Anyone watching the NFL playoffs has undoubtedly seen the ads for this week’s release of American Sniper, the biopic of decorated Navy SEAL sniper Chris Kyle.  Kyle, who served four tours in Iraq, was an American hero.  He saved countless lives and worked with disabled veterans after he was honorably discharged.  He made the rounds on cable news and positively influenced just about every single person he touched.  He was tragically killed by a fellow veteran suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder on February 2, 2013.

Sadly, there are some anti-gun groups who don’t share in honoring and recognizing this true American hero.  The Coalition to Stop Gun Violence (CSGV), a left wing organization dedicated to attacking the 2nd Amendment, posted stories about this movie and Kyle’s death on its Facebook page, and the organization’s supporters shamelessly utilized the open forum to show their true colors:

“Good Riddance.”

“What goes around comes around.”

“The guy is a moron… Idiot.”

These outrageous comments haven’t received repudiation from the CSGV or its members, but that might be because this isn’t even new territory for them.  The group has labeled the National Rifle Association as “treasonous.”  Their website goes on to say, “[t]he insurrectionist ideology promoted by the NRA and other pro-gun groups is corrosive to the democratic values and institutions that protect the freedoms we enjoy as Americans.”

One might wonder who CSGV is and why they continue to host and promote such hateful language.  They are actually made up of over 47 member organizations covering a wide spectrum of non-profits and religious associations. Two members that are particularly recognizable are the YWCA and the National Urban League who receive a significant amount of funding from the deep pockets of various corporations. Major funders of the YWCA include, but are not limited to, Macy’s, Abercrombie and Fitch, 3M, Walmart and Pepsi. One of the Urban League’s major partners is the National Football League.

Companies that allow their donations and money to fund an organization that provides a forum for such vile attacks on an American hero is troubling, and should be addressed.  Unfortunately, the media will probably decline to ask the NFL and other corporate sponsors of CSGV if they support such rhetoric, unless conservatives hold them accountable.

It’s easy, and convenient, to brush aside invective comments as an uncontrollable consequence of the openness of social media. However, CSGV has its own history of outlandish rhetoric as well, and has provided forums for this type of discourse continuously without any acknowledgment that a lot of the comments are wrong and out of line.

Silence is tacit approval for these comments, whether from the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence, from its members organizations like the Urban League and the YWCA and their corporate sponsors.  They should not be silent anymore, and neither should we.
Chris Walker is the Executive Director of 2nd Vote, a conservative shopper app. To find out more, download the free app or visit 2ndVote.com.