July 5, 2011
Americans United for Separation of Church and State today asked U.S. Army leaders to ensure that officials at Fort Bragg in North Carolina don’t sponsor events that give selective benefits to religious groups.
In a letter sent today to Secretary of the Army John M. McHugh and commanders at Fort Bragg, Americans United and allied civil liberties groups take issue with “Rock the Fort,” an evangelical Christian rally that took place at the installation in 2010.
The event, sponsored by the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, was heavily promoted by Fort chaplains and received $50,000 in financial support and $30,000 in logistical and security support.
“‘Rock the Fort’ was clearly designed to evangelize people into a conservative form of Christianity,” said Ayesha N. Khan, Americans United legal director. “No branch of the government, much less the Army, has any business promoting an endeavor like that.”
http://www.au.org/media/press-releases/archives/2011/07/fort-bragg-support-of-graham.html