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‘Gay’ Grinches in West Hollywood Urge Boycott of Salvation Army 12/5/2001 ‘Gay’ Grinches in West Hollywood Urge Boycott of Salvation Army The homosexual-controlled City Council of West Hollywood, California, voted 4-1 to ask residents not to give to the Salvation Army (SA) because the charitable organization reversed its support for unmarried “domestic partners” benefits. Councilman Steve Martin (not the comedian) sought to portray the Christian group as a Grinch, but others said it was the West Hollywood politicians who were the green goblins. “This kind of thing goes beyond all normal sensibility, morality and decency,” said Brian Camenker, president of the Parents Rights Coalition, based outside Boston, Massachusetts. “Coming during the Christmas season, this act of Politically Correct meanness is a direct assault on a charitable organization specifically because it bases itself on Biblical morality,” Camenker said. “We are starting to witness the same level of hatred that the Nazis and Communists had for religious believers.” Camenker, who is Jewish and whose family came from Eastern Europe, has friends who survived Hitler’s death camps. Concerned Women for America President Sandy Rios said, “Now the chief ‘victims of intolerance,’ as they would characterize themselves, are crying loudly for intolerance. The belief that homosexuality is immoral is a deeply held conviction by serious Christians and people of all faiths. The Salvation Army is not only a charitable organization; it has remained throughout its long and honorable history a church of Jesus Christ, faithfully proclaiming redemption from this very kind of sin. To force it to deny itself in this instance is the worst kind of intolerance, comparable to the Inquisition when people were called on to renounce their faith or else suffer dire consequences. “Let the church stand for what it stands for and let the gay community remain free to proclaim what they proclaim and, in the end, we will see which message prevails,” she said. For his part, Councilman Martin, citing the Salvation Army’s reversal of an October decision to support unmarried benefits, said, “They rescinded their domestic partnership benefits for their gay and lesbian employees and we really feel like they’re acting like the ‘Grinch Who Stole Christmas.’” But Capt. Kenneth Hodder, who works for the Salvation Army, told CBS2-TV that thousands of innocent people in the Los Angeles area, including the homeless, elderly and at-risk teens, could be hurt by a political boycott. The Salvation Army may now lose millions of dollars in government grants that require domestic partner benefits, including about $2 million from the city of Los Angeles, in addition to the loss of private donations. The Salvation Army faces trouble in several other western cities, like San Francisco and Seattle, which require all contractors — including charities — to provide unmarried partner benefits before they can receive local government funds. Hodder told CBS2-TV: “Eighty-seven cents of every dollar that goes to the Salvation Army goes directly to the local programs that help people in need, and it would be unfair, in our mind, for those individuals to suffer as a result of this dialogue and discussion.” HOMOSEXUAL PROTESTS NOT POPULAR “Gay” activists angry at the SA’s policy change have been stuffing the Army’s kettles with fake money containing protest messages in lieu of donations. Some are also holding open demonstrations at the kettles. “The one place where the open demonstrations were to have the strongest impact was Chicago,” Major George Hood, spokesman with the Salvation Army’s national office, told C&F Report. “Our Chicago office was preparing for a major confrontation, as homosexual activists told the press they would stage a rally as a media event,” Hood added. “However, no press arrived, and there were only about 15 protesters on hand. What’s more, shoppers stood up for the Salvation Army and drove the protesters away.” Hood, who is compiling reports on the kettle protests, said the impact of the kettle-stuffing is also negligible. “Each region is getting a handful or less of the fake dollars a day.” PFLAG is not backing down from its protest. An affiliate of the pro-homosexual pressure group recently issued some “talking points” for confrontations with SA kettle volunteers, including the following advice: Address the faith component: We understand that the Salvation Army is a religious organization, but many faith communities accept and welcome GLBT people and we expect no less from the Salvation Army. Discrimination is wrong, and there is no justification for it. Meanwhile, offers to redeem the homosexual lobby’s fake money with real cash are spreading. “It’s vitally important that concerned citizens show tangible support for the Salvation Army’s decision to stand up for the truth,” said CWA’s Rios. “Even when faced with the crippling of their charity work in that region, the Salvation Army did what was right, and for that we must stand by them.” SHOW YOUR SUPPORT The CWA certificate expresses support for the Army’s pro-family stand and is designed to be clipped to a kettle donation. (It is not intended for use without a donation attached.) To make an online donation to the Salvation Army, or to find out where to send your gift via regular mail for the region in which you live, go to: http://www.salvationarmysouth.org/states.htm To send a contribution by regular mail, write to: The Salvation Army The phone number for Salvation Army’s national headquarters is (703) 684-5500. |
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Concerned Women for America 1015 Fifteenth St. N.W., Suite 1100 Washington, D.C. 20005 Phone: (202) 488-7000 Fax: (202) 488-0806 |
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