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 to Postpone Charitable Choice 44 Labor, Religious, Health & Civil Rights Groups Concur 'Faith Based' Bias 'Religiously Divisive' - Undercuts Unity |
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Compiled by GayToday
Recent news media reports have indicated that some Bush advisors want to press for the administration proposal now to take advantage of the bipartisan spirit in Congress and the country. The groups signing the letter to Bush note, however, that any effort to advance the "charitable choice" provision of the faith-based package would raise religiously divisive issues and meet with strong resistance. "People of all faiths -- and those of no religion -- are uniting together as Americans," said the joint letter. "This is no time to divide us along religious lines." The president's "charitable choice" proposal allows churches and other ministries to receive government grants and contracts and still discriminate on religious grounds in hiring staff. In addition, the provision threatens church-state separation, exposes needy Americans to unwanted proselytism and undercuts the independence of religious organizations. (Other aspects of the faith-based plan -- such as tax incentives for donations to church-affiliated and other charities -- are supported by broad consensus and would likely pass the Senate with little opposition.) Said the letter to Bush:
"While we applaud your recent efforts to unite and rally the nation and spur charitable giving to victims and communities, Charitable Choice is only a step backward toward divisiveness. "At the core of 'Charitable Choice' are provisions that authorize religious discrimination in employment with government funds. It would allow a government-funded social service program to turn someone away from employment merely because they are the 'wrong' religion. 'We don't hire Jews' or 'we don't hire Muslims' or 'we don't hire Catholics' are not policies that should ever have a place in a Federal Government program. It would seem particularly unwise to push such a religiously divisive proposal at this time." The letter goes on to note that the "charitable choice" provision is also controversial because it permits the proselytization of people seeking government assistance, enables new lawsuits against state and local governments, provides no new funds for programs in which religiously affiliated programs already play a role and raises constitutional concerns about the independence of houses of worship. Concludes the letter to Bush, "We applaud you on your leadership during this crisis, and thank you for your efforts to spur charitable giving and services at this time of need. While tax incentives to further encourage charitable activity may be exactly what the country needs right now, 'Charitable Choice' is not." Groups signing the letter to Bush include: American Association of School Administrators American Association of University Women American Civil Liberties Union American Counseling Association American Federation of Government Employees, AFL-CIO American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees American Federation of Teachers American Humanist Association Americans for Religious Liberty Americans United for Separation of Church and State Baptist Joint Committee on Public Affairs Central Conference of American Rabbis Christians For Justice Action Communications Workers of America (CWA) Equal Partners in Faith Friends Committee on National Legislation (Quakers) General Board of Church and Society of The United Methodist Church Jewish Council for Public Affairs Leadership Conference on Civil Rights Legal Action Center Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law NAADAC, The Association for Addiction Professionals National Association of Social Workers National Council for Community Behavioral Healthcare National Council of Jewish Women National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence National Education Association National Organization for Women National PTA NOW Legal Defense and Education Fund OMB Watch Partnership for Recovery People For the American Way Service Employees International Union, (SEIU) AFL-CIO State Associations of Addiction Services Texas Faith Network Texas Freedom Network The Center For Progressive Christianity The Employment Project The Interfaith Alliance Union of American Hebrew Congregations Unitarian Universalist Association of Congregations United Church of Christ, Justice and Witness Ministries Women of Reform Judaism |
