MassResistance gives hardcore testimony at State House public hearing on bill to remove exemption of schools from pornography laws.

Posted: July 1, 2009

The looks on the committee members' faces said it all.

On Tuesday, July 30, 2009, MassResistance gave hard-core testimony at the Massachusetts State House before the Joint Judiciary Committee, about the sexual and homosexual pornographic horrors in the public schools that kids have had to endure, and continue because schools are exempted from the state's pornography statutes.

We were there to support Bill H1337 [ Text of bill  Text of current law] which would remove the exemption of schools from the laws protecting minors from pornography and other harmful materials. The bill was originally written by Amy Contrada of MassResistance and submitted last session, but it didn't survive. This year, Rep. Vinnie DeMacedo (R-Plymouth) re-filed it. The public hearing was yesterday. This time we wanted to make sure they got the message.

We didn't pull punches. The members of the committee were clearly quite uncomfortable (to say the least!) when we talked about the explicit, graphic, and extremely degrading things regarding sexuality, homosexuality, and transgenderism kids have been exposed to in schools. We definitely made an impression.

          HERE is some of the testimony we gave

Moreover, no one from the other side (teachers union, homosexual lobby, Planned Parenthood) was there to testify. But we know they'll be working behind the scenes to kill this, so we will continue to fight hard.

Telling it like it is. Two of the mothers who came to face the committee and testify yesterday!

What it's like at a State House public hearing:
Condescending approach to pro-family and other citizens

Joint Judiciary Committee doesn't make it easy to come in and testify. They have a pretty condescending approach to the public in general, and particularly to anyone they see as "pro-family." Both the Senate and House chairmen publicly support homosexual "marriage" and aren't shy about where they stand.

It can be a strange and somewhat disorienting experience. If you come in to testify in favor of pro-family legislation, you can generally expect to sit for at least 2-3 hours (4 to 5 hours or more if it's crowded) before you're called to come up and testify. But you never know for sure, so you have to get there at the beginning. The committee will often include up 50 or more bills to be dealt with in one afternoon (there were 52 that day), though many of them are similar.

Nor do they call people up in any particular order, or even bill by bill, and certainly not in the order people arrive and sign up to talk. People sign a list when they come, but the House Chairman Eugene O'Flaherty (D-Chelsea) simply calls up people in whatever order he pleases.

The pecking order is generally like this: Legislators who want to testify (and anyone they may bring with them) always go to the head of the line no matter how many people are waiting, and they can talk as long as they want. Thus, the first hour is sometimes taken up with just legislators talking to other legislators. Then it's other "important" people, such as lobbyists, attorneys, physicians, celebrities, etc. After that, it's friends that the Chairman recognizes. Finally, it's everyone else -- the hoi polloi (whose time, presumably, is not as valuable as the others). Often by that time, most of the committee members have already left.

And generally, "important" people can talk as long as they want, while "commoners" are often limited to three minutes.

At that rate, if a hearing starts at 1:00 it's not uncommon for pro-family people to finally be called to testify at 5:00 or 6:00 pm, or later.

Does this mean we can't win these things?

Not at all! We have won big victories in committees - including the Judiciary Committee - that didn't like pro-family people. The first step is always letting them know the hard facts (especially the chairmen) which they don't hear anywhere else. That's an important part of the public hearing.  Generally, they've already sat down with the homosexual lobby and have been saturated with one side of the argument. After that, they know why they're getting calls from angry citizens. It's amazing what that can accomplish.