Later this month, a group of protesters representing “Protect Idaho Kids” will march in Boise on behalf of the many, many children who have died as a result of faith-based medical neglect. And when they walk, they’ll be holding tiny coffins as a symbol of the lives that have been lost because some parents wanted to pray for their kids to get better rather than take them to a doctor.

PIK Founder Bruce Wingate designed the protest to show that even “one child is too many,” when death could have been prevented. … Wingate said 400 people have signed up to join the rally so far, and he hopes that the protest attracts hundreds more. The protesters will be carrying plywood coffins, one to represent each child that has died from neglect. Each coffin displays the name of a child that has been lost.

Remember that Idaho is one of six states that allows faith-based exemptions when parents are charged with negligent homicide or manslaughter against their children. It’s arguably even worse than those other states because Idaho is the home of the Followers of Christ sect, members of which have been in the news many times over because their kids died preventable deaths.

If this event raises awareness as to how serious this problem is, more power to them. And I hope they get a lot of religious marchers in the mix, too, since “religious freedom” has usually been the argument for keeping the law just as it is.

(Image via Protect Idaho Kids)

