Thank you for all the links Barbara. x
Posts by Tahoe
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92Montana jury awards two women $35M in sex abuse lawsuit against Jehovah's Witnesses
by AndersonsInfo inhttps://missoulian.com/news/local/montana-jury-awards-two-women-m-in-sex-abuse-lawsuit/article_1bcabb7c-7381-574b-a2ba-e011cc0250a6.html.
montana jury awards two women $35m in sex abuse lawsuit against jehovah's witnesses .
a jury in northwestern montana awarded two women $35 million wednesday in their lawsuit against the local jehovah’s witnesses congregation and its worldwide headquarters.. .
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'Warped' Jehovah's Witness bombarded estranged wife with disturbing messages
by Tahoe inhttps://www.dailypost.co.uk/news/north-wales-news/warped-jehovahs-witness-bombarded-estranged-15205705.
an obsessive and controlling husband has been jailed for stalking his estranged wife.. a crown court judge told mark perry - a devout jehovah's witness - that he had a warped mind and sought to justify his behaviour on the basis of his religious beliefs.. .
mold crown court heard he faked a message from the police telling his wife to go to rhyl police station to identify his own body.
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Tahoe
https://www.dailypost.co.uk/news/north-wales-news/warped-jehovahs-witness-bombarded-estranged-15205705
An obsessive and controlling husband has been jailed for stalking his estranged wife.
A crown court judge told Mark Perry - a devout Jehovah's Witness - that he had a warped mind and sought to justify his behaviour on the basis of his religious beliefs.
Mold Crown Court heard he faked a message from the police telling his wife to go to Rhyl police station to identify his own body.
On another occasion, Perry, 46, turned up at a refuge with a neighbour's child claiming to be a family member trying to trick staff to tell him where his wife was.
The defendant, of Sandringham Avenue, Rhyl , pleaded guilty to stalking at an earlier hearing and was today jailed for 32 weeks.
An indefinite restraining order was made not to approach his wife.
Judge Niclas Parry said the stalking by the defendant had caused significant alarm and distress. He had “bombarded her” with disturbing messages.
The messages, which quite clearly caused great distress, gave an insight into “a warped mind”, the judge said.
One message purported to be from a police officer making reference to him being dead and she was required to identify the body.
“You were clearly trying to instil in her a feeling of responsibility for that,” said Judge Parry.
It was abundantly clear that there was a background of controlling behaviour, and he continued even after he had “a shot across the bows” when he was served with a domestic violence protection order (DVPO).
He had used a child to try to deceive a refuge where she was being protected into giving his wife’s whereabouts.
“You seek to justify your actions on the basis of your religious beliefs. That is quite simply warped reasoning,” said Judge Parry.
He had no previous convictions and it was his first period of custody but only immediate custody could be justified, he said.
Perry – who appeared in court via a live television link from Altcourse Prison in Liverpool - put his head in his hands and wept when the sentence was passed.
He admitted that, between July and the beginning of August, he stalked Ysabel Andrea Perry and caused her serious harm or distress by sending texts and WhatsApp messages and trying to seek her whereabouts.
In one message, Perry told his wife: "Sorry for the suffering I've caused you over the years. I'm unravelling it with Jehovah's help."
Prosecuting barrister Frances Wilmott said he poured coffee over her in July and the police were called – and a DVPO was served on him.
But, when she was in a refuge, she revealed that she had endured threats and control – and she then received "disturbing" messages and texts.
He said he was going to kill himself, accused her of being silly and suggested that church elders be allowed to deal with the matter.
In July, he took a child to a refuge and got the child to ask where his aunt was.
In August, he sent her messages purporting to come from the IPCC saying he was dead and asking her to identify his body.
She was suspicious and feared that had she turned up at the police station alone as instructed then she may have been kidnapped or assaulted.
Arrested and interviewed, he claimed that the marriage was wonderful and said he loved his wife.
In a victim impact statement, she told how his controlling behaviour was unacceptable.
Her phone had been going all the time which caused her distress.
She was worried about his mental health and now finally felt free of him, which made her happy.
James Coutts, defending, said the offences were not overly sophisticated. In the message which purported to come from the police, it soon reverted to being obvious that it was from the defendant.
Mr Coutts accepted it was a troubling and worrying case.
At the time, he did not accept the relationship was over and set about doing things in his own way.
It may have been that he was overly guided by his religious beliefs and the strict code of conduct by which he lived his life, said Mr Coutts.
While at the time he was doing what he thought was right, he now recognised that he should not have behaved that way.
“He now understands that it was inappropriate, worrying and the wrong thing to do,” said Mr Coutts.
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You're in the Army Now: Jehovah's Witnesses No Longer Exempt From Finnish Draft
by Tahoe inhttps://sputniknews.com/europe/201809211068220658-finland-jehovah-witnesses-army/.
the finnish government has ruled that the current law allowing jehovah's witnesses to avoid military service, in place for several decades, is discriminatory and contradicts the constitution.. .
in the future, finnish jehovah's witnesses* will be obliged to either serve in the nation's military or perform civil service on the same terms as everyone else, the government ruled, submitting a corresponding proposal to parliament, national broadcaster yle reported.. according to the 1987 law, jehovah's witnesses were not only freed from the military draft, they were freed of any obligation to perform community service as a pacifist alternative, a common option among other young people in finland.
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Tahoe
One wonders of the hundreds of Russian JWs, that fled to Finland seeking asylum.
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You're in the Army Now: Jehovah's Witnesses No Longer Exempt From Finnish Draft
by Tahoe inhttps://sputniknews.com/europe/201809211068220658-finland-jehovah-witnesses-army/.
the finnish government has ruled that the current law allowing jehovah's witnesses to avoid military service, in place for several decades, is discriminatory and contradicts the constitution.. .
in the future, finnish jehovah's witnesses* will be obliged to either serve in the nation's military or perform civil service on the same terms as everyone else, the government ruled, submitting a corresponding proposal to parliament, national broadcaster yle reported.. according to the 1987 law, jehovah's witnesses were not only freed from the military draft, they were freed of any obligation to perform community service as a pacifist alternative, a common option among other young people in finland.
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Tahoe
https://sputniknews.com/europe/201809211068220658-finland-jehovah-witnesses-army/
The Finnish government has ruled that the current law allowing Jehovah's Witnesses to avoid military service, in place for several decades, is discriminatory and contradicts the constitution.
In the future, Finnish Jehovah's Witnesses* will be obliged to either serve in the nation's military or perform civil service on the same terms as everyone else, the government ruled, submitting a corresponding proposal to parliament, national broadcaster Yle reported.
According to the 1987 law, Jehovah's Witnesses were not only freed from the military draft, they were freed of any obligation to perform community service as a pacifist alternative, a common option among other young people in Finland. The Finnish government has decided that this preferential treatment is discriminatory and contradicts the constitution. Repealing the law will allow all religious groups to get equal treatment in terms of conscription, the government's press release said.
The government proposed a three-month transition period. Those applying for suspension within the three-month period before the new law enters into force shall be allowed to skip military service. After the transition period, exemptions will be no longer granted.
READ MORE: Finland Rules Jehovah's Witnesses Draft Exemption 'Discriminatory'
Abolishing the Jehovah's Witnesses' draft exemption has been considered several times before, in 2006, 2009, 2011 and 2013, but nothing came of the discussions. However, the debate was re-kindled this year, when the Helsinki Supreme Court overruled a prison sentence against a conscientious objector who refused to perform community service. The court found it discriminatory to sentence a conscientious objector, when Jehovah's Witnesses don't need to do any military or community service whatsoever.
"Today we have a kind of two-storied definition of personal convictions. Jehovah's Witnesses enjoy statutory liberation from military service, while others with pacifist convictions don't," former Defense Minister Stefan Wallin, who has long pushed for the abolition of differential treatment, explained.
Veikko Leinonen, a Jehovah's Witnesses information officer in Finland, said this isn't a "working solution."
"It's problematic. The belief the Jehovah's Witnesses follow opposes all forms of war and killing," Leinonen stressed. "Ideally, we should keep the system that exists today. It has worked well and does not violate anyone's rights," he added.
This move is expected to cover some 130 people annually. According to Teemu Penttilä, the leader of the task force behind the investigation, the number of "total objectors" refusing both military service and community service won't rise significantly. In 2017, 33 conscientious objectors were sentenced in Finland.
The Finnish Defense Forces operate on the principle of universal male conscription, although women are allowed to volunteer and have been availing themselves of this opportunity increasingly. With a peacetime strength of about 16,000 troops, Finland is capable of mobilizing up to 230,000 troops and service personnel within four weeks, making it the largest force in Scandinavia.
The total number of Jehovah's Witnesses is estimated at about 20,000 in Finland.
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Havana Times: Interview with a Gay Cuban Jehovah’s Witness
by Tahoe inhttps://havanatimes.org/?p=141201.
havana times – alfredo nunez elias was born with a congenital malformation which resulted in him losing a leg when he was 33 years old.
this hasn’t prevented him from becoming a hairdresser and stylist, the creator of a hair-straightening product, a fashion designer and pastry chef.. when i met him in 2011, he was living in an apartment high up in a building that was in danger of collapsing in central havana.
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Tahoe
https://havanatimes.org/?p=141201
HAVANA TIMES – Alfredo Nunez Elias was born with a congenital malformation which resulted in him losing a leg when he was 33 years old. This hasn’t prevented him from becoming a hairdresser and stylist, the creator of a hair-straightening product, a fashion designer and pastry chef.
When I met him in 2011, he was living in an apartment high up in a building that was in danger of collapsing in Central Havana. He used to go up and down those stairs several times a day, with the bike that he used to travel through Havana on. He was convinced that he would leave that place soon; the success of his product would allow him to make a lot of money and buy an apartment.
In 2014, he left… but he moved into a homeless shelter. His cubicle was on the ground floor, but he needed to walk 15 meters to get to the bathroom, crossing over puddles of dirty water. As he was now in the Santos Suarez barrio instead of the center of town, he had lost a large number of his regular clients. He used to need to carry water in a bucket to wash their hair. Four years later and he’s still there.
Instead of complaining, he has improvised a bathroom so that he can shower and attend to his most pressing needs, in his room. He made a system from the doorway to carry water to the sink where he washes his customer’s hair. He keeps an eye on the Constitutional Reform process, confident that the economy will open up to the private sector and will allow him to manufacture and sell his product without needing to belong to a cooperative.
His ironclad determination remains a mystery to many people. According to him, it’s obvious: he owes all of his talents and ability to overcome obstacles to Jehovah, his creator. However, as well as being a Jehovah’s Witness, Alfredo is also a homosexual.
HT: Isn’t it contradictory to be a Jehovah’s Witness and a homosexual at the same time?
Alfredo: I don’t believe there is a contradiction. A human being is who they are and that’s all there is to it. God gives you your human condition and free will. You choose, responsibly. There are three fundamental principles, in my opinion: Thanks to God for my life, respect for God and regard for God. Everyone has their own preference.
HT: Do you not feel like a sinner for being homosexual?
Alfredo: I am a sinner, like everyone else in this world, but not because I am a homosexual. That is one of my sins; there are so many sins in this world for you to call yourself a sinner. However, when I went to church, I didn’t go as a homosexual, to fix a problem, I went out of love for God. Those who are aware of their spiritual needs are happy people. Shopping malls, movie theaters and theaters can’t satisfy these. I feel fulfilled when I listen to the things they say at my congregation. Of course, there are superstitious people and extremists, like in every congregation, which distort this God of love.
Even as a sinner, I prefer to be on level one, which would be to love Jehovah our God and to be saved by Jesus Christ, his son. Just imagine what levels injustice, greed, envy, murder, trickery etc., would be on!
HT: I’m guessing that people in your congregation know or suspect your homosexuality.
Alfredo: I don’t go talking about my sexual orientation there. There are other places where I can do that. I go to meet up with sinners just like myself and to listen to God’s word. I feel good about myself and I leave in a jolly mood.
HT: You know that one of the most controversial issues in the new draft Constitution that is being reviewed by the public is the redefinition of marriage as the union between two people, which would allow same-sex marriage in the future. Several Christian Churches are campaigning against this. What do you think about the chance of same-sex marriage being allowed and the Church’s campaign against it.
Alfredo: It’s a possibility for anyone who wants to go ahead with it. Let’s go back to free will. If the law allows it, who can oppose it? The Bible talks about union between man and a woman, but this decision is everyone’s own. The Bible says that you will carry penance in sins. However, I believe that if I’m not tricking any woman about my sexual condition, even if I am a sinner, I am being less cruel. Churches are governed by the Bible, which sets out that marriage is the union between a man and a woman, for their entire lives, not for them to separate like people freely choose to do so. They are trying to guide people’s lives in keeping with the Bible. The State, as the State, can approve this union. These unions would allow people to adjust their assets and legal rights.
HT: I can understand that churches try to guide Christian people’s lives, for example your Church prohibits you from marrying another man, as a Jehovah’s Witness. However, I don’t understand how they can try to guide the lives of those of us who aren’t Christian and don’t follow the Bible’s every word.
Alfredo: Churches can’t interfere in anyone’s free will. You will do what you feel like doing, in keeping with what life has planned for you. God and Jesus Christ’s journeys serve as an example for us to lose the chains that human things hold us with, which don’t compare with religion’s wonders. When you are filled with spirituality, you don’t see homosexuals, Black people, rich people, poor people or handicapped people, you just see God’s magnanimity and the step Jesus Christ took in order to save our souls. I believe that it is important to strike a balance between the spiritual and material side of things in our lives. I think that many people will get married for financial reasons.
I am not interested in marrying any man. However, someone could come along one day and convince me to take this step. I will ask Jehovah our God for his permission.
HT: Jehovah God or your congregation?
Alfredo: I am one with Jehovah God. I respect my congregation when I go and I stick to the parameters people follow there so they can share their things with God. My congregation doesn’t get mixed up in my personal business.
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Star Tribune: Jehovah's Witnesses accused of mishandling abuse in Montana
by Tahoe inhttp://www.startribune.com/jehovah-s-witnesses-accused-of-mishandling-abuse-in-montana/493779331/.
helena, mont.
— two women who say they were sexually abused as children have alleged that the jehovah's witnesses failed to report their abuser to authorities in montana and instead punished him internally by expelling him from the congregation until he repented the following year.. a trial begins monday in the tiny city of thompson falls for one of dozens of lawsuits filed nationwide in the last decade over claims of child sexual abuse in jehovah's witness congregations.
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Tahoe
Corney, thank you for the added info. Much appreciated.
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Star Tribune: Jehovah's Witnesses accused of mishandling abuse in Montana
by Tahoe inhttp://www.startribune.com/jehovah-s-witnesses-accused-of-mishandling-abuse-in-montana/493779331/.
helena, mont.
— two women who say they were sexually abused as children have alleged that the jehovah's witnesses failed to report their abuser to authorities in montana and instead punished him internally by expelling him from the congregation until he repented the following year.. a trial begins monday in the tiny city of thompson falls for one of dozens of lawsuits filed nationwide in the last decade over claims of child sexual abuse in jehovah's witness congregations.
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Tahoe
http://www.startribune.com/jehovah-s-witnesses-accused-of-mishandling-abuse-in-montana/493779331/
HELENA, Mont. — Two women who say they were sexually abused as children have alleged that the Jehovah's Witnesses failed to report their abuser to authorities in Montana and instead punished him internally by expelling him from the congregation until he repented the following year.
A trial begins Monday in the tiny city of Thompson Falls for one of dozens of lawsuits filed nationwide in the last decade over claims of child sexual abuse in Jehovah's Witness congregations. Worldwide, there have been more allegations of mismanagement and cover-ups of sexual abuse by Jehovah's Witness clergy and members, including cases in Canada, Australia and the United Kingdom.
"It appears to be a widespread issue within the Jehovah's Witnesses," said Devin Storey, an attorney whose San Diego law firm has handled about three dozen sex abuse lawsuits against the Christian religious organization. "Less is being reported than should be."
Officials at the World Headquarters of Jehovah's Witnesses did not have an immediate comment Wednesday. A policy posted on its website says it abhors child abuse and views it as a crime.
"The elders do not shield any perpetrator of child abuse from the authorities," the policy says.
The New York-based religious organization has 8.5 million members and 120,000 congregations around the world. The number of abuse lawsuits surged at about the same time as similar allegations of abuse and cover-ups within the Roman Catholic church, but the Jehovah's Witness cases haven't received the same national attention.
The Montana trial involves two women, now 32 and 21, who are suing the national Jehovah's Witness organization and its Thompson Falls congregation. One woman alleges a family member abused her and her brother in the 1990s.
The abuse continued in the mid-2000s with the second woman, the first woman's niece, after the congregation's elders expelled the abuser from the congregation in 2004 and reinstated him the next year, according to the lawsuit.
The women say the local and national organizations were negligent and violated a Montana law that requires them to report abuse to outside authorities. They are seeking an unspecified amount in damages.
Their attorney, Jim Molloy, declined to comment Wednesday.
Jehovah's Witness attorneys did not respond to messages left by phone and email. In court filings, they don't deny the abuse happened but say Montana law exempts elders from reporting "internal ecclesiastical proceedings on a congregation member's serious sin."
The church also contends that the national organization isn't liable for the actions by Thompson Falls elders and that too much time has passed for the women to sue.
The state Supreme Court this week rejected the Jehovah's Witnesses request to delay the trial and take over the case.
Both sides acknowledge that when a person is accused of sexual abuse, elders in a Jehovah's Witness congregation are required to first contact the headquarters' legal department to determine their next step.
The organization's policy says it will instruct elders to report the matter if a minor is still in danger of abuse or if there is another valid reason. Storey, the San Diego attorney, said that is a new policy change.
Otherwise, Jehovah's Witness elders meet as a judicial committee to investigate "the sinful conduct ... and decide whether the sinner is repentant before God," according to a description of the process provided by Jehovah's Witnesses in court filings.
Unrepentant offenders are expelled, and strict confidentiality is maintained, according to the filings.
In this case, the congregation was not required to report to authorities, according to Jehovah's Witness attorney Kathleen DeSoto.
"The Constitution bars the court from contradicting a religious organization on issues of religious beliefs, including canon law, church doctrine and established church practice," she wrote in her argument to the Montana Supreme Court.
Storey said the Jehovah's Witnesses take a very broad view of laws that protect discussions made in confession or other discussions between clergy and a congregation member — broader than the law allows.
The organization appears to be trying to improve but have kept policies such as the two-witness rule, which says no action will be taken against a church member without testimony from at least two witnesses, he said.
"By maintaining that particular aspect of their policy, it will be difficult for them to eradicate the issue," Storey said.
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Jehovah’s Witness girl could receive blood against her will during childbirth
by Tahoe inhttps://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2018/aug/31/jehovahs-witness-girl-could-receive-blood-against-her-will-during-childbirth.
a jehovah’s witness girl may be forced to receive a blood transfusion against her will this weekend when she gives birth in melbourne.. victoria’s mercy hospital was granted supreme court authority on friday to give the girl blood as a “last resort” if she suffers a postpartum haemorrhage when induced into labour on sunday afternoon.. the 17-year-old first-time mother is considered to be at increased risk of haemorrhaging because she is of “small stature” and the baby is large, meaning she may have a long labour, an assisted birth or an emergency caesarean section.. jehovah’s witnesses forbid followers from receiving blood transfusions or blood products.. the risk to the baby from the mother refusing blood is considered low.. the human tissue act has a provision that minors may be given blood transfusions without parental consent, but it was edited in 1994 with the concept of a “mature minor” who could “make up their own mind”, the court was told on friday.. however, the child psychiatrist campbell paul told the hearing he did not believe the girl had the “decision-making capacity” to be considered as having “gillick competence” – a term used to describe whether a child can consent to their own medical treatment.. paul said the girl had “been through considerable disruption and trauma through her life” and had “transgressed a major value of her family and her community” by having pre-marital sex.. “you could imagine that she feels very frightened” and worried about “further punishment”, he said.. the obstetrician and gynaecologist jacqueline van dam told the court she was concerned about the girl’s “naivety” that if anything happened, “she would be protected by her faith”.. she said several strategies could be undertaken first in the case of haemorrhage, such as injecting a drug to limit bleeding or stitching the uterus.. the girl’s mother, who said she would not consent to the hospital administering blood to her daughter, told the court receiving a transfusion would have a significant impact on the girl’s wellbeing.. “being forced to have that done against her will would be something like having violence done to her or being raped,” she said in a statement read to the court.. “she wants to do the right thing by jehovah, by god.”.
justice cameron macaulay granted mercy hospital the authority to give the girl a transfusion if necessary as “a last resort” but only if they first used all other strategies to stop the bleeding and obtained authority from two doctors.. “i’m not satisfied that [the girl] has the maturity to understand the consequences of her choice,” he said.. “i do not consider that allowing her, in effect, to choose to die ... is in her best interests.” .
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Tahoe
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2018/aug/31/jehovahs-witness-girl-could-receive-blood-against-her-will-during-childbirth
A Jehovah’s Witness girl may be forced to receive a blood transfusion against her will this weekend when she gives birth in Melbourne.
Victoria’s Mercy hospital was granted supreme court authority on Friday to give the girl blood as a “last resort” if she suffers a postpartum haemorrhage when induced into labour on Sunday afternoon.
The 17-year-old first-time mother is considered to be at increased risk of haemorrhaging because she is of “small stature” and the baby is large, meaning she may have a long labour, an assisted birth or an emergency caesarean section.
Jehovah’s Witnesses forbid followers from receiving blood transfusions or blood products.
The risk to the baby from the mother refusing blood is considered low.
The Human Tissue Act has a provision that minors may be given blood transfusions without parental consent, but it was edited in 1994 with the concept of a “mature minor” who could “make up their own mind”, the court was told on Friday.
However, the child psychiatrist Campbell Paul told the hearing he did not believe the girl had the “decision-making capacity” to be considered as having “Gillick competence” – a term used to describe whether a child can consent to their own medical treatment.
Paul said the girl had “been through considerable disruption and trauma through her life” and had “transgressed a major value of her family and her community” by having pre-marital sex.
“You could imagine that she feels very frightened” and worried about “further punishment”, he said.
The obstetrician and gynaecologist Jacqueline van Dam told the court she was concerned about the girl’s “naivety” that if anything happened, “she would be protected by her faith”.
She said several strategies could be undertaken first in the case of haemorrhage, such as injecting a drug to limit bleeding or stitching the uterus.
The girl’s mother, who said she would not consent to the hospital administering blood to her daughter, told the court receiving a transfusion would have a significant impact on the girl’s wellbeing.
“Being forced to have that done against her will would be something like having violence done to her or being raped,” she said in a statement read to the court.
“She wants to do the right thing by Jehovah, by God.”
Justice Cameron Macaulay granted Mercy hospital the authority to give the girl a transfusion if necessary as “a last resort” but only if they first used all other strategies to stop the bleeding and obtained authority from two doctors.
“I’m not satisfied that [the girl] has the maturity to understand the consequences of her choice,” he said.
“I do not consider that allowing her, in effect, to choose to die ... is in her best interests.”
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Protesters at today’s assembly on the news
by Tahoe inhttps://www.wgal.com/article/jehovah-s-witness-event-met-with-protestors/22834659 .
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Tahoe
I liked this sign.
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Protesters at today’s assembly on the news
by Tahoe inhttps://www.wgal.com/article/jehovah-s-witness-event-met-with-protestors/22834659 .
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