Why I Refuse to Donate to the Salvation Army

There are many worthwhile charities in Mississippi who do good work locally. Of course, nobody has enough money to support all of them. In selecting which organizations to support, it seems like there are some fairly obvious decision points. For example, I refuse to support organizations that engage in any form of bigotry or religious proselytizing. Sadly, this excludes the Salvation Army and the local chapter of the United Way.

Pam's House Blend recently reminded us that the Salvation Army discriminates against LGBT individuals on religious grounds. They also discriminate against non-Christians in their hiring practices even though they receive federal funds. As far as I am concerned, this is more than enough to exclude them as a charity I am interested in supporting.

I am not denying that the Salvation Army and similar groups can do good in Mississippi and elsewhere. However, I would prefer to support charitable organizations that do not find it necessary to discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation or religion.

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