Opinion piece by Errol Naidoo
Article provided by Family policy Institute
Fox News reports, the ideology driven “New York Democrats recently passed a bill that would remove the words “mother” and “father” from parts of state law. Under the new bill, targeting state child custody and parental laws, “mother” becomes “gestating parent,” “father” becomes “non-gestating parent,” and “paternity” becomes “parentage.”
US Democrats have long waged a war on the natural family in US states and the United Nations (UN). They argue the new language would “promote inclusivity.” However, erasing the terms father and mother in law is a deliberate move to change society’s gender norms.
“America First Policy Institute (AFPI) strongly condemned New York lawmakers that advanced a bill that would replace the word “mother” with “gestating parent” and “father” with “non-gestating parent” in state law. This is not a harmless terminology change — it is another example of elected officials turning their backs on the fundamental truth about motherhood, fatherhood, and the family itself in pursuit of a radical agenda.”
Ashley Hayek, Executive Vice President of AFPI said, “Only in New York could politicians look at falling birth rates, struggling families, and a generation of young women searching for purpose and decide the real problem is the word ‘mother.”
“Motherhood is not a medical condition to be renamed by bureaucrats. It is one of the most important roles in society, and Americans know the difference between respecting every person and pretending mothers no longer exist.”
“Removing ‘father’ from state law is an attempt to erase something irreplaceable,”. “A father’s presence gives children stability, discipline, and a model of responsibility that no one else can provide. We must reject any ideology that strips away the truth of what a father is” said Jack Brewer chair of Opportunity Now.
The ANC regime is attempting the same thing in South Africa with the gender-neutral“Marriage Bill.” The Bill aims to redefine man, woman marriage to include same-sex and transgender unions in the definition of monogamous marriage. It will strip men and women of the unique legal definition of marriage – including the terms “husband and wife.”
The South African family is crumbling under the weight of debilitating social challenges and state policies that undermine rather than strengthen family life. The ANC led government is one of the most anti-life and anti-family governments in the world today. It favours the pervasive culture of death and pro-LGBTQ policies of godless Western European nations.
The global battle for faith, the family and religious freedoms is waged primarily at the UN. The European Union (EU) and ideological allies like the ANC work to enforce its radical agenda on UN member-states. Abortion-on-demand, sexual indoctrination of children, attacks on parental rights, the redefinition of marriage and gender ideology are key issues.
I spoke on the “Significance of the Family in Africa” at a UN event in New York in 2024 to commemorate the “30th Anniversary of the International Year of the Family.” I highlighted the traditional family’s role in reducing poverty and contributing to healthy societies.
The relentless attacks on marriage, the natural family, motherhood and fatherhood has devastated society including contributing to plummeting fertility rates across the world. Most nations of the world are below the replacement level of 2.1 children per family. Most pro-abortion, pro-LGBTQ EU nations cannot reverse their rapidly declining birth rates.
South Africa’s birth rates, although slightly above replacement level is declining steadily from 2.78 births per woman in 2008 to 2.21 in 2025. A growing number of women are opting to forgo marriage and children for various reasons. However, global trends indicate decades of feminist attacks on marriage and motherhood has taken its toll on birth rates.
I serve on the International Advisory Board of “Demographic Winter.“ Data collected from nations across the world clearly indicate an alarming downward trend in fertility rates in almost every country in the world. Nations like Japan and South Korea have rapidly aging populations and not enough children born to replace the aging and retiring workforce.
Tragically, however, despite plummeting fertility rates and the population decline crisis globally, the relentless attacks on marriage, the family, motherhood and fatherhood continue at the UN, in EU nations and South Africa. The Christian Church must therefore warn governments why marriage matters and why nations are only as strong as the family.
Click here to KEEP UPDATED on the latest news by subscribing to our FREE weekly newsletter.
> Please support Christian media and journalism in South Africa. Help us to spread the Word of God and take a stand for the truth by making a donation to our ministry. We appreciate your support. Click here to take hands with JOY! Magazine.
Date published: 09/06/2026
Feature image: Sourced by Freepik, for illustration purposes only
DISCLAIMER
JOY! News is a Christian news portal that shares pre-published articles by writers around the world. Each article is sourced and linked to the origin, and each article is credited with the author’s name. Although we do publish many articles that have been written in-house by JOY! journalists, we do not exclusively create our own content. Any views or opinions presented on this website are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of the company.
