Reformation Charlotte reported Wednesday that Ellie Goulding, an English pop star had threatened to pull out of the Thanksgiving halftime show at the Dallas Cowboys and Buffalo Bills NFL game unless the Salvation Army pledged to make a substantial donation to the LGBTQ community.
The threats surfaced on her Instagram page after many of her fans raised concerns about the Salvation Army — a supposedly Christian organization — was “anti-gay.”
“I am a committed philanthropist.” Goulding told the Dallas Morning News, “as you probably know, and my heart has always been in helping the homeless, but supporting an anti-LGBTQ charity is clearly not something I would ever intentionally do. Thank you for drawing my attention to this.”
After Goulding threatened to pull out of the halftime show, Fox News reports that Goulding and the Salvation Army came to a consensus and that Goulding was satisfied and will go ahead with the performance as planned.
“We’d like to thank Ellie Goulding and her fans for shedding light on misconceptions and encouraging others to learn the truth about The Salvation Army’s mission to serve all, without discrimination,” the statement to Fox News reads, “We applaud her for taking the time to learn about the services we provide to the LGBTQ community. Regardless of race, ethnicity, sexual orientation or gender identity, we’re committed to serving anyone in need.”
The Salvation Army does have extensive support for the LGBTQ community offering special services for those who are sexually aberrant. In fact, the Salvation Army is one of the most gay-affirming “Christian” organizations that exists today offering food services, job training, and special sheltering facilities just for gays and special affirming counseling services for substance abuse and suicide.
