“ACTIVISTS” ARE LIARS: Salvation Army commander: Yes, we are faith-based charity. But we serve and love everyone.

The Salvation Army is the world’s largest nongovernmental provider of poverty relief, serving more than 23 million in need each year in America alone. Our doors are, and always have been, open to all. We don’t ask anyone their orientation, identity or beliefs, to help ensure that they feel welcome and safe. So while we can’t claim an exact number, we believe by sheer size and access that we are the largest provider of poverty relief for people in the LGBTQ community.

Across our 7,686 centers of operation, you’ll find Salvation Army employees who identify as members of the LGBTQ+ community. You’ll find social workers who understand, advocate for and implement tailored services. You’ll find dedicated initiatives and resources designed for unique support. And you’ll find volunteers who embody our mission to serve all.

Yet because our organization is rooted in faith, a chorus repeatedly rises that insists we are anti-LGBTQ. And that refrain is dangerous to the very community we are wrongly accused of rejecting. At minimum, perpetuating rhetoric that vilifies an organization with the reach, housing, programming and resources that we have in place to lift them up is counterintuitive and inefficient. But when that organization depends on the generosity of donors to provide much-needed assistance to so many across all walks of life, it’s devastating.

We have a dorm in Las Vegas exclusively for transgender individuals. In Minneapolis, an estimated 20% of the 550 or so individuals who seek rest in our Harbor Light shelter each night are members of the LGBTQ community. In San Francisco, we operate a detoxification facility that caters to those infected with HIV/AIDS. Our Young Adult Resource Center provides day shelter to homeless youth in Houston, many of whom identify as LGBTQ. We work with the City of Baltimore to combat trafficking among transgender individuals, a growing need there. And every other Salvation Army program, shelter or center nationwide is open to members of the LGBTQ+ community.

Those are verifiable facts, and though we have much more to do as we try to address unique needs of all kinds, Salvation Army programs like these are ready to help vulnerable LGBTQ people at this very minute.

But “activists” are liars. Remember, they aren’t good people who got carried away by a passion for justice. They’re awful, horrible, garbage people motivated by a desire to harm.

By the way, if you want to donate to the Salvation Army, their page is here.