donations

In God we Trust,

And Have a Blessed Day!

You must be a very angry group of people.

No I will not donate to you.

I am sure you are hugging the ACLU in trying to destroy America.

So, I say again, just to irritate you,

In God we Trust,

And Have a Blessed Day.

(name withheld)

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Dear (name withheld):

I am writing in response to your March 14, 2015 email to MRFF, in which you assert that you will not be donating to the organization.  You also twice state “In God we Trust, And Have a Blessed Day” specifically because you believe the phrase will cause irritation.

 

As an initial matter, I am disappointed that you would wish someone a blessed day only to aggravate him.  Anyone with so much hatred in her heart is unlikely to have a blessed day herself.  More importantly, you apparently do not truly understand the mission and work of MRFF.

 

Because you seem to think that saying “Have a blessed day” would be hurtful, I assume your email concerns the recent challenge to greetings at Robins Air Force Base.  This action was not taken because MRFF finds the phrase “irritating,” but because its utterance by service members acting on behalf of the Air Force (or any branch of the military) serves to endorse Christianity over other religious faiths.  Such endorsement constitutes a violation of the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.

 

MRFF is dedicated to ensuring the religious freedom of all soldiers, sailors, Marines, cadets, and veterans.  If the greeting in question were “Shalom” or “Namaste” or “Alhamdulillah,” MRFF would have taken the same action.  Yet, I somehow doubt you would be so critical of MRFF if the situation concerned any of these other greetings.

 

Your accusation that MRFF is “trying to destroy America” could not be further from the truth.  The work of MRFF actually protects America by protecting the Constitutional rights of the brave men and women who risk their lives to protect our Constitutional rights.  I cannot speak for the ACLU, but I am deeply troubled by your assumption that protecting Constitutional rights somehow “destroys” America.  What could destroy America more than denying these rights or standing by silently while they are taken away?

 

Your assertion that MRFF volunteers and supporters “must be a very angry group of people” is not entirely incorrect – we do sometimes become angry and frustrated because people like you insist that religious freedom is some sort of privilege that should only be granted to Christians.  Thankfully, any anger sparked by emails such as yours only strengthens our dedication to advocate for the service members who face unwanted religious proselytization and/or discrimination.

 

If you have any questions regarding the mandates of the First Amendment or the mission of MRFF, I would be happy to hear them and to respond accordingly.

 

Blessed be,

 

Tobanna Barker