| Revision as of 00:10, 9 February 2007 editAndyvphil (talk | contribs)Extended confirmed users, Pending changes reviewers7,372 edits →Criticism: m.Oops.Remove editing detritus.← Previous edit | Revision as of 06:52, 9 February 2007 edit undoHipocrite (talk | contribs)Autopatrolled, Extended confirmed users, Pending changes reviewers, Rollbackers22,615 edits not a reliable source, see talkNext edit → | ||
| Line 10: | Line 10: | ||
| __TOC__ | __TOC__ | ||
| ==Criticism== | ==Criticism== | ||
| ]'s right-wing ] (DTN) accuses PRA of engaging in "smear tactics" and promoting a "hard-left agenda."{{Fact|date=February 2007}} DTN says PRA's purpose is promoting the ] doctrines of "]" and "progressive internationalism". It notes that it endorsed the adoption of the Plan of Action from the 2001 UN World Conference Against Racism, Xenophobia, and Related Intolerance, "largely a forum for anti-American and anti-Israel rhetoric". | |||
| Stanley Kurtz of the conservative magazine '']'' described PRA's researchers as "conspiracy mongers" for a 1994 report on the religious right. According to Kurz, PRA used guilt by association techniques to associate conservative Christians with theocratic ]: "By quoting a pathetic Dominionist extremist’s desperate efforts to prove his own influence, clever liberals can now argue that the ultimate goal of all conservative Christians is the re-institution of slavery, and execution for blasphemers and witches. PRA responded to Kurz by stating that the report was "a serious study of the Dominionist Christian Reconstructionist movement." | Stanley Kurtz of the conservative magazine '']'' described PRA's researchers as "conspiracy mongers" for a 1994 report on the religious right. According to Kurz, PRA used guilt by association techniques to associate conservative Christians with theocratic ]: "By quoting a pathetic Dominionist extremist’s desperate efforts to prove his own influence, clever liberals can now argue that the ultimate goal of all conservative Christians is the re-institution of slavery, and execution for blasphemers and witches. PRA responded to Kurz by stating that the report was "a serious study of the Dominionist Christian Reconstructionist movement." | ||
Revision as of 06:52, 9 February 2007
- "The Public Eye" redirects here. For other uses, see The Public Eye (disambiguation).
Political Research Associates (PRA) (formerly Midwest Research, Chicago, 1981-1987) is a non-profit research group located in Somerville, Massachusetts, which studies the U.S. political right wing, as well as white supremacists, anti-Semitic groups, and paramilitary organizations. It has a full-time staff of six. The director is Rev. Dr. Katherine Hancock Ragsdale. Dr. Jean V. Hardisty was the director from 1981 to 2004. Chip Berlet is the group's senior analyst. Researchers include Tarso Luís Ramos and Pam Chamberlain.
PRA publishes a journal, The Public Eye, three times a year, which reports on specific and current movements or trends within the U.S. political Right, and also produces special reports, past examples of which include "Calculated Compassion," which details attacks on gays and lesbians, and "Decades of Distortion," which alleged scapegoating of welfare recipients. Template:Dominionism The group provides public speakers, and has staff on hand to answer queries from journalists, researchers, and activists. Its annual funding of approximately $700,000 per year comes from foundation grants, individual contributions, and the sale of research materials. Expenditures are directed toward staffing, general & administrative expenses, programs and fundraising. (pdf, p. 16). Among its major donors are the Public Welfare Foundation and the Ford Foundation.
PRA is supported by a number of progressive and liberal activists, including Anne Braden of the Southern Organizing Committee, and Suzanne Pharr of the Highlander Research Center. Pharr has written that PRA "sets the standard for researchers and political analysts of integrity," and describes the group's research as "thorough, thoughtful, carefully researched, and presented within a broad context of understanding of the complex relationships and activities of the Right."
Criticism
Stanley Kurtz of the conservative magazine National Review described PRA's researchers as "conspiracy mongers" for a 1994 report on the religious right. According to Kurz, PRA used guilt by association techniques to associate conservative Christians with theocratic Dominionism: "By quoting a pathetic Dominionist extremist’s desperate efforts to prove his own influence, clever liberals can now argue that the ultimate goal of all conservative Christians is the re-institution of slavery, and execution for blasphemers and witches. PRA responded to Kurz by stating that the report was "a serious study of the Dominionist Christian Reconstructionist movement."