Posted on 11/23/2006 9:23:52 AM PST by glory2
Wal-Mart blacklisted for Black Friday Shoppers urged to boycott No. 1 retailer due to pro-homosexual commitments
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Posted: November 21, 2006 1:00 a.m. Eastern
By Bob Unruh © 2006 WorldNetDaily.com
Group wants to save Wal-Mart from pro-homosexual activists
The Friday after Thanksgiving typically is the biggest single shopping day of the year, and has been known to make or break a holiday season for many a retailer. This year, for Wal-Mart Friday will be even bigger than that.
The American Family Association, as WND reported earlier, already asked its several million supporters to boycott the stores that day.
And now another organization is launching an "information explosion" that is intended to tell the tens of millions at Wal-Mart Friday that some of their dollars will be going to support a group that works to discriminate against Christians with "hate crimes" legislation and wants marriage expanded to involve same-sex couples.
"We're out to help an old friend. Wal-Mart has been a friend of ours for a long, long time," said Flip Benham, the director of Operation Save America who is working to help coordinate the new efforts by the www.SaveWalMart.com outreach.
The AFA effort to trying to wake Wal-Mart up.
"Wal-Mart should remember that the majority of people in this country do not support things like same-sex marriage, and don't want the company giving money to groups that do support it," American Family Association Chairman Donald E. Wildmon said. "Shopping at retailers other than Wal-Mart might remind the company of that fact."
The SaveWalMart.com plan is different. It wants to approach customers directly, to let them know about the company's moral agenda, and to bring people together in a series of events that will convince the company to return to the values of founder Sam Walton.
Those were described in a recent WND column by Pat Boone, who knew Walton personally.
In his commentary, Boone told how he met with Walton, and at Walton's request offered ideas on how to feature gospel music in his stores.
"Already at more than 4,000 stores, his music department offered most everything, and he was personally concerned that some of it was anything but family friendly. Increasingly, he would be informed by customers that a number of albums contained profanity, strong and explicit sexual material, angry and violent imagery, all kinds of stuff he didn't want to sell anybody – but he didn't know what to do about it, since neither he nor his employees had time to listen to all the records the national distributors would place in his racks," Boone wrote.
He than told Walton about the Parents Music Resource Committee, which checked lyric contents and lobbied to have recording companies print the lyrics on the outside of the records or put advisories on the packaging.
Walton loved it, Boone reported. "It was responsible; it was family friendly. It was right – simply the right thing to do."
"We are not protesting. We are proclaiming the gospel of Jesus Christ," says the SaveWalMart organization website about Friday's plans.
The plans are to have people choose the Wal-Mart nearest either their home or church on Friday, and be there all day to hand out information about the developments involving the company.
"If you have a portable sound system, let the preacher boys proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ on it! We are a Gospel people! As always, we are going out because we love Wal-Mart and want to see the corporation turn back to the Christian ethic of its founder, Sam Walton," the website instructs
Benham said so far there are plans to demonstrate against the "satan-inspired" agenda at "hundreds" of the stores across the nation. He said it is "foolish" for a company even such as Wal-Mart to drive away an entire classification of customers.
However, he said it's a situation almost like blackmail or extortion. He called it "demonic" for its reach well beyond what logic could allow.
In one city, for example, Benham's workers offered a regional newspaper nearly $17,000 for an ad about its campaign, nearly double the routine $8,500 for such an ad, he said. The newspaper turned down the ad, which included statements such as, "God blessed Wal-Mart because founder Sam Walton chose to honor Jesus Christ and run his business according to biblical principles!"
The ad, which also has been prepared as a handout for people to give away on Friday, also said customers should "ask your local Wal-Mart Store Manager" about the changing moral values, and either call Wal-Mart or e-mail the company about the concerns.
"Wal-Mart is changing! It is departing from the rock from which it was hewn. The faith and love for Jesus Christ and His Word by Sam Walton, the founder of Wal-Mart, is being trashed before our very eyes," the ad says.
The facts it cites are basic. Wal-Mart recently joined the National Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce, contributing at least $25,000 to the cause with promises to sponsor various homosexual events.
"It's a beginning," Benham told WND about the information plans. "Most of the people that we talk to, they have no idea (of the company's moral changes).
"Our hope is that thousands and thousands and thousands of people will be put on notice as to what is happening in Wal-Mart," he said.
Boone noted that he was shocked when the company agreed to donate a percentage of its online sales directly to a Washington, D.C., community for homosexuals.
"The man I knew was a conscientious deacon at the Methodist church, and his own family are wonderful people, still honoring their mom, Helen," Boone wrote. "He was a rock ribbed 'traditional values' guy…"
The AFA also is asking people to sign an online petition promising they will participate in a boycott, and the goal is a million families.
"The devil is forcing our schools, businesses, government, and churches to honor those things which are an abomination to God. Christians must take a stand! It’s time for our theology to become biography in the streets! It’s time for us to come out of the closet!" the information campaign website says.
"We are not a protest. We are a proclamation that Jesus Christ is Lord! Wal-Mart can be saved and so can America. It begins with God’s Church!" the website said.
Wal-Mart, after confirming to WND that it did establish a relationship with the homosexual business group, has been focusing on "diversity" in responses to people concerned about the company's moral drift.
To Pastor Rick Barnard's note that he couldn't support such a company, Wal-Mart said, "Working with the NGLCC, as we do with other minority enterprise leaders, is our way to help educate corporate America and the public as to the economic benefits of a diverse workplace and the power of creating mutually beneficial relationships with the LGBT and the LGBT-friendly business community."
Florida customer Lawrence Reves said he supported Wal-Mart "when the Democrats targeted you, but THIS is something I can not consciously continue to do."
"Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.'s commitment to nondiscrimination underscores our understanding of and appreciation for diversity, as well as the growth and influence of emerging consumer markets in the United States, including the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community,"' the company responded.
"American businesses … are being blackmailed by the devil himself. They are being forced by the 'politically correct' dogma (abortion, homosexuality, etc) of our day to accept his terms. If one chooses to defy this dogma, he will be forever branded as a right-wing, bigoted fascist, bent on forcing his own religion (Christianity) down everyone else’s throat. If the Church or any business will not accept these terms, or truly honors God, there will be hell to pay!" said the SaveWalMart site. "Now Satan has Wal-Mart in his line of fire!"
"After being lambasted for years by the anti-family, pro-abortion, pro-homosexual, radical environmental left, Wal-Mart has finally succumbed to this constant harassment and blackmail. She has now chosen a policy of appeasement to assuage all of the false accusations leveled against her in hopes that the devil will somehow stop being so mean," according to information campaign organizers.
"And I suspect Mr. Sam is not smiling about the sudden flak, or the actions that caused it," Boone wrote. "There's a distinct line between allowing people to live their own lives as they choose, and underwriting and endorsing, even promoting, choices and actions with which you fundamentally disagree. Mr. Sam was determined that his stores would always be 'family friendly'; and suddenly, the millions of families he always catered to are seriously pondering the mixed messages coming out of Bentonville. I think he would have remained benignly neutral and non-condemning toward homosexual groups – but would never have donated to their causes."
The company also recently offered for sale online a book promoting lesbian sex to girls still young enough to be playing with Barbies, and as WND reported, pulled it when the offering was publicized.
The company also has had several workers quit their jobs and plan protests because of the support for the "gay causes."
Tony Perkins, of the Family Research Council in Washington, D.C., said the problem is that the homosexual business group isn't just that. While the NGLCC "professes to promote the 'interests of the LGBT business community,' this is not all they have done," he said.
He said the group recently described efforts to defend traditional marriage as an attempt to "write discrimination into the Constitution …" and it has advocated attaching a pro-homosexual "hate crimes" amendment to legislation intended to protect children from violent sex offenders.
AFA boycotts in the past have proven effective, even though the organization doesn't take credit for all of the impacts. An example is the Ford Motor Company which more than a year ago embraced the "gay" community in its advertising and programs.
The AFA and dozens of other Christian groups joined in a boycott, and since then Ford has lost hundreds of millions of dollars, laid off tens of thousands of workers and is trying to regroup and stabilize.
That's OK, I'm still gonna boycott 'em...and the hundred mile round trip and ferry fee. Buy Island! Screw WalMart. I moved here to get away from demotic marketing.
Either we are equal or we are not. Good people ought to be armed where they will, with wits and guns. NRA KMA
Correctomundo! :)
This is HUGE... because it will send a messago to *** ALL BUSINESSES *** to re-think their policy of supporting the HOMOSEXUAL AGENDA!
The MSM gave these perverts COVER/PROTECTION, and so they were able to "shake down" many businesses (a al Jesse Jacson) for the last 20 years and we.... DID NOT KNOW IT!
Now, the "cat is out of the bag" and we are READY TOOOOOOOOO RUMBLEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!! - LOL
Happy Thanksgiving everyone!
The so-called-"hysteria" proved effective, no? Or would you rather see Wal Mart continue to give money to pro-gay organizations?
People can get what they want without being strident and hysterical about it. Well-reasoned arguments usually work, but they take more brains than lungpower, so the vast majority of people never use them.
I had not been following this story lately, but my first and final thought was going to be "Why oh why don't ANY of these high-profile stores simply take a stand that THEY WILL NOT BE POLITICIZED ONE WAY OR ANOTHER???? I say this will full knowledge that Wal-Mart has been politicized by the Left for years, probably as much as Halliburton, which is probably an even better reason to attempt to stay out of any highly political "entanglements"---they should do nothing more than deal with their employees, and their customers and the concerns of each. That is their ONLY obligation.
What's critical in Wal-Mart's statement is the "ability to serve customers." I understand that Lee Scott instituted the company's already existing "diversity" policy because of its ability to do business. He felt the liberal policies were needed so "Wal-Mart" could do business.
It will be interesting to see if the company continues to participate in the National Lesbian and Gay Chamber of Commerce, etc. But the company will have to comply with "anti-discrimination" laws, etc.
No one is buying all this "PR" baloney. File this one along withthe bulging file that nails Walmart's case shut.
You need to adopt adult language to make your case. You come off as sort of crazy with your choice of adjectives.
Is Walmart open on Thanksgiving?
Is he kidding? Maybe Sam was such a man but some of the kids have turned out to be hell on wheels.
They should not have cancelled the boycott until WalMart severed all ties to the Fudge Packer Chamber of Commerce, as well as ending its policy of diversity which includes sexual orientation and gender identity.
Explain our presence in Iraq, then, if "well-reasoned arguments" are sufficient.
No, sometimes it requires a cooperative effort of many like-minded people, doing more than mumble.
I didn't know gays were a minority. What is Wal-Mart going to do attract a broader gay and lesbian base, have a strap-on aisle.
I've pretty much stopped all my shopping at Wal-Mart.
"It's hysteria like this that gives both Christians and Conservatives a bad name."
What hysteria?
Christians and conservatives alike may vote with their wallets by not buying merchandise from stores that support the homosexual agenda.
That is not hysteria. That is called freedom.
The hysteria created by faulty headlines and not all of the information.
How many people ever heard of these homosexual groups before these so-called Christian and/or conservative organizations started screaming about them?
Better yet, out of all the businesses and organizations that participate in affiliate programs and sign up with various and sundry business groups (aka chambers of comerce) why is it that WalMart was the only one singled out by these so-called Christian/conservative groups.
I find it very strange that right at the same time the left is excoriating WalMart for alleged misdeeds, the "right" all of a sudden decides to taken them (and only them) on in such histrionic manner.
I'm neither condemning nor condoning anything here, I'm just seeing a bit too much onesideness here.
Is Walmart open on Thanksgiving?
What faulty headlines?
"How many people ever heard of these homosexual groups before these so-called Christian and/or conservative organizations started screaming about them?"
First of all they weren't "screaming", second of all why shouldn't they alert conservatives to a huge company that was pandering to the homosexual lobby? What's wrong with giving people information? With proper information, we can make the right decisions.
Too much onesidedness? I saw quotes from WM reps on this thread.
"Hysteria" was the wrong word to use.
Thanks I just ducked out there myself! ;-)
The AFA are a bunch of creeps, and I'm not afraid to say it. These tactics really aren't that much different from what hustlers like Je$$e JackSon do.
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