She was just 11 years old when her father eloped to Texas and left her behind with a 30-year-old man to continue her schooling. He “quickly” started abusing her and groomed her to keep quiet about it. Eventually, that resulted in a pregnancy when Dawn Tyree was just 13 years old.

“Almost immediately, I could see the adults in my life desperately trying to damage control the entire situation,” Dawn said. All three adults decided she would marry this now 32-year-old child rapist. “The marriage, of course, was nothing more than a cover-up for rape. It saved my predator from a prison sentence and saved my parents from child abuse and neglect charges.”

Dawn states that “most forced marriages take place under these circumstances and fall into this category.”

However, now, there is a bill in Congress that will force all 50 states to recognize “marriages” like Dawn’s under the guise of a federal law that forces states to honor other state same-sex “marriages” as well. Recently, two Republican senators even signed on as co-sponsors of this unbelievably damaging bill!

I need your help to hold senators accountable and hold the line against this bad bill. Rush urgent faxes to the Senate against HR 8404. The Senate is our one and only chance to stop this bill. — Mat

For Dawn, this nightmare got even worse after her parents found out about the ongoing molestation. Dawn says her stepmother physically abused her while she was pregnant. Her stepmother even tried to abort Dawn’s child and, while unsuccessful, she nearly killed both Dawn and her unborn baby.

After a few weeks of all three adults pushing her to get married, Dawn said one word, “yes,” to a judge that changed her life forever. Suddenly, she was stuck in this “marriage” of abuse.

“I was a sex slave to my rapist,” she said. But—at the same time—she was too young to hire a lawyer, she couldn’t get a divorce, she couldn’t be admitted to an abused women’s shelter, Social Services would view her as a runaway child and return her to her “husband/rapist,” and she couldn’t even have legal custody of her own children. She was being abused in plain sight. And there was no way to escape! Meanwhile, she was increasingly worried that this pedophile would target her children next ...

Right now, a bill is progressing through Congress that will force all 50 “states, territories and possessions” of the U.S. to recognize abusive “marriages” like Dawn’s. And when child rapists should end up in jail, this bill instead gives them (and same-sex couples) all the benefits and privileges of marriage!

Chief Justice John Roberts is clear. There is no constitutional right to privileges for same-sex so-called “marriage.” HR 8404 is not just a same-sex attack on marriage; it also literally gives child rapists a license to export their perversion on the nation!

We are on the verge of being able to restore marriage in our nation, but now hideous attacks are coming forward. Meanwhile, 15 Republican senators are on the fence right now, deciding which way they should vote on this horrible bill! They desperately need to hear from you. Rush your urgent faxes urging as many senators as possible to block HR 8404.

In the U.S. Senate, there are only three co-sponsors of this horrible “Respect for Marriage Act,” and two of them are Republicans!

This bill goes way beyond forcing every state to honor same-sex “marriage.” It will also force every state to honor child-bride marriages—a practice so radical that even Saudi Arabia has outlawed it. But it continues right here in America.

Dawn is not alone. Between 2000 and 2015, there were 207,459 minor marriages in America, and that number does not include full data from all 50 states. Twelve-year-old children were given marriage licenses in three states (AK, LA and SC). Thirteen-year-olds were given the green light to marry in 14 additional states.

The states of Alaska and North Carolina allow child brides as young as 14 years old. But many other states, including California, have NO age limits for how young a girl can be! In Alabama, a 14-year-old was married off to a 74-year-old. That’s a 60-year gap.

This should be called the “Child-Rape Authorization Act.” Because it literally gives abusers a “license” that must be recognized in all 50 states!

This bill doesn’t even stop there. It will force all 50 states to recognize and honor ANY other twisted definition of marriage that a state, territory or “possession” of the federal government can envision in the future (like father-son incestuous “marriages”)!

To put this in perspective, 47 Republicans in the House voted for this bill. But not a single one co-sponsored it. Some already regret their vote. Now, in the Senate, there are two Republican co-sponsors!

This is a real threat. This bill will have devastating intended and unintended consequences! We must stop HR 8404 now. Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) has invoked Rule 14, which means he can rush the bill to the floor without a Senate hearing. Send your urgent faxes to the U.S. Senate today to oppose this outrageous bill.

Make no mistake about where this bill will end up. The goal is to abolish marriage by deconstructing it. If this bill is passed, a minor strikethrough of “2” will force polygamy and polyamory on the states.

We rely on friends like you to raise your voice, educate your friends and support our ministry on Capitol Hill. You can support LC Action through a recurring monthly gift or a one-time donation. Act now to DOUBLE your impact through our Challenge Grant.

Today, Dawn is a part of an organization helping other girls who face the same trauma that she escaped. But if this bill is allowed to pass, her work will become even harder.

Mat Staver, Chairman

Liberty Counsel Action

Sources:

“Child Marriage in America: By the Numbers.” PBS. Accessed July 28, 2022. Apps.frontline.org/child-marriage-by-the-numbers.

Tyree, Dawn. “Dawn.” Students Against Child Marriages. Accessed July 28, 2022. Studentsagainstchildmarriage.org/dawn.

Liberty Counsel Action is a 501(c)(4) tax-exempt non-profit organization. Donations are not tax deductible.