We Won! The Minor Consent Bill Is Defeated!

WE WON! THE MINOR CONSENT BILL IS DEFEATED!

On Tuesday, May 7th, our New York group went to Albany, NY, the State’s capitol, to rally against the diabolical Minor Consent Bill. This bill would have allowed children of any age to consent to any medical procedure, including drugs and surgeries, without their parent’s knowledge or consent! In less than a week since we were in Albany, the Minor Consent Bill has been pulled!

We had been fighting against this bill for months prior to our rally in Albany. This included a rally we held in front of New York State Assemblymember Karines Reyes’s office in the Bronx. She is the one who wrote and sponsored the Assembly version of this bill. For a bill to be voted on by the entire New York State Legislature, there has to be a sponsor for the bill in both the Assembly and the Senate. We handed out thousands of flyers all over New York City leading up to our rally. We were also able to arrange for a digital truck to be parked directly in front of her office. It flashed full-color messages about this bill and why it was a threat to the safety of our children and to parental rights. The truck had screens on three sides. It was a great way to capture the attention of people walking by.

I reached out to multiple news outlets and was able to get the cable channel News 12 The Bronx to cover our rally. We have learned from experience that elected officials do not like rallies in front of their office in the heart of their districts and especially those with a digital truck.

Assemblymember Reyes knew that we were coming, and not only did she not show up that day, but she also actually closed her office! Our event was a huge success with a nice crowd of people who showed up and lots of great speeches. News 12 The Bronx not only aired our rally across New York, but also across the country through their affiliates. I also did a Substack post on this rally.

As a result of this publicity, her office had people coming there to complain about this bill. People were also voicing their complaints on her website and social media. We were planning to do similar rallies in front of the offices of other legislators who supported the Minor Consent Bill, but fortunately it has already been defeated.

Autism Action Network and Teachers For Choice have also been posting alerts about the Minor Consent Bill. In addition, Mrs. Brucha Weisberger and other individuals and groups across NY State were also sharing information about this bill. I also organized two forums about it which I posted on my Substack.

Our rally in Albany was the culmination of our ongoing efforts against this bill and related bills! I drove up from New York with several members of our New York group. We were like soldiers heading to battle.

Our New York group has developed an informal policy of working hard while having some fun in the process. We have established an annual holiday dinner for our team. Last year we also started our first annual picnic, which was absolutely phenomenal and probably the best picnic I’ve ever been to. As we drove to Albany, we had a very lively conversation filled with of course politics, but also lots of funny stories, which gave us all great laughs.

We stayed at the Argus Hotel, which was very quaint and charming. After we settled in, we gathered at the hotel bar for a drink and some conversation. It was very pleasant. We then went to a really nice Thai restaurant and had a great dinner. Throughout the entire day the weather was absolutely perfect! The scenery was gorgeous. For New Yorkers who live in the city, it felt so good to be someplace with so many beautiful trees, mountains, and open space. The next morning, I woke up having had the best sleep I’d had in many years. Everyone in our group was saying the same thing about how peacefully they slept. It was probably due to the fresh air and quiet.

When we went to the State Capitol, again we could not ask for better weather! It was warm with clear blue skies! Slowly more and more people started to arrive. The sound equipment was being set up and the musicians were rehearsing.

Michael Kane was the MC for the day, and he did a great job as he always does. He knows how to energize a crowd. The music was performed by The Spirit Drummers. It included a guy playing a saxophone. The Spirit Drummers always do a fantastic job of creating a positive and uplifting atmosphere with their music. They have become a regular part of our events. Anyone who’s organizing a rally should have a musical group like them performing. They make the whole event far more pleasant.

We had a lot of dynamic speakers including Mary Holland, John Gilmore, Bobbie Anne Cox, Shannon Joy, Mrs. Brucha Weisberger, Tricia Lindsay, and many others. Most of the speakers ripped into the notorious Minor Consent Bill, while others attacked similar bad bills. The crowd of about 200 people were excited and cheering them on. The Pérez sisters of Cafecito Break filmed the rally and did interviews with many of the speakers and people in attendance.

The rally lasted about two hours and then we broke up into smaller groups and met with our legislators. I was part of the group who met with a representative of New York State Senator Gustavo Rivera’s office. Gustavo Rivera is the Chairman of the Senate Health Committee. He is the one who decides which health related bills go to the full legislature for a vote. This makes him one of the most powerful individuals in the New York State Legislature, especially for our issues. We have been trying to secure an appointment with him for over a year, but after the rally we did in front of his office and the more recent rally in front of Assemblymember Karines Reyes’s office, he agreed to meet with us. The room was packed with standing room only.

Mary Holland, the CEO of Children’s Health Defense (CHD), explained why this bill violated multiple laws and she made it clear that if the Minor Consent Bill passed, Children’s Health Defense would sue! Almost identical legislation was passed in Washington DC. I was part of the massive effort to stop that legislation from being passed. We had thousands of people reaching out to the Mayor of Washington, D.C. who had the power to veto it, but she didn’t, and it passed anyway. Fortunately, CHD’s attorneys went into action and were able to not only show that the legislation was illegal, but they were able to effectively stop it! Gustavo Rivera’s representative therefore knew that Mary Holland’s words had to be taken seriously!

John Gilmore asked the representative what problem was this bill trying to solve? The representative did not have an answer. John also asked if there were any constituents who requested that this type of bill be created, and the answer was no.

I asked him about the language in the bill talking about infants making medical decisions. I asked him if this was some type of joke, or if it was written by some drunk interns. His face seemed like it was turning red from embarrassment. He busily wrote down some notes and said he would look into it.

I also informed him that we had reached out to some Christian and Jewish religious leaders and they each drafted their own letter and had important heads of churches and synagogues sign it. I explained that these letters were being circulated and that we would be sending his office a copy with their signatures. His expression flashed deep concern as he hastily wrote down additional notes.

All of the people in the room were hitting him from different angles about why this bill was so bad. These included Dr. James Lyons-Weiler, Michael Kane, Shannon Joy, and others. I don’t think this gentleman was prepared for the caliber of people who were in that room.

Amazingly, after our meeting, we actually ran into Senator Gustavo Rivera in the hallway. He was willing to speak with us as he walked to the elevator and even inside the elevator. Everyone was cordial. He ultimately did agree to review the bill with his representative. We are very grateful to Senator Gustavo Rivera for taking the time to meet with us and listen to our grievances.

Well, less than a week later, the Minor Consent Bill was pulled from the New York State Senate! Senator Rachel May, who is the sponsor of Senate Bill S8352, suddenly decided to pull her bill just four business days after we left Albany! Without a Senate sponsor The Minor Consent Bill cannot be brought up for a vote, making it effectively defeated for this year!

When we left Albany, we all felt that we had done a great job between the speakers and meeting with the representatives. On the other hand, none of us could imagine how quickly action would be taken. None of us thought that the bill would be defeated just four business days later! Instead, we were all prepared for a long dragged-out battle over the next several weeks. We were all amazed and relieved by our victory.

The drive back to New York was even more pleasant because we were all in a very upbeat mood. We stopped for food and then continued on our two-and-a-half-hour journey. The ride went by very fast because we were having so much fun chatting and sharing ideas. It’s so much easier to work with people who are down-to-Earth and know how to have fun.

Now that the Minor Consent Bill has been defeated, our top priority is the Database Bill. This bill threatens medical privacy for adults. It wants to track those who have not taken recommended vaccines even though right now, there are no required vaccines for adults. This would be setting up the adult population to be tracked and ultimately penalized for their refusal to take whatever vaccines. 

We barely defeated this bill last year with a last-minute three-day rally I helped to organize in front of the office of Gustavo Rivera. His office later assured us that he would not bring the Database Bill up for a vote at that time and he kept his word.  We are now in round two over this very dangerous bill that threatens our medical freedoms, and we are preparing for this battle.

Our New York group has been more successful than any other state in defeating these types of bad bills which threaten medical freedom. One big part of our success has been our volunteers who have consistently shown up to our rallies whether the weather is hot or cold and even when in the rain.

I have begun to think of us as canaries in a coal mine. This is because we see the dangers long before the general population. We know that failure is not an option! This is why so many continue to support our efforts even if it means taking a sick day from work or finding someone to babysit. Groups in other parts of the country fighting similar issues should work very hard at establishing a core group of such committed people who will do what needs to be done to protect our children and parental rights. This victory shows what a small group of dedicated people can do.

THE POWER IS WITH THE PEOPLE!

Curtis Cost