, we're in Mississippi, the Bible Belt. and are seeking a religious exemption just makes sense. And the fact that we were met with such opposition is so evident of how deep the medical establishments clause are in our politicians. And I know not just Mississippi is dealing with that. But, you know, we are predominantly Republicans here, a red state. But as far as how our legislators legislate, we are purple at best.

Yeah. And, of course, there was just, just a part of a conversation where I'd already laid out all the science, what was wrong with the vaccines, the dangers, the injuries, all of it. But in that moment, we really struck a chord. And Mary Joes soon after that, I started feeling like we were holding majorities in voting bodies, but the problem kept being and, you know, that we couldn't get to the floor. I remember we were talking to, you know, your representatives in Mississippi, they'd look, if you get this to the floor, I will vote in your favor. I am now, you know, I'm with you. But we just kept

getting stalled by, you know, being put into like a health committee that wouldn't allow out of committee. I mean, it was like years of incredible frustration because you had the votes. And do you feel like you had the votes this whole time? I think I do think we had the votes the whole time. I think that the problem all along has been the leadership in the House and in the Senate. And I don't know if it's like this in other states, but the leadership kind of, they rule with an iron fist. And there's been a lot of discontent in our House of Representatives because our Speaker of the House has ruled with an iron fist.

And even those legislators who were not on our side, the year that we had almost the entire Republican caucus who, you know, had agreed, committed to vote for our bill, you know, even then, he wouldn't he wouldn't let it out of committee and made some excuse like that they all just said that they would because they felt guilty. Like it was it didn't matter what we did and I'm not really sure where the power is. I don't necessarily think it's the drug companies. I think it's the medical association. They're very afraid. And they're very afraid of the white coats. Yeah. And in our capital.

Well, last year, you know, Aaron, Siri and I, and we've been looking at, you know, approaches all around the country. we really started looking at, certainly when you're losing ground in California, watching Maine flip, Connecticut, hanging in the balance, it's just always been a goal to stop that blood loss and actually move it in another direction. Something that's never happened. You know, we're starting to see that we can block bills better, California, having some luck there, but we've never been able to reverse it back in the right direction. That does not happen. And Aaron, Siri, and I got together and really started brainstorming. Is there another way to look

at this. There's been cases that say, you know, we have a little religious right, you know, to body, autonomy, a connection to God, but it keeps losing because it just was too general and they would point to things like Massachusetts versus Jacobson, a 1905 ruling around smallpox and a minister there. But Aaron and I were talking and we came up with a new strategy. I'm joined now by, I think, someone who will go down is one of the great constitutional attorneys of all times and the lead attorney for ICANN, the work we do, Aaron, Siri. Aaron, can you describe, you know, what was unique about this approach and this lawsuit that ICAN funded? Obviously, there was plaintiffs there. All the mothers and families there that

been working so hard are a huge part of this, but we were happy to, you know, sort of, you know, support this and bring in a little bit of a new perspective. Can you give some details on exactly how we brought this case and what made it unique? Sure, happy to, Del. And yeah, it's extremely heartening that a federal court has now found that there is a religious right under the United States Constitution. Yes, huge. I mean, something. I mean, something.

Yeah. In the state of Mississippi. Yeah. And that precedent is generally applicable and can be applied pretty much to any state in this country, which is what makes it even more. incredible and more hopeful in terms of where everything is going in this country when it comes to medical freedom. That said, yes, the issue in Mississippi, as you pointed out in your discussions with Lindsay, Mary Jo, is that despite the incredible lobbying efforts that they and you and the other parent groups and parents in Mississippi had done for a decade, my understanding is

that there had been a bill proposed every year for the last 10 years pretty much to add a religious exemption to the vaccine requirements to attend to Mississippi, despite the introduction of those bills, never get out of committee. In particular, my understanding is that the lieutenant governor wouldn't let that happen. So while there might have been the political will by even a majority of the members of the Mississippi legislature, and while there was an incredible lobbying effort by the parents who were who had their lives often torn asunder by the lack of religious exemption where they had to put they had to choose between sending their children to school or violating their sincerely held convictions and potentially damning their children and their immortal souls when they

had to make that incredible choice which no american should ever have to do that's why absolutely yeah first amendment the first right under our constitution when we looked to at that issue, I think it became clear that the solution here was not going to come from the legislature. It needed to come from a federal judge deciding that under the United States Constitution, which overrides the entire state of Mississippi's state law, legislative body, governor, executive branch, and under the United States Constitution, the citizens of Mississippi do have a right to a religious exemption to the vaccination requirements. And that was the sole and singular ground on which we brought the case that we brought using precedent that had developed over the last two years that had come out of

the United States Supreme Court. The constitutional landscape around religious freedom in America had changed over the last two years. Okay. And we took advantage of that. And in a truly excellent, extremely well-reasoned decision, and the judge gets incredible credit for a really brilliant decision in 39 pages laid out precisely why in Mississippi there needs to be a religious exemption. But there had been, I mean, look, there have been religious exemption cases in New York, you know, sort of fighting on we just have a constitutional right. But I think what was really unique about this was you sort of used this comparison, right, saying, you know, essentially the Constitution is saying that, you know, that if you have any

sort of right or protection that's given to one group of people that isn't religious, the religious group has got to have that, has to have that mirrored protections. That's essentially, I mean, that was the added nuance, I felt like, because it wasn't the first time, you know, religious rights was argued. No, there has been, there have been cases for pretty much. a hundred years in this country seeking to find that we have a right under the First Amendment to say no to a vaccine to attend to have our children attend school and they have failed unanimously. This will be the first decision I'm aware of that has found that there is a constitutional

right under the First Amendment to say no to a vaccine to your child to school. What changed on the Supreme Court constitutional landscape is that, as you are aware, and your audience is certainly aware, started shutting down and doing all types of closures during the COVID-19 vaccine pandemic, go COVID-19 pandemic, including of churches. But while they shut down churches, they let Walmart, grocery stores and other places stay open.

People brought challenges to that saying, hey, whoa, whoa, wait a second, if it's not a health imperative that everybody has to stay home, if you could still go to Walmart, should be able to go to church. Right. You can't say these two activities which effectively have the same amount of risk, going to church or going to Walmart, but yet you're going to favor a secular activity

and not permit the religious activity. If there are two activities that are effectively similar and you're going to permit the secular activity to go forth, you can't then claim you have a compelling interest to have to crush the First Amendment religious freedom right to stop an equivalent religious activity. In particular, Fulton and Tandum, these are two U.S. Supreme Court decision that came down in last two years and in some ways the overreach the fact that the some governors in this state decided to go too far resulted in those decisions and brought that jurisprudence to a real uh into real focus and we use that same exact precedent

in fact i would call it a clarification the development of the jurisprudence at the end of the day our constitution is a living document and what it means for better or worse is what the United States Supreme Court at the end of the day says, and as well as the circuit courts and the district courts below it over time. And that jurisprudence had moved decidedly in the direction of protecting religious freedoms and had done so within the context of a pandemic. So it was directly became applicable to what was going on in Mississippi. And, you know, in reading those decisions, they're long.

If anybody wants to read them, you know, Fulton's 100 pages almost. Great reading, though, if you're interested. Yeah. And the whole litany of those cases. And we took those exact same principles, that precedent, and we brought a lawsuit saying exactly the same thing. We said, hey, look, in Mississippi, there is a secular exemption to attend school without a vaccine. It's called a medical exemption. Right.

And if there isn't a health imperative to exclude children for that secular reason, that means there is an opportunity. There is a possibility to send children to school without vaccines. And hence, if you're going to have a secular exemption, you need to have a religious exemption. The judge agreed and were heartened he did, again, like I said, in a short 39-page decision that everybody's free to read. I think we have an excerpt from that decision, very powerful stuff. Here it is effective July 15, 2023. The enjoined party shall be enjoined from enforcing the compulsory vaccination law unless they provide an option for requesting a religious exemption. by July 15, 2023 defendant state health officer Dr. Daniel P. Edney shall develop a process by which persons may request a religious exemption from the compulsory vaccination law,

and the Mississippi State Department of Health shall make the process or any forms related to it available on its website. Thereafter, while this preliminary injunction remains in effect, a person may seek a religious exemption to the compulsory vaccination law by requesting religious exemption pursuant to the process developed by the Mississippi State Department of Health. there it is signed. It's an incredible decision, Aaron. I think this is arguably the biggest lawsuit win we've had. This one really is going to set precedent. And I want to say personally that I plan on through the sponsors that we have that support all the work we do to send you in every other state that thinks that they're going to rob people of a religious exemption. we're going to send you forward to get back the religious right to freedom, body autonomy, all across the country, still left on the docket.

Of course, we've won in Mississippi. We're going after California, West Virginia, New York, Maine, and Connecticut. And, you know, this is a very exciting moment. I know there's a long road ahead. What was the moment like? I mean, as an attorney, obviously, we've all watched you in the plocking depositions and doing these depositions. You have this great sort of stoic, you know, approach to things. You know, you know, lead through with grace and candor.

What was it like the moment this was decided for all of those mothers that were there that had been fighting this for years? Just from your perspective, can describe what that was like? Absolutely. If I may just give the backdrop of that day for a moment. We had an evidentiary hearing, actually, in the morning, which lasted a few hours. and we had six plaintiffs, three of which took the stand. One of them, for example, was a pastor in the state of Mississippi who is the head of a school

in which he cannot send his own daughter. In fact, he wasn't aware of the Mississippi vaccination laws, and his daughter was attending his school and as well as other parents in his church and in his community. and he had to actually exclude people from his own congregation, from his own school, including his own daughter, who then had to be homeschool. We had another one of our plaintiffs took the stand and explained how she moved right across the border into Alabama, but effectively lived her whole life in Mississippi still. Her children came into Mississippi pretty much every day of the week to play baseball with

all the kids they could be going to school with and said they couldn't to hang out with their family, with their friends, to go to the club that they hung out with. And so they slid their lives in Mississippi and just had to drive in every single day, but, you know, send their kids in Alabama. And we had one other plaintiff of a similar type of situation. It was a doctor. And so, you know, those, I think that really set the stage for the day right then and there with these incredibly powerful, you know, real world life experiences of our plaintiffs and what they have endured to hold true and fast to their religious convictions. You know, nothing shows your religious beliefs, unless you can burn somebody at the stake, I guess, I don't know, then the sacrifices

they're willing to take to maintain them. And these folks have endured incredible sacrifices. After that hearing was done, the judge actually, I would say in a uncommon, in my experience, move, asked that everybody please come back to the courtroom in around an hour and a half, and the judge would at least issue a tentative ruling from the bench. The judge, you know, I think sensitive to the crowd, wanted to give, as he said, everybody a sense of where this was going so that they knew that they weren't left in suspense. And the courtroom, it was an incredible, you know, one side of the courtroom was packed with families. I see a picture on the screen. And that's just some of the folks that were there in one

side of the courtroom. And the other side of the courtroom for the government side was completely empty. Okay, that's the scene in the courtroom, all right? And so we left. And we came back. And, you know, before we walked in, I had an opportunity to just address all the folks who were coming in in support of getting a religious exemption. I asked them, you know, I'm sure that whatever the judge decides, it'll be emotional. And folks could just, you know, keep it just underwraps just for a moment until the judge leaves the courtroom so that there wasn't an outburst while the judge is still in the stand. You know, you are in federal court. there's a level of decorum that's always and and I could tell you we were sitting there and

the judge came out and the judge had quite a long line up wind up I would you know and and I thank counsel both sides for you know the papers and the arguments and you know I I too would have actually thank the Attorney General's office and the Department of Health's attorneys who are both extraordinarily professional throughout litigation. I thought that they also did a very effective job in representing their counsels and and I think the judge was right to commend them as well for for their work in the case. And then the judge finally said and so I've reached my decision and the preliminary junction is and the judge just paused and you could just feel the air in the courtroom just was as thick as it could be. And then you heard of the word granted.

It was an incredible moment. I mean, it chills go up and down my spine. Let's bring Lindy and let's bring Lindy back in here and Mary Jo. You've been there. You've been at this fight for so long. What was that moment like as you sat there in and tested anticipation of it and to finally hear those words? I'll just say that after. Go ahead, Lindy.

After a decade, more than a decade of getting our hopes up. and being cautiously optimistic over and over again. I was very optimistic about, especially when we left at lunch, that the judge would rule in our favor. But it was just, it's still, it's still serene. It's still serene. And I wake up every day just thanking God for finally delivering Mississippi from the oppression that these parents have lived under for all this time.

It was an incredible, incredible day. Or Joe, is that moment like, you know, the reactions by the moms, were they able to keep it quiet? There was, well, we were instructed that we weren't allowed to make a peep until the judge had left the court room earlier. So everybody was sort of holding their breath. And as soon as he was out the door, there was tears and hugging. And we all went out afterwards. And I remember walking to my truck and thinking, and just brief. in the air and just thinking Mississippi just feels different already. It just felt different. But I'm

convinced that, you know, scripture tells us that God is going to make the small great and the great small. And Mississippi is sort of, you know, look down on. We're last in a lot of things. But I believe that because Mississippi is the most religious state, it's mostly Christian, that we have a lot of praying people here. And I think that we've got a spiritual battle going on in the country. and that Mississippi is being used by God to begin to heal our land. There's a scripture that's gotten sort of cliche because people say it so much, but I'd like to read it. Second Chronicle 714 says,

If my people who are called by my name shall humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and I will heal their land. And, you know, we had, we've got a huge prayer group of MPV's our families. And anytime something like this comes up, you know, we're fasting, we're praying. And I really think that our faith is what has kept us in this so long, kept us from giving up. But I just, I just feel so blessed to be in the middle of a battle for what's right and be on the winning side because we know we have the Lord on our side. So, but I especially want to thank you.

I feel like God has his hand on everything that you're doing. And Aaron, and everything that y'all have done over the years, the moral courage, the stepping out and doing the uncomfortable thing, the unsure thing, not knowing really how it's going to turn out and what's going to happen. And I believe that when we do that, when we follow God's call, that ultimately that, and we leave the consequences to him, that that's where we find victory.

And I think that's what's being. And I'm just beyondwards to be a part of it. Well, I just want to congratulate all of you, Aaron, and the great work you've done, Mary Jo. Lindy is a final thought, and, you know, we have been, you know, conversing with each other and working on this for, I mean, honestly, you know, since Vax rolled through in 2017, but for 40 years, Mississippi has been oppressed. And the irony that the most probably religious state was the one, you know,

blocking a religious exemption to finally come through all of that. There's so many people fighting now that are watching the highway. millions watching the high wire, whether they're in states that have similar oppressions or around the world where sometimes it's even worse, being arrested. We're going to be talking to someone from New Zealand coming up in just a moment, being arrested for sharing his spiritual beliefs on this subject. What is your advice? How did you stay strong through all of this? And what do you want the world to know about this journey for you? That it is worth it, that we sacrifice for things that are important.

and our phones were all blowing up when the ruling got out very fast. And I know Mary Jo has as well, but I've heard from so many state leaders across the nation. Some in states that have religious exemptions and some that don't, who share just how encouraging this news has been to them. And I would just cling to faith. And, you know, Galatian 6-9, let us not believe. become weary and doing good for the proper time, we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. And, you know, I feel like the time that it took to get here just makes the victory that

much more sweet. We've been able to educate so many people. It took in PVR growing to be the beast that we are with over 8,000 families. It took I can growing to be the beast that I can is with the legal team, with Aaron, for everything to fall in line, and just continue on, do not give up. It's worth it. This is for our children for the future of our country. Aaron, I just want to say our, you know, our emails are blowing up. Our phones are blowing up here at ICANN. I want to thank you for the incredible work you continue to do for us. And just, you know, we are so hopeful. I mean, just views like people. this is a time of hope, that we actually can use the systems that are in play.

And this is some of the beauty of it. As we say, you know, we have to watch ourselves to say we're warriors or these war words because they want to take those out of context. But what we mean by fighting is fighting using this brilliant court system that we have, a constitution that we have. Does this give us hope that there's still, you know, something, you know, sort of in the heart of what America represents, in the heart of our constitution, the dream of our forefathers, at a moment where we're losing so much hope that America is going to be this beacon of light and freedom,

this feels like a moment where we are saying, no, the heartbeat of America still exists, and what that dream of our founding fathers left for us is still, it's still possible to be realized. Absolutely. In fact, I couldn't have, I don't know if I could say it better. When this country was founded, it was founded on the idea, on the, on the on the on the on a on a on a on a central core principle among others but one of the core principles is the idea of religious freedom now what that meant back then i think was far broader when people think of it today people think of religion as something narrow something you do on sunday but it's not it's what convicts your heart every day it's what drives you in how you

live your life how you think what you do and many people have deep held convictions and beliefs that are not grounded on something that's from a pure of each study but on grounded in the way that they view the world, whether they call it God a creator, you know, people still have deeply held convictions that in many ways are religious, even without directly using that exact term. And I think that, I think our court system in particular is beginning to recapture the real meaning of religious freedom, again, the first freedom in the First Amendment of the United States Constitution. And when you look at Mississippi as the example, These are families. These are parents who, as we talked about earlier, sacrifice so much to hold true to their convictions, to their beliefs.

And the court system finally is beginning to recognize that. So when we think of religious freedom, when we think about a freedom, a religious exemption to vaccination, that really is something emblematic, not just about vaccines, but even in a broader context. It's the ability for every American to live out their convictions, their beliefs. Because everybody, who has different beliefs often looks at the other and goes, well, I don't know about those beliefs. I don't know about those views. Right. And if all we do is accord the views of the majority or those that are considered the norm or those, then we've lost our way in this country. The whole idea is to make sure that those who have the views that aren't the majority,

that aren't considered the norm, that aren't, you know, the mainstream accepted views are respected in this country because that's why our forefathers had to flee. from England and other places of persecution. That's why the First Amendment exists. It exists precisely to make sure that those who are in the minority, and no doubt those who want a religious exemption to vaccination aren't a minority in Mississippi. And for too long, for 44 years, that state has crushed their rights.

But as of two days ago, that is no more. We couldn't be more heartened that that's the case. I'm so excited, you guys. Well done. Well done. I mean, absolutely astounding. I know for us we've been emotional here. It's, you know, Aaron, as long as I've been working on this with our team here, working with your legal team, this really is a bucketless moment.

I think it changes the conversation now. Never before have we reversed and moved and show. We are now showing that this movement around, you know, medical freedom, medical health, body autonomy is no longer just some distant thought. Now we are moving the needle in our direction. The world is moving our way. And I really think that, you know, first of all, we've got them on their heels now. Goliath is rocked back. This is a spiritual war.

It's a beautiful, powerful moment to really recognize that God is good. And I'm going to say it. I really, you know, sort of get into that space. But we're talking about the religious exemption, folks. And it is now coming to a state near you. We're coming for you if you want to continue to take the rights of American citizens away. Erin, Lindy, Mary Jo, congratulations. Thank you for being a part of the highway.

All right. Take care.