It's that time of year again. Outside the shopping malls and supermarkets we encounter the bell-ringing representatives of the Salvation Army, dressed in paramilitary uniform, with their big red kettles, begging for a share of our holiday dollars.

And, as I do every year, I will ignore them.

Not because I am selfish or stingy. In the past few weeks, I have contributed a healthy sum in end-of-year donations to the non-profit agencies that I choose to support.

But I choose not to support the Salvation Army.

My reasons? Read on.

First let me say that the Salvation Army has done some good work in the past in providing assistance to the poor, the addicted, and the marginalized.

But their methods are not ones that I approve of. The Salvation Army has a long and disturbing history of religious coercion, abuse, and intolerance.

I have spoken with a number of people who have sought assistance from the Salvation Army in the past, particularly for disaster relief. I was told of how these people were preached to and forced into praying with the Salvation Army folks to their Christian God as a prerequisite for receiving services. If you're Jewish, tough. If you're Hindu, tough. Gotta pray their way, to their God, or else you're not worthy of assistance. It's quid pro quo. Gotta take advantage of people when they're most vulnerable. Contrast this with the secular Red Cross, which just wants to help disaster victims, not save their souls. (In the interest of full disclosure, I personally received help from the Red Cross when my apartment building burned down in 2001. They were extremely helpful and compassionate, and expected nothing in return.)

As if the religious coercion isn't enough, the Salvation Army has also been implicated in a number of cases of alleged sexual abuse, ranging from molestation of child members of the Salvation Army's Red Shield swim team in Seattle to pedophile rings that operated out of Salvation Army run orphanages in Australia and New Zealand. (Yes, they like to "spread the love" worldwide.)

The Salvation Army is also homophobic -- so much so that they would stop helping the poor if it meant they had to respect equal rights for gays and lesbians. In 2004, they threatened to close their soup kitchens in New York City rather than comply with the city's legislation requiring firms to offer domestic partnership benefits to gay employees.

Another fact that many people are likely unaware of is that the Salvation Army is technically a church as well as an openly Christian charity. As such, they are certainly entitled to promote their church's dogma and operate their organization accordingly.

But I will not support it with my hard-earned money, especially given the organization's disturbing history, coercive methods, and unchristianlike intolerance.

So please think twice before tossing your spare change into their red kettle of trouble. Do you really want to support this with your hard-earned cash?

_______



About author
Mary Shaw is a Philadelphia-based writer and activist, with a focus on politics, human rights, and social justice. She is a former Philadelphia Area Coordinator for the Nobel-Prize-winning human rights group Amnesty International, and her views appear regularly in a variety of newspapers, magazines, and websites. Note that the ideas expressed here are the author's own, and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Amnesty International or any other organization with which she may be associated. E-mail:

http://www.smirkingchimp.com/thread/19190

The Salvation Army in my city has a fantastic drug rehab program.

ohhhh they do lots of good stuff

but for some reason the smirking chimp decided to not like em and that means that we have to hear about it

Its just another viewpoint so relax man its the holidays

DUDE.....flick your ashes! That is sooooo not sexy!

I don't understand why their officers can't marry people that aren't officers. It makes no sense to me.

http://abclocal.go.com/wls/story?section=news/local&id=6551463

they'll be alright

they just fall onto the pile of ashes in my lap

I for one agree with Madman. The Salvation Army sold their souls. Here they use to help the poor and they still do but way less than they use to. Instead they have turned into a halfway house for the prisons and jails. Make more money but do less for the poor. I will not donate a dime to them. There are many local charities that do and do beyond what you would expect. I donate every year to two that do the work and not for the money..

I always donate to the march of dimes when I can. Everywhere you go now, someone is always asking for your spare change. Well I don't have any to spare! Damn, then they try and make you feel guilty.

Madison man I'm sure it was no surprise to anyone that you didn't give to the Salvation army and even encourged people not to give.At least the Salvation army is doing something to help the less fortunate.Instead of posting anti-American hate in forums and causing already depressed and tired Americans more grief maybe you can lay off those who are trying to change the world for the better.My change I give to the Salvation army maybe small but I know it changes lives.

I believe madman says he does donate but chooses not to donate to the Salvation Army. I too do not donate to them but I guarantee the money I donate gets to the people far better than with them. I know what our Salvation Army does here and will not donate to them..Are you gonna call me "Selfish" too.

The Salvation Army here does not force religion on anyone and provides many wonderful programs for the needy. They should be stingy and hateful like the rest of the people who have forgotten the meaning of empathy and caring.

I have always put a couple of bucks in the red bucket every year.
I normaly will not give to a charity with a god atached to it.
But I naver see them preaching, if they do it seem pretty low key.
If I thought they were not helping someone because they were gay or did not except their god then I would not give to them, but I would need proof that's the case with them because I like to think that they are one of the good ones.

Seamonster,

Do you understand this? The post I posted below.

That's crazy. Just another way to control people I guess. I wouldn't want to be a part of that.

It's f**ked up when you can't marry whom you want to marry.
Can you imagine losing your job for that?!

I couldnt imagine that. It seems that should be against some sort of law or something. But the man probably signed some papers or something.

yeah i just watched it and it's of course stupid.
But it's just as stupid as catholic priests not being able to marry.
But what they do inside their orginazation is on them I don't care, but don't **** with the poor and needy, to get out your god agenda.

So madisonman,

Would it be ok, if the Salvation Army... first ask if you are a Christian or not and than you are allowed to throw money into the Red Kettle.