Left-wing organization “Evangelicals for America,” previously called “Evangelicals for Harris,” has issued an apology after using Billy Graham videos to criticize now-President Donald Trump in the lead up to the 2024 election.
The organization said it used the video clips while under the belief that they would meet the criteria for Fair Use under the U.S. Copyright Act. The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association (BGEA) told the group that it was concerned the videos were being used for “political purposes without authorization.”
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“Our intent was not to infringe on BGEA’s copyright or to give the impression that Rev. Graham would have taken a side in publicly supporting one political candidate over another in an election, so we apologize to BGEA,” the group said, adding that it affirms that Rev. Graham always sought to tell people “about God’s Son, Jesus Christ, who alone came from heaven to earth to make a way for all mankind to be saved from our sins.”
“Rev. Graham aimed to win a hearing for the Gospel with all people, whether they were Americans who identified as Democrats, Republicans, or something else, or simply people from another country who had no context for American politics,” the statement added. The organization noted that they have taken down the clips and will not repost them.
Last year, Franklin Graham criticized the left-wing organization for one of its ads using clips of his father.
The ad showed Rev. Billy Graham asking God for forgiveness. The clip then cut to a 2015 interview with Donald Trump and GOP pollster Frank Luntz.
When asked if he has ever asked God for forgiveness, Trump said, “I’m not sure I have,” adding that he doesn’t “bring God into that picture.”
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The ad asked, “Is there any greater denial of Christ…than to say ‘I do not need his forgiveness?’”
Graham condemned the ad, writing on X at the time, “The liberals are using anything and everything they can to promote candidate Harris. They even developed a political ad trying to use my father @BillyGraham’s image.”
This article originally appeared on American Faith, and is reposted with permission.
