The Catholic League has asked Vice President Al Gore to cancel an ad that is scheduled to air tonight on BET with pop singer Cher; the first of the two-part ad aired last night on BET. The league’s request is prompted by the soon-to-be released new song by Cher, “Sisters of Mercy.” The song is explicitly anti-Catholic and is featured on her new CD, “Not Commercial”; it will be available on November 8.
Today’s edition of the New York Post has a story on the nature of the Catholic League’s objections to “Sisters of Mercy”; several TV and radio outlets have done stories on this as well. A report in today’s Los Angeles Times says that Cher recently taped the “two-part get-out-the-vote appearance with the vice president and the Rev. Jesse Jackson on cable’s BET.”
Catholic League president William Donohue explained the league’s reaction today:
“In the mid-1980s, Tipper Gore led the fight to put warning labels on record albums. This is apropos given that Cher has herself authorized warning labels on her new CD, ‘Not Commercial.’ Unfortunately, Cher’s warning labels were not meant to warn Catholics of the anti-Catholic lyrics she wrote for ‘Sisters of Mercy.’
“Gore cannot have it both ways. If he is sensitive to the issue of anti-Catholicism, and if he, like his wife, believes that the recording industry is deserving of more policing (voluntary or otherwise), then he should immediately cancel tonight’s ad with Cher on BET. To campaign with someone who is planning to stick it to Catholics the day after the election would be the height of hypocrisy. It would also be unforgivable.
“The Catholic League has communicated its request to a spokesperson in the Gore campaign headquarters in Nashville, Tennessee, and is awaiting their decision.”
