Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights | |
&sq=Qlik&lang=&file=File:Catholic_league.svg) Logo of the Catholic League | |
| Formation | 1973 |
|---|---|
| Founder | Virgil Blum |
| Founded at | Milwaukee, Wisconsin, US |
| Legal status | 501(c)(3) organization |
| Purpose | Roman Catholic advocacy |
| Headquarters | New York City, New York, US |
Region | United States |
President | Bill Donohue |
Chairman | Walter Knysz Jr. |
Revenue (2019) | US$3.5 million[1] |
| Expenses (2019) | US$3.3 million[1] |
| Endowment (2019) | US$30.8 million[2] |
Staff | 10 |
| Website | https://www.catholicleague.org/ |
The Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights, often shortened to the Catholic League, is an American Catholic organization whose stated purpose is to "defend the right of Catholics – lay and clergy alike – to participate in American public life without defamation or discrimination."[3] The Catholic League states that it is "motivated by the letter and the spirit of the First Amendment ... to safeguard both the religious freedom rights and the free speech rights of Catholics whenever and wherever they are threatened."[3] According to the Encyclopedia of American Religion and Politics, the league "is regarded by many as the preeminent organization representing the views of American lay Catholics."[4]
Founded in 1973 by the Jesuit priest Virgil Blum, the Catholic League was formed to counter discrimination against Catholics in American government and popular culture. The low-profile group initiated public education campaigns and some lawsuits. In 1993 the group became much more aggressive with a new president, the former sociology professor Bill Donohue, who also increased its size to become the largest Catholic advocacy organization in the US.[4] The Catholic League is known for press releases about what it views as anti-Catholic and anti-Christian themes in mass media.
The Catholic League has taken a stand against anything they perceive as anti-Catholic, including the entertainment industry, certain art exhibits, school programs for sex education, government-funded contraception and abortion, media bias, restrictions against anti-abortion activism, and restrictions on religious schools.[5] It publishes a journal, Catalyst, and operates a website.
The league under Donohue's leadership is criticized for its conservatism and for its combative responses to high-profile media stories.[4][6] Besides education campaigns, the group issues condemnations, initiates boycotts and protests, defends priests against accusations of child sexual abuse, fights proposed legislation and threatens legal action against what it sees as bigotry against Catholics, irreverence against religious figures, and attacks on Catholic dogma.[4][7] However, the Catholic League stresses that "it does not speak authoritatively for the Church as a whole."[4]
- ^ a b Schwencke, Ken; Tigas, Mike; Wei, Sisi; Glassford, Alec; Suozzo, Andrea; Roberts, Brandon (May 9, 2013). "Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights". Nonprofit Explorer. ProPublica. Retrieved July 5, 2021.
- ^ Roberts, Ken Schwencke, Mike Tigas, Sisi Wei, Alec Glassford, Andrea Suozzo, Brandon (May 9, 2013). "CATHOLIC LEAGUE FOR RELIGIOUS AND CIVIL RIGHTS - Form Form 990 for period ending Dec 2019 - Nonprofit Explorer". ProPublica.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ a b "About Us" on the Catholic League's website
- ^ a b c d e Djupe, Paul A.; Olson, Laura R. (2003). Encyclopedia of American Religion and Politics. Facts on File Library of American History. Infobase Publishing. pp. 82–83. ISBN 0-8160-4582-8.
- ^ Weaver, Mary Jo (1995). Being right: conservative Catholics in America. Indiana University Press. p. 343. ISBN 0-253-20999-4.
- ^ Sullivan, Amy (2008). The party faithful: how and why Democrats are closing the God gap. Simon and Schuster. p. 127. ISBN 978-0-7432-9786-8.
- ^ Merriman, Scott A. (2007). Religion and the law in America: an encyclopedia of personal belief and public policy. Vol. 1. ABC-CLIO. p. 30. ISBN 978-1-85109-863-7.