Oaks Meets with Hate Group Leaders, Tells Them to Fight On
Posted: Tue Oct 13, 2015 4:46 pm
Ahead of their convention in Salt Lake City later this month, leaders of the SPLC-designated anti-gay hate group World Congress of Families (Howard Center) recently met with LDS Quorum of the Twelve member Dallin Oaks, and parlayed the meeting into a fundraising appeal to its newsletter subscribers.
This development raises several questions that Dallin Oaks ought to answer for members of his church.
First, has the LDS Church made cash or in-kind donations to this anti-gay hate group? Failing that, did Oaks give the group his blessing to feature him in their fundraising letter, knowing that many of those receiving it would be devout Latter-day Saints? Did Oaks himself suggest this indirect form of support, in lieu of the direct contribution WCF was no doubt seeking during their meeting with him?
Furthermore, why does the LDS Church continue to follow this modus operandi (first used in Hawaii in the 1990's, continued with NOM in the 2000's) of staying in the shadows while pushing front groups to do their dirty work? It seems that Oaks would like the WCF to bear the brunt of the public backlash in securing a cultural beachhead, if you will, on which Mormons may safely express their bigoted views.
Finally, was LDS Church spokesperson Dale Jones speaking the whole truth when he said this past summer that "the church wasn't involved in the decision of the World Congress of Families to come to Salt Lake City"? Because with prominent Mormons such as Russell Ballard, Timothy Ballard (no relation), and Elizabeth Smart scheduled to address the conference, and with a senior apostle in Oaks meeting with WCF leaders and helping their fundraising efforts, one is naturally led to wonder what high level conversations preceded the decision to come to S.L.C.
Last week Larry Jacobs and I met with one of our honorary board members, Dallin Oaks. Religious leader and former university president, law professor, and state Supreme Court justice, he possesses unique insight into America's legal and societal predicament. He urged The Howard Center to vigorously counter the vitriolic anti-family and anti-religion rhetoric so that those who wish to speak up for faith and family will not be afraid to do so. We discussed the fact that accomplishing this will take greatly increased financial resources.
[...]
We truly are at a decisive moment that requires us to us for the benefit of posterity. At this time of unprecedented peril, The Howard Center needs your unprecedented financial support.
[...]
Faithfully,
E. Douglas Clark
Interim President
This development raises several questions that Dallin Oaks ought to answer for members of his church.
First, has the LDS Church made cash or in-kind donations to this anti-gay hate group? Failing that, did Oaks give the group his blessing to feature him in their fundraising letter, knowing that many of those receiving it would be devout Latter-day Saints? Did Oaks himself suggest this indirect form of support, in lieu of the direct contribution WCF was no doubt seeking during their meeting with him?
Furthermore, why does the LDS Church continue to follow this modus operandi (first used in Hawaii in the 1990's, continued with NOM in the 2000's) of staying in the shadows while pushing front groups to do their dirty work? It seems that Oaks would like the WCF to bear the brunt of the public backlash in securing a cultural beachhead, if you will, on which Mormons may safely express their bigoted views.
Finally, was LDS Church spokesperson Dale Jones speaking the whole truth when he said this past summer that "the church wasn't involved in the decision of the World Congress of Families to come to Salt Lake City"? Because with prominent Mormons such as Russell Ballard, Timothy Ballard (no relation), and Elizabeth Smart scheduled to address the conference, and with a senior apostle in Oaks meeting with WCF leaders and helping their fundraising efforts, one is naturally led to wonder what high level conversations preceded the decision to come to S.L.C.