Bill Donohue

[[File:Donohue.gif|thumb|165px|Bill Donohue]]{{Christianity|1}}
{{cquote|Bill: I’m sorry you’re a pathetic, sad, bigoted, [[homophobic]] little man whose contribution to the world has been making it more unloving and less charitable.|||[[Hemant Mehta]]<ref>[http://www.patheos.com/blogs/friendlyatheist/2016/06/29/the-catholic-leagues-bill-donohue-says-gay-people-should-apologize-to-him/ The Catholic League’s Bill Donohue Says Gay People Should Apologize to Him]</ref>}}
'''William (Bill) A. Donohue''' {{lived|1947|}} is the rabid, hate-filled president of the [[Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights]]. His [[rhetoric]] lies somewhere between [[Pat Robertson]] and [[Fred Phelps]] on the insanity-and-[[homophobia]] scale.  

He also has said: "Hollywood is [[Antisemitism|controlled by secular Jews who hate Christianity]]."<ref>http://www.nbcnews.com/id/6685898/ns/msnbc-about_msnbc_tv/t/scarborough-country-dec/</ref>

Bill Donohue is divorced.<ref>http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/15/nyregion/15donohue.html?_r=0</ref> Presumably his direct line to [[God]] 
was instantly disconnected
 gave him a Get Out of Sin Free card where [[Matthew]] 19 is concerned.

His salary for spewing bile has been in the $300,000 to $475,000 range. The League has about $35 million in assets but probably a relatively small membership.<ref>[https://www.au.org/church-state/april-2015-church-state/people-events/catholic-league-leader-rakes-in-large-salary Catholic League Leader Rakes In Large Salary Despite Small Role]</ref><ref>[http://jimromenesko.com/2015/02/19/battling-the-media-pays-off-for-catholic-league-boss-bill-donohue/ JimRomenesko.com: Bashing the media pays off for conservative Catholic League boss Bill Donohue]</ref> 

==Child rape==
Donohue opposed a bill that would have required clergy to report suspected [[Child sexual abuse in the Roman Catholic Church|child abuse]].  Instead, he wanted to see consensual sex between teenagers included as child abuse.{{fact}} If you want to know his extremely logical{{lie}} stance on child abuse, he attacked the [[New York Times]] for running a story about Pope Benedict's refusal to defrock sexual abusers.<ref>[https://www.rightwingwatch.org/post/bill-donohue-declares-war-on-the-new-york-times/ Bill Donohue Declares War On the New York Times], Right Wing Watch</ref> Donohue claimed that there is no "paedophilia crisis" in the [[Roman Catholic Church]] but that there are too many [[gay]] people in the priesthood,<ref>[http://newsweek.washingtonpost.com/onfaith/guestvoices/2010/07/catholic_churchs_issue_is_homosexuality_not_pedophilia.html Catholic Church's issue is homosexuality, not pedophilia], Washington Post</ref> justifying this claim by saying that since most of the victims were male and "post-pubescent", the abusers were not pedophiles but instead were gay predators.<ref>[https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/bill-donohue-catholic-sex_n_520187 Bill Donohue: Catholic Sex Abuse Scandal Is Not A Pedophilia Crisis But A Homosexual Crisis]</ref> He also tried to defend the Church using possibly the worst ever example of the [[not as bad as]] fallacy, claiming in 2018 that:

{{quotebox|width=70%|Most of the alleged victims were not raped: they were groped or otherwise abused, but not penetrated, which is what 
the word "rape" means. This is not a defense—it is meant to set the record straight and debunk the worst case scenarios attributed to the 
offenders.<ref>[https://www.catholicleague.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/PA-GRAND-JURY-REPORT-DEBUNKED1.pdf PENNSYLVANIA GRAND JURY REPORT DEBUNKED], Bill Donohue, August 2018</ref>}}

Donohue also played a part in scuppering a New York State bill that would have made it easier for victims of Catholic child abuse to get compensation. Donohue stated:

{{quotebox|width=70%|The bill was sold as justice for the victims of sexual abuse, when, in fact, it was a sham, [It was] a vindictive bill pushed by lawyers and activists out to rape the Catholic Church.<ref>[http://www.patheos.com/blogs/friendlyatheist/2016/06/21/bill-donohue-law-to-help-child-abuse-victims-was-really-intended-to-rape-the-catholic-church/ Bill Donohue: Law to Help Child Abuse Victims Was Really Intended to “Rape the Catholic Church”]</ref>}}

Church lobbying and Donohue's claim of victory, in reality, demonstrate the Church's guilt.  It's a tacit admission that the child abuse problem and its potential cost to the Church are bigger than we know.  It also shows despite [[hypocrisy|promises to fix things]], [[Pope Francis]] has no plans for justice or compensation for victims. [[PZ Myers]] states:

{{quotebox|width=70%|Oh, no. Really? You just called the prosecution of child rape an act of rape? It’s kind of clear that Donohue has no understanding of what constitutes a violent sexual crime. (...) Let’s not forget that Bill Donohue is just the easily visible painful boil on the face of a church that continues to protect child rapists.<ref>[http://freethoughtblogs.com/pharyngula/2016/06/22/bill-donohue-is-being-awful-again/ Bill Donohue is being awful again]</ref>}}

==Child deaths==
Remains of babies and toddlers who died from neglect in an Irish [[Magdalene laundry|mother and baby home run by nuns]] were found dumped in what appears to have been a sewerage system (somehow Catholics do not see this as [[Sin#Mortal and venial sins|gravely sinful]]).
Donohue, who refuses to acknowledge that it happened, wrote:

{{quotebox|It was a lie in 2014 and it is a lie in 2017. The hoax is now back again, and an obliging media are running with the story as if it were true. Any objective and independent reporter would be able to report what I am about to say, but, unfortunately, there are too many lazy and incompetent reporters prepared to swallow the latest moonshine about the Catholic Church. If there was a Pulitzer for fake news, the competition would be fierce. Mass graves. Sexually assaulted women. Children stolen. It is all a lie.<ref>[http://www.patheos.com/blogs/friendlyatheist/2017/03/06/catholic-leagues-bill-donohue-the-irish-mass-grave-scandal-is-fake-news/ Catholic League’s Bill Donohue: The Irish Mass Grave Scandal is “Fake News”]</ref>}}

By contrast, Billy Connelly, councillor for the area where the remains were found, stated:

{{quotebox|I can't see how he could make a statement like this. The evidence on what they found is pretty well solid. What's in that mass grave and talking to local people is unquestionable. That's the first time I have heard anyone come up with a conspiracy to this. The facts are there and it's very insulting.<ref>Ian Begley, [https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/news/tuam-babies-scandal-is-fake-news-claims-the-catholic-league-35504516.html Tuam babies scandal is 'fake news', claims the Catholic League]. independent.ie, 6 March 2017.</ref>}}

==''Charlie Hebdo''==
In January, 2015, after an attack by [[Islamic extremism|Islamic extremists]] on the French satire magazine [[Charlie Hebdo]] resulted in the deaths of 12 people, Bill Donohue engaged in his usual amounts of insanity and blamed the attack on the victims' supposed "provocation" of [[Muslims]].<ref>[http://www.catholicleague.org/muslims-right-angry/ Muslims are right to be angry], a hitjob piece by Bill Donohue</ref> In an article he published on the Catholic League's website, he engaged in character assassination of Charlie Hebdo's editors, effectively justifying the attack that killed them. So while Donohue condemned the attack itself, he essentially said that the Hebdo employees [[Blaming the victim|had it coming]].<ref>"[http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2015/01/07/after-charlie-hebdo-attack-u-s-catholic-group-says-cartoonists-provoked-slaughter/ After Charlie Hebdo attack, U.S. Catholic group says cartoonists ‘provoked’ slaughter]", ''[[The Washington Post]]''</ref>

==Church discrimination==
Donohue not only believes that Catholic businesses should be allowed to discriminate against gay and lesbian employees<ref>[https://www.cnsnews.com/commentary/bill-donohue/equality-act-anti-christian Equality Act is Anti-Christian]</ref> but that such discrimination is deserved because the employees are purposely violating their contracts by working while gay.<ref>[https://www.cnsnews.com/commentary/bill-donohue/gay-rights-lefts-club-smash-religious-liberty Gay Rights – The Left’s Club to Smash Religious Liberty], CNS News</ref> He also doesn't think that firing people for being in a same-sex marriage counts as discrimination, or that gay people in Arizona have ever been discriminated against.<ref>[https://therandyreport.com/bill-donohue-needs-to-see-gay/ Bill Donohue needs to ‘see’ gay discrimination before he will believe it exists]</ref>

==See also==
*[[Rick Santorum]]

==External links==
*[http://www.actupny.org/reports/catholicleague.html Just a little negative rant]
*[http://www.patheos.com/blogs/friendlyatheist/2016/09/29/bill-donohue-blasphemy-rights-day-is-anti-catholic-and-richard-dawkins-is-like-a-kkk-wizard/ Bill Donohue: Blasphemy Rights Day is Anti-Catholic (and Richard Dawkins is Like a KKK Wizard)]

==References==
{{reflist|2|80%}}

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[[Category:Antisemites]]
[[Category:Atheophobia]]
[[Category:Authors]]
[[Category:Catholics]]
[[Category:Conspiracy theorists]]
[[Category:Denialists]]
[[Category:Educators]]
[[Category:Fundamentalists]]
[[Category:Global warming denialists]]
[[Category:Homophobes]]
[[Category:Journalists]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Political pundits]]
[[Category:Right-wing activists]]
[[Category:Sexists]]

Categories: Antisemites, Atheophobia, Authors, Catholics, Conspiracy theorists, Denialists, Educators, Fundamentalists, Global warming denialists, Homophobes, Journalists, Living people, Political pundits, Right-wing activists, Sexists