Petition update
PRESS RELEASE: SALT LAKE CITY, Utah/Monday, December 26, 2016
Dec 26, 2016 — Petition Requesting the Mormon Tabernacle Choir NOT Perform at Trump Inauguration Approaches 15,000 Signatures
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah/Monday, December 26, 2016/--- Just days since launching, the online petition asking the Mormon Tabernacle Choir not to perform at Trump’s inauguration has garnered nearly 15,000 signatures. Most of the signatures are from members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints which sponsors the choir. These members and others have also posted thousands of comments explaining why they disagree with the choir's decision to sing for Trump.
The petition has gained the attention of numerous print, online, television and radio news and social media outlets.
Randall Thacker, drafter of the petition, explains why he started it: “My heart sank when I heard the news last Thursday. I love the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. The thought of this choir and Mormonism being forever associated with a man who disparages minorities, brags about his sexual control of women, encourages intolerance and traffics in hate speech and bullying, was unacceptable. I immediately knew there were probably thousands of people who felt the same way, so I created the space on change.org for like-minded Mormons and their friends to share their feelings.” Randall has requested that all be civil when sharing their unique perspectives.
Thacker and other supporters of the petition plan to personally deliver the petition to the Mormon Tabernacle Choir and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the coming week.
Below are sample comments posted on the petition:
Chehalis, WA
“As a woman and Mormon of color and who supports the general authority’s message of inclusivity and tolerance, I am now appalled by this decision.”
Fayetteville, AR
“Donald Trump does not represent my values as a Mormon and I do not want that assumed by the participation of a cherished Mormon institution in his inauguration.”
Meridian, ID
“President Elect Trump's blatant bragging of his sexual assault of women, targeting of Muslims and others is a gross violation of my LDS ethics and morals. I am appalled that the church that I live and love is willing to perform at his inauguration.”
Las Cruces, NM
“Representatives of the Church may claim that the presence and performance of the choir at Trump's inauguration honors the office of the presidency. In the eyes of a great many of us the inauguration of Donald Trump, in itself, defiles that office and the LDS presence, in any form, will be viewed as supporting the man - not the office! In the name of all that's holy, we beg that the church reconsider its current position.”
Mexico
“This man (Donald Trump) does not align with the principles of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.”
Ogden, UT
“I'm signing this petition because Trump doesn't deserve the greatest choir in the nation.”
Tulare, CA
“As an adoptive mother of three beautiful and amazing Latino boys and a member of a Spanish speaking LDS congregation, I find it abhorrent that the Mormon Tabernacle Choir has agreed to participate, and in doing so support, the president elect. His comments about women, treatment of minorities, and mocking of the disabled in no way reflect the values of this church I dearly love. Participating speaks to condoning this man's positions and behavior. Please do not show the church standing beside what he has shown himself to be. Please reconsider and decline the invitation to participate. Please.”
Stanford, CA
“I am saddened and perplexed that my church would send its most famous representatives to perform at the inauguration of a man who is the antithesis of LDS values.”
Lower Burrell, PA
“Trump values are not Mormon values! In the Church, we focus on love not hate. By performing for Trump the Church shows support for him and the Church needs to show that we stand in the higher places.”
Baltimore, MD
“I'm not Mormon. However, I do share and admire the values that Mormons share and live by...for you to endorse the rhetoric and policies of Donald Trump tells me that Mormons don't share the values I'd been attributing to you at all. It says that your church is simply partisan, with no values at all.”
New York, NY
“As a rabbi, I feel an affinity for the Mormon religious values, particularly honesty, truth, benevolence. Donald Trump continues to trample upon these values. For the majestic and glorious Mormon Tabernacle Choir to celebrate his inauguration, would be an endorsement of how he disregards the values that define Mormonism.”
Beverly Hills, CA
“The Mormon Church stands for pluralism and morality; Mr. Trump does not. Please do not besmirch the good name of the Mormon faith by allowing the Mormon Tabernacle to perform at the inaugural of a man whose actions and character are antithetical to the high moral standards of the Mormon Church.”
Pleasantville, NY
“The incoming President has made clear that he does not in any way believe in the values represented by the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. As expressed on its website, the Choir has been called "a symbol of freedom", and is "universally recognized and lauded" because its members' singing "lift the spirits of people of diverse cultures, ages, and religions". Donald Trump has shown complete disrespect for people of different cultures and religions, especially Muslims around the world. The Choir should not perform as it suggests that the Choir shares his values.”
Petition URL at change.org: https://www.change.org/p/the-church-of-jesus-christ-of-latter-day-saints-mormon-tabernacle-choir-should-not-perform-at-trump-inauguration
CONTACT:
Kendall Wilcox
Mobile: 801.824.3300
Email: kendall.wilcox@gmail.com
Twitter: @kendallwilcox
#######
Keep fighting for people power!
Politicians and rich CEOs shouldn't make all the decisions. Today we ask you to help keep Change.org free and independent. Our job as a public benefit company is to help petitions like this one fight back and get heard. If everyone who saw this chipped in monthly we'd secure Change.org's future today. Help us hold the powerful to account. Can you spare a minute to become a member today?
I'll power Change with $5 monthly