Smear Attack

FAMILY INSTITUTE SMEARED AS ONE OF 32 ILLINOIS "HATE GROUPS," ALONG WITH NEO-NAZIS AND SKINHEADS

From the Southern Poverty Law Center's website listing 32 Illinois "hate groups" 

CAROL STREAM - The Illinois Family Institute's traditional values principles were once again smeared Monday when an Illinois-based Reuters reporter gave credence to the list of Southern Poverty Law Center's list of 32 Illinois-based "hate groups."  

Being included alongside 31 other neo-Nazi and black separationist groups as an "anti-LGBT" hate group is "morally indefensible" and "intellectually dishonest" of the Center, IFI writer Laurie Higgins wrote in an email.

Spurred on by the weekend's violent clash between white supremacists and black separationists in Charlottesville Virginia, newsman Dave McKinney thought it helpful to tweet: 

Which was shortly thereafter followed with:  

Higgins, who is a key opinion piece contributor for Illinois Family Institute, said IFI unequivocally denounces racism. Two members of IFI and its sister organization Illinois Family Action are black.

"It is both morally indefensible and intellectually dishonest of the ethically impoverished Southern Poverty Law Center to include the Illinois Family Institute on its list of 'hate' groups alongside repugnant Neo-Nazi and white supremacist groups," she said. "IFI is included on this list because we espouse theologically orthodox views of homosexuality, marriage, and the intrinsic and profound meaning of objective, immutable biological sex."

IFI holds the same views on LGBT issues as the Roman Catholic Church, Presbyterian Church in America, Orthodox Presbyterian Church, Missouri Synod Lutheran Church, Evangelical Free Church, Evangelical Covenant Church, Eastern Orthodox Church, Christian Reformed Church, Southern Baptist Church, Anglican Church in North America,  Assemblies of God, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormon church), Seventh Day Adventist Church, scores of non-denominational churches, the Bible and over 2,000 years of church history, she said.

"Curiously, the SPLC hasn’t included them on its 'hate' groups list—yet," Higgins said.