Photo: Guillermo Arias/AFP/Getty Images
A report released by the organization CatholicVote indicates that hundreds of US-based Roman Catholic churches have been attacked since May 2020.
Strangely, violence against Catholic places of worship has even reached as far away as Emmonak, Alaska.
In the most recent count of incidents the non-profit religious organization records 275 attacks against churches that include arson, broken windows, decapitated statues and satanic graffiti.
It is noteworthy that, after learning of the draft decision of the Supreme Court in Dobbs v. Jackson’s Health Organization, which strikes down federal abortion protections from Roe v. Wade., 118 incidents against venues linked to Catholicism were recorded.
The CatholicVote report warns that “the main motive is not material gain,” since the “vast majority” of the recorded incidents were simply property destruction.
In addition, Another report released a few weeks ago by the Family Research Council and entitled “Hostility against churches is increasing in the United States”, found that between January 2018 and September 2022, 420 acts of violence were registered in 45 states of the country. hostility against 397 churches.
“Americans seem increasingly comfortable attacking church buildings, pointing to a broader societal problem of marginalization of fundamental Christian beliefs, including those that touch on burning political issues related to human dignity and sexuality,” mention the document.
Despite the high number of criminal incidents related to places of worship, CatholicVote indicates that only in 25% of cases have there been arrests of alleged perpetrators.
In this regard, last year the FBI issued a statement showing its commitment to take action when its support is required to put an end to what could be hate crimes.
“If an investigation determines that a suspect violated one of the federal hate crime statutes, then the FBI will coordinate our investigation with the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, which will make the final determination as to whether the suspect will be charged or prosecuted. with a federal hate crime,” the letter said.
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