President Trump turns focus to religious liberty as crime crackdown debate lingers
Fox News senior White House correspondent Jacqui Heinrich reports on President Donald Trump’s remarks on religious liberty in education and his call for blue-state leaders to seek help tackling crime on 'Special Report.'
Lydia Booth was in fifth grade when she tried to spread hope with a COVID mask bearing a message of unconditional love.
Shea Encinas was in fifth grade when his religious beliefs made him concerned about reading a book on sexual ideology to his kindergarten buddy.
Justin Aguilar was a high school senior when he sought to incorporate the story of how he found strength through faith in his valedictorian speech.
A group of children in Massachusetts were in elementary school and junior high when they were repeatedly subjected to bullying based on their Jewish faith, including obscene slurs like "Go to the gas chambers."
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These humble and courageous young people, and others like them, who stand firm in their beliefs despite persecution, represent the best our country can offer. They deserve recognition and honor for their fortitude, selflessness and commitment to principle.
President Donald Trump during a Religious Liberty Commission meeting at the Museum of the Bible in Washington, D.C., Sept. 8, 2025. (Nathan Howard/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Instead, they were targeted, harassed, threatened and bullied not only by classmates but by adults in leadership — adults trusted to form, mentor and guide them.
Lydia’s school administrators made her feel like she had done something wrong.
An employee at Shea’s school called his best friend and urged him to denounce Shea and leverage the friendship to pressure Shea into compliance with the school’s ideology.
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School leaders struck out both instances of the name of "Jesus Christ" in Justin’s speech, along with two out of the four mentions of God, informing him that the changes were constitutionally required.
Administrators at the Jewish students’ school dismissed and downplayed the students’ experiences.
We learned this week at our Religious Liberty Commission hearing that these examples of religious targeting of students aren’t isolated instances, attributable to some local or regional misunderstanding. Religious targeting isn’t confined to states in particular locations or with particular political leanings. It’s happening from Massachusetts to California and everywhere in between.
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We face an epidemic of religious discrimination, targeting our students and our parents. As President Trump said in his address to the Commission, "In many schools today, students are [hit] with anti-religious propaganda and some are even punished for their religious beliefs and very, very strongly punished."
What is the cause? Most people must think that our legal system is the culprit, but this is not the full story. Part of the tragedy in these stories is that the students actually had the law on their side. The problems occurred because their leaders, knowingly or unknowingly, misguided the students and their families as to the scope of their rights.
As Americans, religious liberty is our most fundamental right, and we must do better. We must protect our students and support the parents who love them and have the constitutional right to direct their religious upbringing.
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We must follow the lead of President Donald Trump’s Department of Education, which has pledged to offer clarifying guidance on prayer in schools.
We must revise school policies and implement trainings to protect and inform everyday Americans about their religious liberty rights in the same way we inform them of other workplace protections.
We must also reconsider school curricula to ensure it celebrates truth and facilitates age-appropriate dialogue that is respectful of diverse religious beliefs. School administrators who assist and encourage students to transition and change their gender without the knowledge and consent of their parents should be held criminally and civilly responsible.
Above all, we should start by teaching Americans — and not just children — about their rights under the First Amendment. This is core to the work of the Religious Liberty Commission.
"We must revise school policies and implement trainings to protect and inform everyday Americans about their religious liberty rights, in the same way we inform them of other workplace protections." (iStock)
We must remind Americans of the protections they have and to rein in the feral, progressive-era misconstructions of the First Amendment that still prowl the country, making victims of children like these students.
Our work as a Commission is only just beginning. At our next hearing on Sept. 29, we will continue to explore the deep-rooted religious liberty issues in our education system.
President Trump observed, "When faith gets weaker, our country seems to get weaker, [and] when faith gets stronger … good things happen for our country."
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The same can be said for our schools. It’s time for education to strengthen, rather than undermine, our parents, children and families.
Change begins with each of us, as junior high student Lydia Booth reminded us, "[If] I had stayed silent, nothing would’ve changed. … [But] God can use even something as small as my mask to help ensure our amazing country remains free."
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