There was a time when Morris Dees and his Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) were respected.
Mr. Dees prosecuted Klan organizations and Neo-Nazi organizations into bankruptcies.
The SPLC published the names and locations of racist hate groups on a regular basis, raising millions of dollars in contributions and legal judgements.
Mr. Dees had wide respect from Republicans and Democrats and far-too-wide disdain from people who called themselves Democrat or Republican.
Something changed.
The SPLC put Dr. Ben Carson on their “Hate Watch” list.
And it isn’t because he belongs to some white supremacist group or, to be consistent, any black supremacist group.
It’s because Dr. Carson, the brilliant neurosurgeon and conservative, believes the bible is the word of God and so God’s command that “a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh” really means he hates gay people and must be watched as man as dangerous as the Ku Klux Klan.
Yes, Dr. Carson articulates his belief in God and his belief that God tells us marriage is between and man and a woman. For this reason, the SPLC has notified law enforcement and everyone else via database and web site that Dr. Ben Carson, a successful black man, is a danger.
You may recall that the SPLC was the catalyst behind the shooting at The Family Research Council. The FRC promotes heterosexual over homosexual lifestyles within the biblical context, thus gaining the designation of a hate group by the SPLC. They’re certainly not dangerous, even if you disagree with their opinions.
In 2012, “Political Activist” Floyd Lee Corkins said he was inspired by the SPLC’s “Hate Map” showing the Family Resource Center’s address to take his gun to the FRC and shoot someone.
He got the security guard in the arm. The guard, Leo Johnson, told a reporter, “As I was punching him to get the gun, I was using the arm that I was shot with, so God definitely took over and He gave me the strength to take care of that situation. He also gave me the strength, once I got the gun from him, not to shoot him.”
Yup. That’s the voice of a dangerous hater.
George Yancey, professor of sociology at the University of North Texas, published a study titled, “Watching the Watchers: The Neglect of Academic Analysis of Progressive Groups” last year.
He found that none of the groups listed on Hatewatch, are either political or religious liberals. Yancey believes this is because SPLC has become a socially and politically left-wing organization, using subjective criteria to choose which groups belong on their list.
“The subjective nature of the criteria for determining a hate group provides a conceptual structure more vulnerable to social bias than an objective criteria applying to groups across a wide political, cultural, and religious spectrum,” he wrote.
Dr. Ben Carson, raised by his single mom in Detroit, worked and earned a scholarship for college, putting him on the path toward director of pediatric neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins University. There, he distinguished himself as one of the top brain surgeons in the world.
His eloquent response to the SPLC, which has since apologized and removed him from their hate list:
“When embracing traditional Christian values is equated to hatred, we are approaching the stage where wrong is called right and right is called wrong,” he said. “It is important for us to once again advocate true tolerance.”
“That means being respectful of those with whom we disagree and allowing people to live according to their values without harassment. It is nothing but projectionism when some groups label those who disagree with them as haters.”
If that doesn’t make you tremble in fear, it does at the SPLC.
The irony is that SPLC representatives have appeared as guest contributors on MSNBC’s “The Ed Show.”
Ed Schultz, “The Ed Show” host, has spewed lies about Christians, which fits the SPLC’s “hate” definition.
Ed has also voiced desires to see violence committed against people with whom he disagrees, which Dr. Carson has not.
Yet, Schultz is not on the SPLC “Hate Watch” list.
#hypocrisy
Rick Jensen is Delaware’s award-winning conservative talk show host on 1150AM WDEL and 93.7FM HD3, Streaming live on WDEL.com from 1pm - 4pm EST. Contact Rick at rick@wdel.com, or follow him on Twitter @Jensen1150WDEL