logo
    • Magazine
    • Membership
    • Donate
  • Racial Justice
  • Economic Justice
  • Climate Justice
  • Health Justice
  • Leadership
  • CONTENT TYPES
  • Subscribe
  • Webinars
    • Free Webinars
    • Premium On-Demand Webinars
  • Membership
  • Submissions

Nonprofit Newswire | Beck and Palin Channel MLK

Rick Cohen
August 26, 2010
Share
Tweet
Share
Email
Print

August 24, 2010; Source: Think Progress |  Glenn Beck and Sarah Palin are apolitical, or at least they say they will be apolitical on August 28th when they will hold a “Restoring Honor” rally on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. If you think Beck and Palin can shed their political togas and absorb the high-minded values wafting around the site where 47 years earlier the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech, you’re pretty special.

Not even Bill O’Reilly could buy the non-political pitch of his “Bold Fresh Tour” partner. Ostensibly, this non-political event is a fundraiser for an organization called the Special Operations Warrior Foundation, a 501(c)(3), which provides educational scholarships and counseling to families of special operations military personnel (Green Berets, Navy SEAL’s, etc.) who die in operational or training missions and financial assistance to the families of severely wounded special ops personnel.

Despite SOWF’s cosponsorship, Restoring Honor feels and looks political, with Americans for Prosperity—a major conservative advocacy organization that provides technical and operational support for Tea Party groups and other conservative causes—helping organize bus trips for people to join Beck and Palin at the Lincoln Memorial. Beck’s people say that the rally is not a Tea Party rally, but there are lots of Tea Party groups organizing to generate numbers for the crowd.

Sign up for our free newsletter

Subscribe to the NPQ newsletter to have our top stories delivered directly to your inbox.

By signing up, you agree to our privacy policy and terms of use, and to receive messages from NPQ and our partners.

Beck might get some numbers not in his favor. National Action Network leader, the Rev. Al Sharpton, joined by the NAACP and the National Urban League is organizing a counter rally, and New Black Panther Party Chairman, Malik Zulu Shabazz, plans to greet Beck at the Memorial—the National Park Service police may have their hands full.

Maybe Beck and Palin, and luminaries like Amboy Dukes lead guitarist (and gun enthusiast) Ted Nugent, will keep the event on a nonpolitical plain. Doubtful, but the IRS probably won’t go after SOWF’s (c)(3) status. However, the notion of Beck and crew picking the “I Have a Dream” anniversary for their rally feels inappropriate, notwithstanding Beck’s recruiting of Rev. King’s niece, Alveda King, to join him. Alveda King is a well known pro-life activist who gained special notoriety for comparing gay marriage to genocide. We just don’t see Beck and Palin as representatives of the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr.—Rick Cohen

Share
Tweet
Share
Email
Print
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Rick Cohen

Rick joined NPQ in 2006, after almost eight years as the executive director of the National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy (NCRP). Before that he played various roles as a community worker and advisor to others doing community work. He also worked in government. Cohen pursued investigative and analytical articles, advocated for increased philanthropic giving and access for disenfranchised constituencies, and promoted increased philanthropic and nonprofit accountability.

More about: Nonprofit News

Become a member

Support independent journalism and knowledge creation for civil society. Become a member of Nonprofit Quarterly.

Members receive unlimited access to our archived and upcoming digital content. NPQ is the leading journal in the nonprofit sector written by social change experts. Gain access to our exclusive library of online courses led by thought leaders and educators providing contextualized information to help nonprofit practitioners make sense of changing conditions and improve infra-structure in their organizations.

Join Today
logo logo logo logo logo
See comments

You might also like
To Build a Public Safety That Protects Black Women and Girls, Money Isn’t the Only Resource We Need
Shanelle Matthews
I Was Arrested For Protesting Racial Injustice—and Nearly Deported
Máxima Guerrero
World Building, Ancestral Wisdom, and Economies of Abundance
ChristinaMaria Xochitlzihuatl
Advancing Housing Justice: Three Key Steps
Peter Sabonis
Sustaining the Rising Tide of Black Co-ops: An Ecosystem Approach
Omar Freilla
What Do Justice and Democracy Require? Towards a Vision of Liberation
Kyle Strickland

NPQ_Summer_2022

Upcoming Webinars

July 14th, 2 pm ET

Combating Disinformation and Misinformation in 21st-Century Social Movements

Register Now
Group Created with Sketch.
July 28th, 2 pm ET

Changing the Subject

Boards As Social Movement Spaces

Register Now
You might also like
AOC’s “Tax the Rich” Dress Dazzles Met Gala, while...
Anastasia Reesa Tomkin
Foundation Giving Numbers for 2020 Show 15 Percent Increase
Steve Dubb
Strike MoMA Imagines Art Museums without Billionaires
Tessa Crisman

Like what you see?

Subscribe to the NPQ newsletter to have our top stories delivered directly to your inbox.

See our newsletters

By signing up, you agree to our privacy policy and terms of use, and to receive messages from NPQ and our partners.

Independent & in your mailbox.

Subscribe today and get a full year of NPQ for just $59.

subscribe
  • About
  • Contact
  • Advertise
  • Copyright
  • Careers

We are using cookies to give you the best experience on our website.

 

Non Profit News | Nonprofit Quarterly
Powered by  GDPR Cookie Compliance
Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.

Strictly Necessary Cookies

Strictly Necessary Cookie should be enabled at all times so that we can save your preferences for cookie settings.

If you disable this cookie, we will not be able to save your preferences. This means that every time you visit this website you will need to enable or disable cookies again.