10,000 FA Members to LGBT Youth: Abusing Gay Children is Not Christian

Sean Harris

Last week, North Carolina pastor Sean Harris made national news with a sermon calling on parents to physically abuse gay children.

With only days remaining before a statewide vote on a constitutional amendment banning all legal recognition of same-sex unions, Pastor Sean Harris of Berean Baptist Church told his congregants: "Dads, the second you see your son dropping the limp wrist, you walk over there and crack that wrist. Man up. Give him a good punch."

Once the sermon came to public attention, Harris tried to retract some of his remarks. But for the families of LGBT youth who heard his tirade, the damage has already been done.

In response, Faithful America members have spoken out to condemn Pastor Harris's remarks and send a clear message to LGBT youth that he is distorting the message of Christ and violence and child abuse can never be justified by the teachings of Christianity.

Over 10,000 people have already signed the petition. Will you join them?

SIGN THE PETITION

Show Your Support for Catholic Sisters

The Vatican is ordering Catholic sisters to join the Religious Right in waging culture war instead of focusing their energies on helping the poor and healing the sick.

All across the country, Catholic women religious are on the front lines of health care, education, and other critical social services. But now that the sisters are enduring a crackdown from the church hierarchy, we need to show that millions of people of faith are standing with them.

Sign our virtual thank-you card and show your support for the Catholic sisters who do so much to care for the least of these.

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Tell Catholic Bishop Jenky: Apologize for Comparing Obama to Hitler and Stalin

Bishop Jenky

As pastors and teachers, Catholic bishops are supposed to lead their flock in sharing the love of God with our neighbors. So why did a Catholic bishop just use his Sunday homily to compare President Obama to Hitler and Stalin?

Bishop Daniel R. Jenky of Peoria, Illinois, launched a vicious tirade against politicians who disagree with the bishops' views on health care reform, culminating in the outrageous claim that "Barack Obama seems intent on following a similar path" to Hitler and Stalin, who "would just barely tolerate some churches remaining open."

This kind of hateful and incendiary rhetoric is inappropriate coming from anyone -- but it's simply outrageous coming from a religious leader in a position of public trust. Bishop Jenky needs to hear immediately that reasonable people of faith are appalled by his remarks.

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Gonzaga University: Don't Disinvite Desmond Tutu

Desmond Tutu

A powerful network of right-wing Catholics is trying to ban Archbishop Desmond Tutu from speaking at a Catholic university commencement next month.

Archbishop Tutu, who won the Nobel Peace Prize for his courageous opposition to South African apartheid, is beloved around the world as a powerful voice for peace and justice. But that doesn't matter to the extremists who've been waging a McCarthyist campaign of fear and intimidation on Catholic college campuses across the country.

The Cardinal Newman Society, which led the opposition to President Obama's commencement speech at Notre Dame three years ago, is circulating a petition demanding that the President of Gonzaga University disinvite Archbishop Tutu -- but so far this time they only have a few hundred signatures. Let's make sure Gonzaga doesn't give in to the Religious Right by showing that everyday people of faith overwhelmingly support Archbishop Tutu.

Sign the petition to Gonzaga: Stand strong and let Archbishop Desmond Tutu speak.

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Tell Catholic Bishop McManus: Let Vicki Kennedy Speak

Vicki Kennedy

Vicki Kennedy, the widow of Senator Ted Kennedy, is a lifelong Catholic who has received honorary degrees from two Catholic colleges. So why is a Massachusetts bishop prohibiting her from serving as a commencement speaker this year?

Kennedy had accepted an invitation from Anna Maria College to speak at this year's graduation, but Worcester Bishop Robert McManus forced them to withdraw the invitation. According to his office, Catholics who disagree with church teaching should not be honored by Catholic institutions -- a standard that conservative bishops seem to apply only to Democrats.

Bishops have consistently remained silent when conservative public officials like John Boehner, Antonin Scalia, and George W. Bush are honored by Catholic institutions despite flouting church teaching on war, the death penalty, torture, and other issues.

Sign our petition to show that everyday people of faith won't accept their campaign of selective censorship and intimidation towards progressive Catholics.

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Faithful America Members Confront Chris Matthews on Tony Perkins Problem

Chris Matthews Interview

At a book signing in Framingham, Massachusetts on 3/24/2012, Faithful America members confront Chris Matthews about his consistently inviting Tony Perkins, President of the hate group Family Research Council, on his show.

Matthews responds by falsely claiming that Perkins never says homophobic things on his show, but when challenged that his invitations give legitimacy to what Perkins says outside the show, Matthews has no answer.

Matthews also later claims that every time Perkins is on, he's challenged. But Matthews never challenges Perkins on his long record of hateful lies about the LGBT community.

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MSNBC Rejects Christian Leaders' Ad Exposing Hate Group Leader Who Appears Regularly on the Network

Faithful America Demands MSNBC Stop Inviting Family Research Council to Speak for Christian Voters

Amid a growing outcry from Christian leaders to take Family Research Council President Tony Perkins off the air, MSNBC yesterday rejected an ad exposing his and FRC's extensive record of hate speech against gay and lesbian Americans. Perkins has appeared on MSNBC 23 times since his organization was designated a hate group, most recently last week on Hardball with Chris Matthews.

You can view the rejected ad here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XryTYvJ2btw

"Clearly MSNBC doesn't want its viewers to know the truth about one of their frequent guests. If network executives consider Tony Perkins' false and hateful rhetoric about gays and lesbians inappropriate for an ad, then he shouldn't have any place on their programming," said Michael Sherrard, head of Faithful America.

A representative from MSNBC wrote, "Thank you for providing the ad and substantiation. Our policy states that we have sole discretion to accept or reject an ad based on its appropriateness. In this instance we are rejecting the ad."

You can view the substantiation for the ad here.

Faithful America, which produced the ad, is an online community of people of faith that delivered 20,000 petition signatures to MSNBC headquarters in New York last month demanding that the network stop inviting Perkins on the air because of FRC's long history of dishonest, hateful rhetoric. FRC was designated a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center in November 2010.

FRC was named a hate group for their persistent use of bogus science and debunked research to claim gay and lesbian Americans pose a risk to children and our society. Perkins and his organization have also made dishonest and bigoted claims that openly gay and lesbian service members would lead to increases in sexual assault and that "one of the primary goals of the homosexual rights movement is to abolish all age of consent laws and to eventually recognize pedophiles as the 'prophets' of a new sexual order."

A video compilation of Perkins' appearances on MSNBC (and warm welcomes from a number of MSNBC hosts), examples of his most extreme claims, and footage of the February 14, 2012, petition delivery is available online: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_SWFjeRqYdc.

MSNBC continually offers a friendly venue to Perkins without informing their viewers of FRC's status as a hate group or including any rebuttal from progressive religious leaders. Perkins has appeared on MSNBC more often this year than on any other cable news network.

Last month, Episcopal Bishop Gene Robinson, who delivered the invocation at President Obama's inaugural ceremonies and is the first openly gay bishop in the Anglican Communion, led a clergy delegation in delivering more than 20,000 petition signatures to MSNBC studios.

Faithful America's petition reads:

The Family Research Council is a hate group, and journalists ought to treat it as such. MSNBC must stop inviting Family Research Council spokespeople on the air to represent the views of Christians and other people of faith.

For more information about Faithful America, an online community of over 135,000 people of faith taking action on pressing moral issues of social justice and the common good, visit www.faithfulamerica.org.

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Tell eHarmony: Stop Sponsoring Rush Limbaugh

Under the guise of defending "religious freedom," Rush Limbaugh is using vile rhetoric to degrade women who use birth control.

After a young law student, Sandra Fluke, bravely testified on Capitol Hill about how contraceptive services can save women's lives, Limbaugh responded by calling her a "slut" and a "prostitute" and suggested that she and her friends should be required to post sex videos on the internet.

Dating website eHarmony was founded by a Christian theologian and has a long history of catering to Christian singles -- but their ads have recently been airing on Limbaugh's show. With other advertisers beginning to pull out, it's time for eHarmony to drop their ads immediately and permanently.

Sign our petition and tell eHarmony that people of faith don't want them advertising on Rush Limbaugh!

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Tell Samaritan's Purse: Fire Franklin Graham

This week on MSNBC, Billy Graham's son refused to acknowledge that President Obama is a Christian, saying "I can't say categorically [that he's not a Muslim], because Islam has gotten a free pass under Obama."

This isn't the first time Franklin Graham has tried to cast doubt on the President's Christian faith. He's previously said that Obama was "born a Muslim," that the "seed of Islam is passed through the father," and that under Obama's leadership, "the Muslim Brotherhood has infiltrated every level of our government."

Graham is the president of one of the world's largest Christian relief organizations, Samaritan's Purse, whose mission is "providing spiritual and physical aid to hurting people around the world." Sign our petition calling on the Board of Directors of Samaritan's Purse to fire Franklin Graham immediately!

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Bishop Gene Robinson delivers 20,000 petition signatures to MSNBC

Tony Perkins on MSNBC

On February 14, Episcopal Bishop Gene Robinson personally delivered our petition to MSNBC studios calling on the network to stop giving airtime to Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council -- a hate group that accuses gays and lesbians of child molestation.

The Family Research Council is so extreme that they've been officially listed as a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center. But MSNBC has continued to invite their president, Tony Perkins, and other organizational spokespeople on air to comment on behalf of Christian voters. In fact, since FRC was designated a hate group in November 2010, Tony Perkins has appeared on MSNBC more often than any other network.

With MSNBC so far refusing to commit to taking Perkins off the air, we need to keep the pressure on! Watch our new video, and sign the petition calling on MSNBC to take Perkins off the air.

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Faith Leaders Deliver 30,000 Petitions to Kansas Speaker

After Kansas Speaker Mike O'Neal forwarded around an email praying for the death of President Obama, 30,000 people of faith across the country quickly responded by signing a petition calling for Speaker O'Neals resignation.

A week later, two Kansas pastors went to the Speaker's office in Topeka to deliver the petition signatures and reiterate this demand.

Speaker O'Neal continues to ignore the demands of people of faith and is still refusing to step down.

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Praying for President Obama's Death?

Kansas Speaker Mike O'Neal

You might be surprised to hear that Mike O'Neal, the Republican Speaker of the Kansas State House, is praying for President Obama.

Unfortunately, he's praying for the President's death. And he's exploiting the Bible to do so, circulating an email that cites Psalm 109: "Let his days be few; and let another take his office. May his children be fatherless and his wife a widow." O'Neal said of the violent Psalm "At last -- I can honestly voice a Biblical prayer for our president."

Sadly, it's not unusual for Republican politicians to use vile and hate-filled rhetoric when speaking about President Obama. But when they exploit religion to do so, people of faith have a moral responsibility to condemn it.

Sign our petition demanding that Speaker O'Neal resign immediately!

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Ask the USCCB: Don't Bank with Bank of America

Bank of America

Bank of America helped bring down the economy, received $25 billion in taxpayer bailout funds, and now they've been caught illegally forging documents to kick thousands of struggling families out of their homes.

Hundreds of thousands of people have closed their Bank of America accounts in the last few weeks -- including churches across the country. The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), a Bank of America customer, should join the movement and do the same.

A recent Vatican letter took a prophetic stand against the sinful greed of big banks. And the USCCB's own documents say the Church should "refus[e] to invest in companies whose products and/or policies are counter to the values of Catholic moral teaching."

By moving their money out of Bank of America, the Catholic bishops could send a powerful message to Wall Street and set an inspiring example for religious institutions across the country.

Sign our petition asking them to do just that

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Faith Leaders Deliver 200,000+ Petition Signatures to Lowe's Calling on Company to Resume Advertising on TLC Show "All-American Muslim"

All-American Muslim

Earlier today, faith leaders delivered 200,000 signatures from people around the country to Lowe's corporate headquarters demanding that the company stop caving to anti-Muslim bigotry and reinstate their advertising on TLC's All-American Muslim tv show.

The petition signatures came from members of Faithful America, Change.org, CREDO, People for the American Way, Sum of Us, and Groundswell.

Follow the link below to read the whole press release.

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Tell Lowe's: Stop Kowtowing to Religious-Right Bigotry!

Lowe's Hardware

All-American Muslim is a new reality show on TLC that follows American Muslim families as they go about their daily lives in Dearborn, Michigan. released a cowardly statement saying they want to avoid a "hotly contested debate."

We need to show Lowe's that the overwhelming majority of the faith community won't tolerate big corporations kowtowing to religious bigotry and xenophobia.

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Trinity Church: Offer Sanctuary to Occupy Wall Street

Jesus is with the 99%

After being evicted from Zuccotti Park in a pre-dawn raid, dozens of people from Occupy Wall Street relocated to an unused property owned by Trinity Wall Street Episcopal Church -- a progressive church that has provided indoor space for occupiers in recent weeks.

But instead of the occupiers finding sanctuary on church-owned property, they were arrested by the New York Police. The Bloomberg administration is clearly determined to put an end to Occupy Wall Street's peaceful witness against economic injustice.

The faith community in New York City has been a critical source of support for Occupy Wall Street. And now that the occupiers are being prevented from camping in Zuccotti Park, that support is more critical than ever.

Faithful America is running a petition asking Trinity Wall Street to stand with the 99% and offer sanctuary to the Occupy Wall Street movement.

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Tell Obama: Tar Sands Pipeline is an Attack on God's Creation

Tar Sands Arrest

As the Obama administration debates whether to approve the permit for the proposed Keystone XL oil pipeline--which would carry millions of barrels of toxic tar sands oil from northern Canada over 1,700 miles to refineries in Texas--the faith community continues to raise their voices against this dangerous project.

NASA climate scientist James Hansen has said that "if the tar sands are thrown into the mix, it is essentially game over" for the earth's climate. Reaching the oil in the tar sands will require cutting down hundreds of thousands of acres of boreal forests -- a natural carbon reservoir. And a rupture in the pipeline could poison the source of drinking water for over two million people.

The pipeline was relatively unknown until climate activists spent two weeks protesting and getting arrested in acts of civil disobedience outside the White House to draw attention to the issue. Religious leaders played a key role in those protests and are planning to do the same when they return to DC this Sunday.

Faithful America is running a petition to show solidarity with these faith leaders and demonstrate their opposition to the pipeline. The petition is directed at President Obama, who is expected to make a final decision on approval soon.

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Say No to Attacks on Peaceful Protesters

VoteNoIssue2.jpg

Police in Oakland, California, have attacked thousands of largely peaceful protesters -- firing tear gas, flash grenades and rubber bullets into crowds that included children, the elderly and people with disabilities.

Local police have cracked down on other Occupy encampments across the country, evicting and arresting hundreds of nonviolent protesters in Chicago, Atlanta, and Albuquerque. Occupiers in Baltimore, San Francisco, and other cities are also being threatened with eviction.

When a peaceful movement for social and economic justice is met with violence and repression, people of faith have a moral obligation to speak up. If local authorities see that Occupy encampments have the support of the religious community, they'll think twice about shutting them down and resorting to violence.

Add your name to a petition calling for an end to attacks and arrests on Occupy protests.

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Stand with the 99%

As the Occupy Wall Street movement explodes across America, the religious right is up to their same old tricks: The Family Research Council just sent out an email actually asking their supporters to pray for the movement to fail.

We think it's important to show that people of faith are standing in solidarity with those struggling for economic justice. So we're offering a free "Jesus is with the 99%" sticker to anyone who wants to show their support.

We can't print these stickers unless at least 10,000 people request them, so be sure claim yours today -- and tell your friends!

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Saying No to Anti-Gay Violence

Two weeks ago, Jerry Pittman Jr. and his boyfriend Dustin Lee tried to attend Grace Fellowship Church in their town of Fruitland, Tennessee. They didn't make it through the front door.

On instructions from the church pastor--Jerry's father--church deacons attacked Jerry and Dustin in the parking lot while shouting homophobic slurs to prevent them from entering.

This kind of hate and violence has no place in our society, particularly in our churches. Not only does this assault directly harm Jerry and Dustin, it reinforces the lie that all religion is hostile to LGBT people.

Faithful America is fighting that myth by standing up for Jerry and Dustin and demanding an apology. Sign our petition to church leadership to send a message that people of faith won't silently accept anti-gay violence in our communities.

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The Real Values Agenda

Our mobile billboard is running outside the Republican debate in Orlando! Help us continue our campaign to show there's more to "values" than the Religious Right -- endorse the real values agenda today!

We stand for integrity in word and deed, holding our elected leaders accountable and advocating prophetically for what's right. We do not tolerate the abuse of faith to score political points or using lies and smears to promote an ideological agenda.

We believe the moral measure of America is judged by how those who have the least are treated, not Wall Street profits. It is not compassionate or responsible to expect wealth to "trickle down" while children go hungry and parents can't pay their medical bills. The wealthiest should pay their fair share before struggling families are asked to sacrifice even more.

We believe we're all in this together, and that real leaders put the common good ahead of self-interest. Our communities and nation are strongest when we keep our promises to seniors, protect safety nets that save lives and create jobs that honor the dignity of work.

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Hold the debt-deal leadership accountable

August 2, 2011

The Tea Party just forced the US House of Representatives to pass a draconian debt deal in order to avoid defaulting on our national debt.

The package reflects their immoral vision: take from the poor to pay for tax breaks for the rich.

We can't let those who pushed our nation to the brink of total economic catastrophe to get these cuts escape accountability for them. Remind Speaker Boehner and Eric Cantor -- you are accountable.

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We have a winner!

Over the last week Nick has been posting about our fantastic finalists for America's Next Top Faith Voice.

Today, we are thrilled to announce our winner is Rev. Nicole Lamarche!

Ordained in the United Church of Christ, Nicole is currently starting a congregation in Silicon Valley. She's a former Miss California who is now an advocate for veterans suffering from PTSD and for a more just economy and now she'll be an advocate for progressive people of faith in the media.

Here's Nicole's application video:

Please consider making a donation to support our work together and retake the values debate!

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Paul Ryan: Put Down Ayn Rand

What would inspire Republicans in the House of Representatives to vote to take away healthcare for the elderly and working families -- all while protecting tax breaks for the wealthy -- like they did just weeks ago?

Well, Paul Ryan, the author of the Republican plan, credits radical right wing author Ayn Rand as his inspiration to enter politics -- and even gives copies of her books to his staff.

So what does Ayn Rand believe?

  • Altruism is evil.
  • The "weak" do not deserve love.
  • All religions, majority rule/democracy, and any regulations on capitalism should be destroyed.

Tell Paul Ryan to put down Ayn Rand.

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Challenge Boehner's Budget Priorities

Have you seen the news?

Speaker of the House John Boehner is set to give the commencement address at Catholic University of America this weekend. A group of Catholic theologians has challenged the Speaker to reconsider his budget -- which guts key programs that help struggling families -- in light of his Catholic faith, which teaches those in power have an obligation to help those in need.

The story has spread like wildfire, even landing on the front page of the New York Times. This is a one-of-a-kind opportunity to put our faith values front and center in the public debate, but we risk being drowned out by the religious right once again unless we can show overwhelming support.

Help us collect 10,000 petition signatures by this Saturday supporting the theologians challenging Boehner's reckless budget priorities.

Click here to add your name and hold Boehner morally accountable for his budget priorities.

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Preach, Pray, Fast for a Moral Budget

It's hard to believe what's happening here in Washington. Congress is considering harsh budget cuts for poor and working families while protecting tax breaks for the wealthy.

Last year corporations like GE and Bank of America posted billions in profits, yet didn't pay one cent in taxes -- they actually got benefits (as in, more profits) from taxpayers like you and me.

Yet some in Congress think the right way to balance the budget is to cut billions from basic investments education and child health and nutrition. And USAID estimates cuts to programs like anti-malaria initiatives will cause the deaths of over 70,000 children.

Unbelievable, right?

The faith community is organizing an all-out protest. Faith leaders are sending a message to Congress by preaching, fasting and praying against this immoral budget proposal. Will you join us?

Add your "Amen" to the call for a moral budget.

Before the budget deadline this Friday, we'll deliver your signature along with the very best preaching on the budget to leaders in Congress. There's going to be a lot of pressure on moderates to strike a bad deal with the Tea Party to prevent a government shut down, but your voice can help them stand firm.

We didn't get into this fiscal mess by being too generous to struggling families and the middle class. So why is Congress sticking us with the bill?

Sign the petition against this immoral budget.

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Standing Up in Ohio

Over the past few weeks we've seen political battles erupt in states across the country. Governors are protecting corporations and the rich while gutting workers' rights and key investments in education and health care.

Favoring the rich over the rest is just not right -- so we got in the game.

Starting in Ohio, we are going on the offensive against immoral budget cuts and threats to workers' rights in the states. We're facing an uphill battle, but we are making sure the voice of the faith community is heard.

We commissioned our very own poll, which showed majorities of people of faith in Ohio, including Catholics and Evangelicals, agreed with us on the important moral issues of workers' rights and fair budgets. And 63% of Ohioans agree that the government's more important moral responsibility is to ensure citizens have access to quality education and healthy communities, rather than cutting taxes for all.

We rolled out this poll at a press conference where we delivered over 1,000 petition signatures from people of faith in Ohio to the Governor and leadership in the legislature opposing restrictions on collective bargaining and heartless budget cuts.

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Protect Health Care!

Faithful America partnered with PICO National Network to mark the one-year anniversary of the landmark healthcare law by running ads on Christian radio in four cities - Orlando, New Orleans, Kansas City and Denver - featuring real people from those communities sharing stories about their firsthand experience with our broken health care system, and explaining how the ACA has given them access to quality, affordable health care. You can listen to the ads here:

Denver

Orlando

New Orleans

Kansas City

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Hold Beck Accountable

We've made amazing progress since we launched our Glenn Beck accountability campaign last December.

Over 10,000 Faithful America members -- including 1000 clergy -- signed our petition and Glenn Beck is feeling the heat. Hundreds of advertisers have left his show, radio stations across the country have dropped him and even FOX News is having second thoughts.

But we can't stop now. Glenn Beck still reaches millions of people every day, and he's responded to our campaign by ramping up his harsh rhetoric. That's why we need your help.

Click here to watch our new video and hold Beck accountable.

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Faith Stands With Workers

February 22, 2011

By now, you've probably heard about the Wisconsin Governor's draconian plan to strip most state workers' rights to negotiate for fair wages.

As tens of thousands of citizens have gathered in protest, people of faith are raising their voices in support of one of our most fundamental rights: the ability to negotiate fair compensation for our work.

Add your voice. Pledge to support workers.

Our faith traditions are diverse, but one thing that brings us together is the unequivocal support fairness and justice for workers. From Catholics to Protestants, Jews to Unitarians, our faiths uphold the right to organize and negotiate.

We know these are hard times, and getting through it will take shared sacrifice. Our leaders on the state and national level have a tough job and difficult choices to make, but it's simply immoral to balance a budget on the backs of working families -- and it's simply unacceptable to roll back fundamental human rights.

Share the message that faith stands with workers: speak out today.

With states all over the country considering similar proposals, we want to be perfectly clear: this isn't about particular contracts or benefits, this is about protecting the fundamental right to fair working conditions -- for state workers in Wisconsin, and for each and every one of us.

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Protect Health Care!

People of faith were instrumental in passing health care reform last year, but our struggle is far from over.

Egged on by the Tea Party, the new Congress has made taking away health care reform its #1 priority -- and we need to step up to protect it.

This Wednesday, the House will vote on a bill repealing health care reform. While this bill is not expected to survive the Senate or President Obama's veto pen, it's the first step in a very real campaign to take away health care reform, through funding cuts, legislation and lawsuits.

Let Congress know this is unacceptable. Sign the Petition to Protect Health Care today.

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Tragedy in Arizona

It's taken us a while to collect our thoughts and emotions after yesterday's horrific shooting in Tuscon, Arizona.

As we pray for the living, we mourn the dead, including a federal judge, a church volunteer, a young congressional staffer engaged to be married, and a 9-year-old girl.

Last night, we posted this note on Faithful America's Facebook page. While it seems like every minute there is a new rumor or detail to process, this still comes pretty close to how we're feeling:

Now more than ever we are committed to standing up to hateful and violent political speech. We don't know the exact motive for the shooting, but violent words have taken on a new and darker meaning in the shadow of today's tragedy in Arizona. We pray for justice, peace and healing for all those directly affected, and for our entire nation.

We're still trying to figure out where we go from here. Please feel free to share your thoughts and prayers as we figure out how to move forward together.

In faith,

Beth, Nick, Dan, Kristin, Allison, John, and Jennifer

The Faithful America Team

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It's Time to Drop FOX

The smears, distortions and hate speech on FOX News get worse and worse. And it's hurting our country -- a new poll found that FOX News viewers are more likely to believe smears about Muslims than those who get their news from other sources, and a would-be terrorist credits FOX News's Glenn Beck as his inspiration to attempt a shooting spree.

It's time to call for real change.

Tell advertisers: stop supporting FOX's dangerous hate speech, smears and lies.

Glenn Beck has a particular dislike for people of faith who are concerned about social justice and the common good. He's attacked Faithful America directly, as well as many of our allies in justice work.

FOX also has played a key role ramping up Islamophobia over the past year, particularly around the Park 51 project in New York. The resultant anti-Muslim fervor has led to unprovoked attacks on our Muslim neighbors and their places of worship across the country.

It's clear we need to send FOX News a message they can hear. And the best way to do it is by targeting what matters most: their advertising revenue.

Sign our petition and tell advertisers to stop subsidizing fear-mongering on FOX News.

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We Can Beat Fear

Were you as sickened as we were by the nasty, fear-based attacks during the election?

Here at Faithful America, we decided we couldn't have another year of ads and talking heads demonizing our neighbors, so we developed a three-pronged, one-year campaign plan to combat the fear in our public discourse and promote bold voices of faith for justice.

We need to raise $10,000 by Monday, November 15, to kick start our campaign. Can you chip in right now?

Here's what we're going to do:

  • Fight FOX. FOX News has spent the past year promoting fear and hate while their star commentator Glenn Beck attacks faith groups working for justice (including Faithful America!) as "communist" and "fascist." Even more troubling, a recent study showed that FOX viewers were more likely to believe false rumors about Muslims than people who get their news from other sources. We're joining a powerful coalition to pressure FOX's advertisers to stop sponsoring fear by organizing petitions, faith leader letters, hard-hitting ads, and in-person protests.
  • Find, Train & Promote Bold Faith Voices. We need more voices for justice in the public square, and we're looking to YOU to help us find them. We think the next big, bold faith voice might just be one of our own Faithful America community members. After you send us nominations and choose the winners, we'll fly the new Faithful America spokespeople to Washington, DC for media training with communications experts. The winner will become a featured columnist on our blog, and our communications experts will work to promote bold faith voices on TV, online and print media.
  • Launch a Rapid-Response Team. Even the "mainstream media" has fallen down on the job, allowing a bias against Muslims, refusing to correct right-wing misinformation and giving extremists free publicity. We need to make sure they know this is unacceptable. We’re going to develop a rapid-response network of Faithful America members to confront the media when they promote prejudice or misinformation.

We've got a big job ahead of us, and we need to get started immediately.

Chip in today to put our bold campaign in motion.

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The Best Medicine

There's been a lot of buzz about Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert's upcoming rallies in Washington, DC. It's going to be a great opportunity to draw attention to important causes and values. Faithful America is joining in with a "protest" of Stephen Colbert's "March to Keep Fear Alive." Since we at Faithful America are "Driven by Faith, Not by Fear," we knew this was a perfect opportunity to have a little fun and promote our values.

We're starting off with a petition asking Colbert to stop his fearmongering. With enough signatures, we can really make a splash.

Join us today!

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Standing with Muslim Americans

A wave of anti-Muslim sentiment is sweeping across the country.

Lumping all Muslims in with terrorists, Sarah Palin said a proposed Islamic Center near Ground Zero in New York is a "provocation" that "stabs at hearts," and Newt Gingrich called it an "insult" to Americans.

Our country is better than this. Our faiths are better than this.

Sign our letter of support to the American Muslim community during this difficult time and help stand up for religious freedom.

PHOTO: Protesting a Mosque in California. Via the New York Times

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Glenn Beck Attacks Social Justice

Last week, news broke of Glenn Beck making outrageous claims about people of faith.

Beck linked social justice to communism and Nazism and urged people to leave their congregations, saying "I beg you, look for the words 'social justice' or 'economic justice' on your church Web site. If you find it, run as fast as you can."

People of faith across the spectrum are fighting back against these outrageous smears, signing petitions and going on cable news to tell the truth about social justice, and now Beck has responded by ramping up his hateful rhetoric and threatening to bring down "the hammer" on those who challenge him.

Beck and FOX News spend a lot of time cultivating a faith-friendly image, but airing smears against mainstream beliefs tells a different story.

Help us find out where FOX News really stands. Ask them: Do you stand with Glenn Beck's defamatory comments, or with millions of people of faith who are answering God's call to justice?

For a defense of social justice from a Christian perspective, check out this piece from David P. Gushee

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Newt Gingrich Thinks You Don't Matter

Gingrich1.jpgIn a recent interview, Newt Gingrich claimed that no real religious leaders supported health care reform. Anyone who did is just "socialist" and views healthcare as "one more opportunity to redistribute [wealth]."

Dividing the country into conservative religious Americans and "secular socialists" may help Mr. Gingrich sell books, but we know that's not what the faith community is actually like.

Gingrich is trying to revive his political fortunes by cashing in on tired stereotypes about people of faith and tossing out conservative buzzwords like "socialism" at anything that doesn't fit in his narrow vision.

Yet, if he actually spoke with any of our many members who work on important issues like healthcare in their communities every day, he would find a genuine faith commitment to finding real solutions to the suffering caused by our broken healthcare system.

The religious community helped pass a healthcare reform bill that will start us on the road to healing that brokenness. We did our best to follow our faiths' call to justice - and we're proud of it.

Will you join us in standing up for our faith and the millions of Americans like us who refuse to be stereotyped or categorized?

Sign the petition: Tell Newt Gingrich you won't be dismissed.

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Speak out Against Violence

Since the historic vote on health care reform Sunday night, an outbreak of hateful speech and threats of violence directed at Members of Congress who stood up for health care reform has spread across the country.

Bricks thrown through office windows. Voicemail boxes filled with death threats. Someone even cut the gas line to the house of Rep. Tom Perriello's brother, who has four small children.

As people of faith, we feel compelled to say: enough is enough.

People of faith are leading by example. We are joining together as a community to reject violence and pray for peace, and we're calling on political leaders of all parties to join us.

Our leaders need to take a stand, and show that combating hate and violence is not a partisan issue.

Sign the petition: Ask Congressional Tea Party leaders to stand with the faith community in condemning violence.

(Photo via Think Progress)

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Health Care Reform Passes

At long last, health care reform is ready to be signed into law - a major victory for our country and for the common good. The struggle was long and hard.

During the final days of the debate, Tea Party protesters hurled racist and anti-gay slurs at Members of Congress. But thanks to Faithful America members and the great work of our key allies in the faith community, this is one of the last images Members of Congress saw as they walked to the House chamber to vote:

(Photo: People of faith stand in peaceful counter-protest to the Tea Partiers outside the Capitol before the health care votes on Sunday, March 21)

From the 300,000 people we turned out to listen to the faith community's health care call with President Obama, to television ads in key states, to the tens of thousands of calls and emails sent to Senators and Representatives -- the faith community has been recognized on Capitol Hill and in the media for playing an indispensable role in moving health care reform forward.

While the work on health care is not quite done, what we have already achieved is historic.

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All that's missing is you

In just ten days, people from all over the country will gather on the National Mall to call on our leaders to make our immigration system more secure, just and humane.

Faithful America, along with other faith organizations, is participating because people of faith will not stand by as our broken immigration system rips families apart and divides our communities.

We're going to amplify the witness of thousands of on the Mall with a banner listing the names of our members who support immigration reform. We'll show our leaders people of faith across America are standing up for families and create the moral urgency political leaders need to address this pressing issue.

Sign the petition: show our leaders they have no choice but to act.

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Don't Spin Our Faith

We just saw video of former Bush administration staffer Marc Thiessen on the Catholic cable network EWTN defending torture ...and EWTN refused to correct the pro-torture spin.

Thiessen repeatedly tried to cover up the truth by calling waterboarding and other inhumane tactics "enhanced interrogation" instead of what they are -- torture. And EWTN even let him get away with claiming torture is consistent with religious values.

To make sure something like this doesn't happen again, Faithful America is launching the "Don't Spin Our Faith" campaign to monitor religious media of all traditions and hold them accountable for pro-torture spin.

Email EWTN: we need the truth about torture from religious media.

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No Time to Quit

There's no denying last week was a tough one for health care reform. In a matter of days the political landscape changed, and our leaders are wavering.

What hasn't changed: the needless suffering of families in our congregations and communities going without health care. These families are witnesses to the moral consequences of political calculations.

We can't turn our backs on them now.

Despite the setbacks, we're still closer to reform than we've ever been before -- we just need our leaders to stand up and fight for it.

We're not giving up, and we can't let our leaders give up either!

Today is a massive national call-in organized by the faith community to tell Congress they need to stay strong and not scale back or delay reform any longer. We need YOU to call Congress and tell them not to back down!

Call TODAY: 1-866-279-5474

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Not in our Name

UPDATE: Our concerns have been heard! Manufacturer Trijicon has agreed to take the Bible references off the weapons!

Just Monday, ABC news broke a disturbing story: guns used by the US military in Iraq and Afghanistan have been inscribed by their manufacturer with Bible verses.

That's right. The high-powered weapons feature clear references to Christian scriptures like "2COR1:6" and "JN8:12."

Branding tools of war with Christian messages is a dangerous misuse of faith falsely implying that America is at war with Islam in the Middle East.

We can't let this be the face of American faith: Tell the Pentagon to Stop Using "Christian" Weapons.

Our Faithful America community is made up of people from diverse faith traditions, but we all share a common call to seek and build peace, in our communities and across nations.

Branding weapons of war with a message of faith goes against this call, and degrades all of our faiths by seeming to pit them against each other in the midst of war.

Tell the Pentagon: Keep our faiths off tools of war.

Our thanks to the Military Religious Freedom Foundation for breaking this story.  Though the MRFF recieves the support of Christian organizations like California Church IMPACT, it is now being attacked as "anti-Christian," for it's important work in protecting religious freedom.

(Image via ABC News credit defenseimagery.mil)

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Help for Haiti

By now you've heard the news from Haiti: heartbreaking destruction. Tens of thousands are feared dead, and hundreds of thousands are homeless amid the rubble.

This news makes my heart just drop, and I know I'm not alone. People of faith have always been among those responding first to disasters and humanitarian crises -- let's make sure that's still the case.

When disaster strikes, the response in the first few days matters the most. That's why I'm asking you to support organizations that already have staff providing relief on the ground in Haiti. Here are a few outstanding organizations -- please support them in this hour of need:

Oxfam has four offices in Haiti and more than 200 experienced aid workers on the ground. They're sending badly needed emergency supplies including clean water, temporary shelters, and sanitation equipment from a base in Panama. Support Oxfam's assistance to Haiti.

Numerous faith-based organizations run excellent relief services. If you would like to support relief in Haiti through a group affiliated with your religious tradition, click here for a list of organizations -- including many that are faith-based -- raising money and providing on-the-ground services.

Thank you for helping the people of Haiti in this time of great suffering. I know that, together, we can aid the afflicted and speak for justice.

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Double your impact!

The uninsured mother who can't afford to get sick.

The families kept apart by a broken immigration system.

The developing nations who've already begun to bear the brunt of climate change-related disasters.

They are the ones who stand to lose the most if partisan pundits on talk radio and special interests claiming to speak for people of faith are allowed to derail the debates on health care, immigration, and climate change.

That's why from now until December 31st, a generous donor has agreed to match all donations up to $20,000 to help Faithful America fight twice as hard for our most vulnerable neighbors in 2010.

Help us take advantage of this amazing opportunity. Click "donate" below to have your gift automatically matched dollar-for-dollar.

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We're Gonna Need a Bigger Boat

We're down to the wire on climate change. If we don't do something about it soon, we could be facing global catastrophe on a level not seen since, well, the Great Flood.

That's why we're joining our friends at Avaaz.org to build a giant Ark on the National Mall. During this critical time of the UN Copenhagen climate talks, we need to remind our leaders exactly what's at stake.

Sign the petition: Our leaders need to reach a real climate deal before we need another Ark!

(photo courtesy of Action Factory DC)

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Pass Health Care Reform!

UPDATE: House passes the Affordable Health Care for America Act 220-215

From the middle class to those most in need, Americans are feeling the health care crunch. Our insurance premiums have doubled in the past 10 years. And our uninsured neighbors have it even worse as they struggle to get by without the care they need.

This bill is not perfect. Some in the faith community have concerns, and negotiators are working hard to resolve them as we speak. But here's the bottom line: this bill will provide health care coverage for 36 million people who don't have it right now and give support to millions more who are struggling with ever-rising costs. This bill is the best package on the table for low-income families, incorporating the strong affordability provisions the faith community has been promoting.

With your support, we've sent tens of thousands of calls and messages to Congress urging them to pass strong health care reform. We've made real progress, but we can't let up now. Tell your Rep to vote yes on HR 3962.

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Stop the Devastating Effects of Climate Change

While we debate how to reduce carbon emissions and protect our future, climate change is already costing lives.

Millions around the world are facing increased flooding, new disease outbreaks and dying farms.

Climate change disproportionately affects the people who have done the least to cause it and have the fewest resources to help cope. Developing countries are 20 times as likely to be effected by climate-related disasters.

But there is hope: new legislation in the Senate would provide targeted funding to support innovative solutions that are already helping people adapt to a rapidly changing environment.

Sign our petition and tell the Senate to stop climate change and it's devastating effects!

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