In a new email fundraising appeal, the socially conservative Concerned Women for America revealed that an anti-Republican blog has been encouraging its readers to “Call/Contact or Visit” the group’s CEO “in person” and linking to CWA’s publicly available address and phone number.
CWA President and CEO Penny Nance explained in the email, which was sent to supporters on Tuesday, how the conservative women’s organization has been “maligned by the radical Left” for opposing same-sex marriage, labeled a hate group and identified by the Southern Poverty Law Center as one of “a dozen major groups [that] help drive the Religious Right’s anti-gay crusade.”
Noting that last year an individual took out his anger over the Family Research Council’s position on same-sex marriage with bullets, Nance pointed out that FRC blamed the shooting in part on the fact that the SPLC had labeled FRC a “hate group.”
“And the anti-CWA crusade has taken it one threatening step further -publishing our address and my personal information and encouraging their members to ‘contact, call, or visit Penny Nance in person,’” Nance continued in the email. “(After labeling me a ‘toxic cancer that needs to be removed.’) Who’s spewing hate here?”
The blog Nance sites in her email, called the “Republican Retard Club,” appears to have posted about Nance nearly two years ago. The blog cites the conservative group’s support for Chick-fil-a and opposition to Obamacare, among other issues, as a reason to “contact” Nance — linking to a page with her organization’s address and phone number.
In an interview with The Daily Caller, Nance said she is concerned people are silenced by “bullying” tactics.
“It is just a crazy blogger in his mother’s basement probably, but it is just that kind of thing that happens when they throw around terms like ‘hate groups,’” Nance said.
“This is coming off the heels of FRC, so no longer can we dismiss them,” Nance explained.
CWA is not currently on SPLC’s so-called “hate map,” although SPLC has specifically criticized CWA for its supposed hostility towards homosexuals. However, in recent days the left-wing publication ThinkProgress referred to CWA as a “hate group” in an article about an Iowa community college conference on bullying.
Nance recalled a conversation she had with a Christian high school student who believes in traditional marriage who said she is scared to admit it.
“The environment has become so hostile and so personal and so anti-Christian that she is frightened,” Nance said. “And I think that kind of bullying — there are people who say they believe in inclusive and they believe in the First Amendment are the very ones who are using extreme bigotry, using really nasty language and labeling to silence other people.”