Focus and the Family and American Family Association have called on their constituents to boycott Procter & Gamble’s two best-selling products to protest the company’s endorsement of same-sex “marriage.”
Leaders of the two pro-family groups, Dr. James Dobson of Focus on the Family and Rev. Donald E. Wildmon, have called for the boycott of Procter & Gamble’s Tide detergent and Crest toothpaste, which takes in for the company $1 billion annually.
The two pro-family groups are battling to pass the Federal Marriage Amendment which will define marriage in the U.S. as between a man and a woman. Meanwhile, in Ohio, the groups are also working alongside other pro-family groups to pass an initiative banning same-sex “marriage,” but view Procter & Gamble’s financial support to a pro-homosexual campaign as an opposition to traditional marriage.
Procter & Gamble, headquartered in Cincinnati, has donated $10,000 to the campaign to repeal a city ordinance prohibiting the granting of special rights to homosexuals. On the company’s internal Web site, a statement says the company "will not tolerate discrimination in any form, against anyone, for any reason."
Although the company does not directly endorse same-sex “marriage,” its policies and financial support to the gay activist campaign show otherwise, according to Dobson.
"For Procter & Gamble to align itself with radical groups committed to redefining marriage in our country is an affront to its customers," he said.
Dobson added, "An overwhelming majority of Americans -- the men and women who buy this company's products -- oppose same-sex marriage. To give no thought to their views while selling out to a very small special-interest group is not only bad business, it's bad for the country.”
In the past, Procter & Gamble has had its problems, said Dobson, "in terms of the sexualized television programming it has sponsored, but what it's doing now threatens the cornerstone of our society: the family."
While Procter & Gamble spokesman Doug Shelton said the company is working to repeal a law, which prohibits the granting of special rights to homosexuals, but denies the company is taking a stand on the issue of same-sex “marriage.”
Tom Minnery, Focus on the Family’s vice president of government and public policy rejected Shelton’s claims.
"That's like somebody saying we're opposed to water but we're in favor of rain," he told Focus on the Family’s CitizenLink. "They cannot have it both ways. If they are not discriminating against homosexuals as they claim, then they are in favor of gay marriage."
Dobson admits that while the boycott will “make a dent, financially, in a corporate giant like Procter & Gamble,” it will send a strong message to the company, saying: “Not only have you lost your moral compass, but you have lost our business. And you're not going to get it back until you stop insulting us and disregarding our values.”
Dobson informed listeners of his daily radio broadcast, which averages 9 million listeners per week, yesterday of the boycott. The AFA has sent emails calling on its readers to boycott the products.
