Monday, March 14, 2005

SALVATION ARMY UNDER ATTACK

Tomorrow, March 10, 2005, marks the 125th anniversary of the Salvation Army’s foray into work in the United States. Given the Army’s key historical role in relieving poverty and suffering, current litigation against the Army’s New York post raises questions about the nature of 21st century American charity.

Founded by William Booth in London in 1865 and exported by Commissioner George Scott Railton and his seven “Hallelujah Lassies” to the U.S. this week in 1880, The Salvation Army has been called “the most effective charity in the United States.” In the opinion of famed management guru Peter Drucker, “No one even comes close to it with the respect to clarity of mission, ability to innovate, measurable results, dedication and putting money to maximum use.” A recent Army press release reports that under the command of Captains Billy and Annalise Francis, today’s New York Temple Corps is a thriving center of religious and social service and part of The Salvation Army’s Great New York Division.

Despite such accolades, the Army’s significant business relationship with public agencies and their ability to do social service independent of religious foundation is the challenge of a current New York religious rights lawsuit. Brought by veteran Army social workers whose personal faith—or lack thereof—has been a non-issue for twenty -odd years, the complaint focuses on new Army policies requiring compatible religious beliefs among its employees. Although the religious hiring rights issue is an important one, it will be ably addressed by conservative legal experts, accustomed to battling in the justice system on such counts.

However, for the millions of Salvation Army “kettle contributors,” there is a more important debate. Has a stalwart American symbol of compassionate care for the poor become merely another social service vendor? Have the millions in public contracts so distorted the founding mission of “soup, soap, and salvation” that even the 84% flow through to services is more a statement about good management practices than a manifestation of passion to see peoples’ lives changed?

There is no disputing the value of services that meet people’s physical needs. But recognition of the dignity of the person requires that moral and spiritual needs also be addressed. In fact, long-term solutions to material deprivation will most effectively be found through approaches that recognize and foster non-material qualities such as responsibility and creativity. A religious organization such as the Salvation Army can serve a dimension of human need that other organizations cannot. It would be a shame if such an integral part of its historical mission were neglected.....

The Salvation Army’s anniversary celebration should reinforce its founding ideals. It should be about 125 years of needy people seen as created in the image of God, deserving of both immediate care and the holistic charity that characterized William Booth’s vision. Booth branded his charity work The Salvation Army because that was what made his charity work.

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CONDESCENDING ATTITUDE TO WOMEN

Apparently women need special help to achieve their goals.

The Michigan Civil Rights Initiative - an effort to let voters decide whether race and gender preferences should be used in education and hiring - was launched because of a race debate and the Supreme Court's ruling in the University of Michigan's admissions case. But now some are arguing that the initiative could do more damage to women than many realize. The initiative seeks to ban race and gender preferences in Michigan for hiring, college admissions and educational programs, and even though a vote is months away, a push is on to inform the public about its implications for women.

A report, "The Gender Impact of the Proposed Michigan Civil Rights Initiative," will be released Friday at the Michigan Women's Summit. In it, Susan Kaufmann, who authored the report, compared the initiative to California's Proposition 209, passed in 1996. Like the initiative that will be on Michigan's ballot in November 2006, she said, Prop. 209 challenged educational programs for female and minority students, hindered opportunities for women in the work force and threatened women's health programs and domestic-violence shelters.

She said that after the California proposal passed, the state stopped collecting information about race, gender and ethnicity in employment and contracting, though collection has resumed. And for a while, the hiring of female faculty dropped on several campuses in the University of California system, which continued to collect data. "People think it's about race and about college admission, but it addresses gender equally and it addresses all functions of government at all levels of government, including K-12 education and all public services," said Kaufmann, the associate director of the Center for the Education of Women at the University of Michigan. "I hope people will educate themselves about the potentially broad and negative impact on women and girls."

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