China Set to Lose Population Greater Than Arkansas’ by Next Year

China, ,

A recent article in Newsweek highlights the dramatic population decline facing China after decades of anti-family policies.

According to U.N. projections, China’s population will shrink by 3.2 million people next year — more than the population of Arkansas — and it is projected to decline by more than 40 million people over the next 10 years — roughly equivalent to the entire population of California.

By 2050, the country could lose a staggering 140 million people.

This is not the first time experts have expressed concern over China’s declining population. In 2020, officials from the Chinese Communist Party said China’s fertility rate had fallen to dangerously low levels. In early 2023, China’s National Bureau of Statistics released data showing the country’s population had begun plummeting.

Most developed nations are dealing with declining birthrates — including countries like Japan and the U.S. — but not to the same degree as China.

Without a growing population, it’s difficult for countries to maintain strong communities, a vibrant workforce, or a healthy economy. The Chinese Communist Party spent decades promoting the idea that having fewer children would be good for China, but that simply is not how society works.

Societies thrive off healthy, stable families. That’s part of the reason Family Council has spent more than 36 years promoting, protecting, and strengthening traditional family values in Arkansas. When families succeed, everyone benefits.

Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.

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Boy Wins Girls’ Irish Dance Competition for Third Consecutive Year

LGBT, ,

Concerned Women for America reports a teenage boy has won a girls’ Irish dance competition for the third year in a row, taking the top spot from female competitors and earning a chance to compete as a girl at the Irish Dance World Championships this spring.

The same boy first won a girls’ competition in 2023 at age 12 in Dallas, Texas. His victory sparked international controversy when he placed 20th at the World Championships in Scotland, taking a medal spot that would have gone to a female competitor.

Letting boys compete in girls’ sports reverses 50 years of advancements for women and effectively erases women’s athletics.

Female swimmers, powerlifters, cyclists, sprinters, volleyball players, and others have seen their sports radically changed by men who claim to be women. In some sports, it can even be dangerous.

Concerned Women for America reports that more than 1,900 male athletes who claim to be female have taken first place medals away from women and girls.

Most Americans agree that athletes should compete according to their biological sex — not their gender identity.

Fortunately, Arkansas has taken steps to protect fairness in women’s sports.

In 2021, Arkansas passed Act 461 by Sen. Missy Irvin (R — Mountain View) and Rep. Sonia Barker (R — Smackover) preventing male student athletes from competing against girls in women’s athletics at school. This good law protects fairness in women’s sports in Arkansas.

Earlier this year, President Trump signed an executive order protecting fairness in women’s sports under federal law. Since then, athletic programs around the country have taken steps to keep men out of women’s sports. The International Olympic Committee recently announced it is considering a policy that would keep biological males out of women’s Olympic events.

It is essential for parents, coaches, athletic organizations, and policymakers to stand up for fairness in women’s sports. That is something Family Council is committed to doing.

Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.

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Family Council Asks State Board of Education to Rethink EFA Restrictions on Team Sports

Home School, , , ,

On Monday, Family Council and its homeschool division, the Education Alliance, submitted public comments asking the Arkansas Department of Education to rethink a set of proposed rules prohibiting Educational Freedom Account (EFA) money from being used for team sports under the LEARNS Act.

The proposed rules say that registration fees, equipment, dues, and any costs associated with club and team sports cannot be paid for with EFA funding.

Homeschooling has surged in Arkansas and across the nation. Educational Freedom Account funding makes it possible for Arkansas students to use public dollars to pay for educational services at public or private schools or at home. State spending on EFAs has topped $120.5 million so far this year, and thousands of students have taken advantage of school choice in Arkansas as a result.

Many homeschoolers have expressed concerns that completely prohibiting EFA spending on team sports is unfair, because public schools fund team sports with state money. There is also concern that the new rules go beyond boundaries set in the LEARNS Act.

Earlier this year, lawmakers passed Act 920 of 2025 which limits EFA spending on sports and other extracurricular activities to 25% of a student’s annual EFA funding. That means a student who participates in the LEARNS Act cannot spend more than one-fourth of his or her EFA money on extracurricular activities. However, the new education rules would go beyond state law by prohibiting EFA money from being spent on team sports altogether.

Public comments on the proposed EFA rules are due by Tuesday, December 16. Home schoolers can email their comments to ADE.RulesComments@ade.arkansas.gov.

You can read Family Council’s comments on the proposed rules here.

Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.

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