Morality

I've attended a lot of Turning Point events over the years. The Women's Leadership Summit is one of my favorites, and I mean that without hesitation. That room is full of women who are convicted, unapologetic, and ready to go make the case. That's the foundation. That's exactly what this movement needs.

So when I came across interviews with some attendees saying they'd support abolishing the 19th Amendment, it wasn't the first time I'd heard that sentiment. I've been seeing it bubble up for a while now. But it did make me ask the question I can't stop turning over.

Can you legislate morality? And if you can, whose morality are we actually talking about?

Here's the thing about the 19th Amendment: it was legislated morality. Someone believed women were full citizens whose voices deserved to count, and they fought long enough and hard enough to put that belief into law. It took decades. It was controversial. And it was right.

That's the whole point. Morality gets legislated all the time. The debate was never really about whether morality belongs in law. It's always been whose, and whether you can make the case well enough to win.

The secular left has a morality too. They just call it equity or autonomy or human rights. It's no less a value system for lacking a scripture citation. It just gets to pretend it's neutral. It isn't. Every law is a moral claim. Every policy encodes a value. The only question is whose, and where it comes from….