KGMI News
by Tracy Ellis
BELLINGHAM, Wash. – A Bellingham organization is on the Southern Poverty Law Center’s list of hate groups.
Tom Wallace’s “Fortress of Faith” started at and is supported by Bellingham Baptist Church.
The SPLC describes the group as anti-Muslim.
Wallace attacks the Islamic faith on his website and on a daily podcast.
“Rarely a day goes by now that I’m not hearing something about the Southern Law Poverty Center [sic] and how groups have been placed on that – wrongly placed on that – who are not hate groups,” Wallace said on Tuesday’s podcast on fortressoffaith.com.
“Now there are genuine hate groups that are on that list, I mean, just terrible organizations. But they’re lumping in Christian organizations. We were added to that list two years ago, and I really didn’t know what to make of it there. We didn’t see much fallout. But I’m here to tell you today, the temperature is changing,” Wallace said.
One example of Wallace’s work is a graphic on the website that compares Islam to Nazism.
“We are not anti-Muslim in any way shape or form,” said Josh Carter, Bellingham Baptist Church pastor.
Carter tells KGMI that “Fortress of Faith” is a ministry of that church, and is not a hate group.
“Muslims are the victims of Islam. The ideology of Islam and the teachings of Islam are what Fortress of Faith attack,” Carter said.