COLORADO SPRINGS INDEPENDENT – Academy still faces religion and gender-bias problems…
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MRFF Founder and President Michael L. “Mikey” Weinstein Responds
The stunning statistics attendant to the “Climate Study” just now released by the United States Air Force Academy clearly reveal that the prestigious military Academy still has a very long way to go on the path to reaching even minimally-acceptable Constitutional compliance in several human rights areas – most notably, basic religious respect.
Frankly, the math is not very encouraging at all. Twenty-three Air Force Academy cadets (thirteen of them Christians) report living “in fear of their physical safety” and 353 cadets report having been subjected to unwanted religious proselytizing out of only 40% of the Cadet Wing (student body) that chose to respond. On the other hand, what IS quite encouraging is that MRFF is currently handling only eighteen active cases at the Air Force Academy (down from a high of well over a hundred in past years) and ALL of our MRFF clients currently report being satisfied with the manner in which their personal complaints are being handled within “the internal chain of command system”!
It has taken well over 6 years for MRFF and myself to be able to feel even remotely comfortable with the Academy’s most senior leader and to have a genuine sense of mutual trust with same (emphasis on the word ‘mutual’). As I’ve said publicly many times before when asked, progress at the Air Force Academy is going to be a ‘crawl, walk, run’ exercise. When MRFF started to fight this bloody Constitutional civil rights battle years ago now, the Academy environment for Constitutionally-mandated religious freedom could be fairly likened to ‘Dodge City in the 1870’s.’ As this revelatory Climate Study reveals, it’s not yet a utopian ‘Mayberry.’
Admittedly, it is not going as fast as I would like to see yet, either qualitatively or quantitatively. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the good news is that we are well beyond the ‘crawl’ stage and into what I would call the ‘moderately fast walk’ stage. That is progress. MRFF fervently believes and sincerely hopes that, in the very near future, with excellent, Constitutionally-cognizant USAF senior leaders like Mike Gould (Superintendent of the United States Air Force Academy) at the helm, progress will soon start breaking into a ‘sprint.’ Obviously, we can’t wait forever. If progress fails to accelerate in a reasonable time, MRFF will act accordingly and aggressively.
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Ironically, as a Cadet at the Air Force Academy, the MRFF makes me AFRAID to be a Christian. I have to constantly live in fear that someone will over hear a private conversation that I am having about God and the MRFF sue my school indicting me with it that I violated someone’s constitutional rights.
I keep reading the words “The Radical Christian Right Wing” and I can’t help but feel the MRFF, instead of finding a solution, has lit their torches and wielded their pitchforks to become “The Radical Liberal Left”. There comes a point when the rhetoric becomes hateful, and the fact that the MRFF (mostely Mr. Weinstein’s words) are sharpened to make anyone who practices a Christian religion at the Academy feel ignorant, dirty, and evil.
Yes, there should be freedom of and freedom from religion, to include unwanted proselytizing. This I agree with 100%. Don’t get me wrong on that.
But, I also deserve freedom from persecution, and the “witch hunt” that Mr. Weinstein has conducted that makes me afraid and makes me feel dirty, ignorant, and evil is also against the Constitution.
I like the idea and the Principles behind the MRFF, but I do not like Mr. Weinstein’s hateful rhetoric and over generalizing judgments about the Christian community. I joined, and served prior enlisted, to protect and defend the Constitution of the United States of America, just as he did in 1977. For him to imply that I violate that because I am Christian is persecution, and makes him a hypocrite.
One should never feel ashamed or afraid based on their religious preference, or preference of no religion.
I want so badly what Mr. Weinstein wants, I will gladly admit that. But I will NOT shift the human-rights violation from one group to another.
Hi Mikey,
I’m sorry to hear that you feel afraid to be a Christian and even sorrier that you are attributing this fear to MRFF. 95% of MRFF’s clients are Christians, and that more than anything should tell you that we don’t hate Christians.
Sadly, most of our opposition is “Christian.” I put that in quotes because, as a practicing Catholic, I can’t bear to label anyone that hateful as a Christian. These so-called Christians most often come from Dominionist, fundamentalist sects. But it’s not their religious sect that we object to. It’s their actions.
NO ONE, regardless of the tenets of their faith, has the right to force their religion on any American citizen. This protection is guaranteed by the Constitution and subsequent Supreme Court rulings. Furthermore, the government of the United States and any officer or agency thereof is doubly restricted from forcing their beliefs on another human being. What is rather innocent proselytizing from a civilian takes on a whole new meaning from military personnel.
I truly hope that you are not one of these people. As you might guess, one of my responsibilities is combing through MRFF’s correspondence. I cannot express in words the foulness, cruelty, and hate of MRFF’s detractors. They are terrorists in every sense of the word. Please refer to our hate mail report if you want to see what I mean.
Perhaps once you read it, you will understand why Mr. Weinstein gets so angry. He’s not angry at Christians. In fact, he’s fighting every day for YOUR right to remain a Christian if you so choose. You could be a fundamentalist Christian or worship the flying spaghetti monster for all we care… as long as you don’t try to restrict the freedoms of other American citizens.
We received a very nice letter the other day that expressed it perfectly: “Why don’t people understand that to have their own freedom, they must respect the rights of others to have theirs?” This is exactly what our Founding Fathers understood and wanted for the United States.
I hope this clarifies MRFF policies somewhat. Please feel free to continue this discussion by emailing us. I would also recommend that you take a look at the Inbox or Help Build the Wall to see the messages from our supporters. I think you will find that many of them are Christians like yourself. If you are interested, you can place your own message on the wall.
Best,
Catherine
Thank you very much for your courteous and prompt reply. As I said in my other post, I completely agree with the desired outcome of the MRFF. I am very pleased that you all took the time to correspond with me on this issue and be forthcoming and honest. I, too, am angered at fundamentalist “Christians” that challenge the freedom and rights of every American, ESPECIALLY in the military. As I said before, I swore to defend and uphold the Constitution, not idealism.
Thank you for your clarifications. I very much respect that. I guess the fear is only derived from words I hear and titles I see, for example, I’ve never read Mr. Weinstein’s, but the titles of the books themselves are a bit provocative. I am sure that if I read the content, I’d have a completely different view and understanding.
Again, I respect what you all are doing, very much. And the prompt and courteous response is greatly appreciated. I am glad that I am able to understand the MRFF better.