The story behind the N.Y. Times ad defending Mormons

Mormon Media Observer first saw the full-page advertisement defending the LDS

Church against attacks in the New York Times (see the ad here and news release here), I

wanted to know more about the people who were standing up for the rights of religious people and groups to enter the public square

without violence or intimidation. So I did some checking.It turns out

the ad was the brainchild of Kevin J. "Seamus" Hasson, who is the

founder and president of the Washington-based Becket Fund for

Religious Liberty. Hasson

sent a message to those who had contact with the Fund and its

activities suggesting the advertisement. That lead to the signatories

from various religious traditions ranging from Ronald J.

Sider, Evangelicals for Social Action; to Nathan J. Diament, Union

of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America; to Marvin Olasky, The

King's College, said Scott Walter, executive director of the Becket

Fund.The ad, headlined "No Mob Veto," also directed those who agreed

with the ad to a Web site of the same name. As of Dec. 8, 2,000 people

had asked that their names be added to the ad at the online site. Walter said that about 10 percent of comments were negative, which he says suggests strong support for the ad.While Walter didn't

release specific numbers, he said the full-page ad cost in the "mid 5

figures" and some donors gave seed money to help finance the project. While

planning the ad, the organizers specifically did not seek support from the

LDS Church or its members.None of the signatories or donors were LDS. Hasson

wanted the ad's message to be strengthen by independence and a cross-section