Criticisms that the Salvation Army is more intent on promoting diversity policies fostering white guilt rather than providing a unified spirit of giving continue to trouble the charity group as the holiday season approaches.
A nonpartisan coalition called Color Us United launched a campaign in October to hold the Salvation Army accountable for its diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) policies. The coalition says the Salvation Army’s DEI policies, which were affirmed in an article last year titled “New DEI directors aim to better reflect the kingdom of God in the West,” are creating divisions rather than promoting a shared purpose of betterment.
“You have not fulfilled your pledge to create and publicize a document that truly respects the ordinary Americans who faithfully donate and support you,” Color Us United President Kenny Xu wrote in a letter to the organization’s National Commander Kenneth Hodder. “In fact, your organization continues to espouse woke policies that are based on anger about the past. In other words, TSA’s promotion of DEI runs directly counter to giving people hope – as well as spreading an uplifting message.”
Color Us United spokesperson Christian Watson said the campaign and letter represent an effort to hold the Salvation Army accountable for their actions. “The Salvation Army needs to listen to the voices of Americans who are seeking for this holiday season to be one that uplifts and unifies us in a shared purpose of bettering the lives of our fellow Americans,” Watson said.
Samantha Hyde, communications director for the Salvation Army’s Central and Southern Indiana Division, didn’t immediately comment about Color Us United’s campaign to do away with the Salvation Army’s race-based instructional materials.
Last year, the Salvation Army discontinued a guide dealing with racism that had been among its DEI instructional materials, citing criticisms it had received from the public.
“Elements of the recently issued ‘Let’s Talk About Racism’ guide led some to believe we think they should apologize for the color of their skin, or that the Salvation Army may have abandoned its biblical beliefs for another philosophy or ideology,” the organization said in a statement. “That was never our intention, so the guide has been withdrawn.”
According to Central Nova News, the Salvation Army asserted Christianity is institutionally racist, and called for white Christians to repent and offer "a sincere apology" to Blacks for being "antagonistic to Black people or the culture, values and interests of the Black community."
Many of the Salvation Army's regional commanders were silent in the wake of the "Let’s Talk About Racism" debacle, Detroit City Wire reported.
The DEI controversy comes at a time when the Salvation Army is struggling to recruit volunteers for its traditional Red Kettle campaign during the Christmas holiday period. In 2021, thousands of hours in volunteer shifts went unfilled, leading to a drop in annual donations of about one-third, according to the Washington Examiner.
Surveys have suggested that unfavorable opinions about the Salvation Army’s racial programming efforts might be to blame for the decline in volunteers. One poll indicated unfavorable feelings about the organization went from 11% to 41% after respondents were told about the racial programming materials it endorsed.