While the Knights were politically active from an early date, in the years following the
Second Vatican Council, as the "Catholic anti-defamation character" of the order began to diminish as Catholics gained more acceptance, the leadership began to use its financial resources to directly influence the direction of the church. That led to the creation of a "variety of new programs reflecting the proliferation of the new social ministries of the church." At times, the leadership of the order has been both
liberal and
conservative.
Martin H. Carmody and
Luke E. Hart were both political conservatives, but
John J. Phelan was a
Democratic politician prior to becoming Supreme Knight,
John Swift's "strong support for economic democracy and social-welfare legislation marks him as a fairly representative New Deal anti-communist," and
Francis P. Matthews was a civil rights official and member of
Harry Truman's cabinet. Anderson previously served in the
Office of Public Liaison under
Ronald Reagan. The Knights of Columbus is classified as a
501(c)(8) fraternal
benefit society by the IRS. Unlike the more common
501(c)(3) nonprofits, 501(c)(8)s are allowed to engage in limited direct political activity without jeopardizing their tax exemptions. However, Anderson has said "One of our most important traditions throughout our 125-year history is that we do not, as an organization, become involved in partisan politics." The Knights of Columbus supports political awareness and activity among its members and local councils. Public policy activity is limited to issue-specific campaigns, typically dealing with Catholic family and sanctity of life issues. They state that In addition to performing charitable works, the Knights of Columbus encourages its members to meet their responsibilities as Catholic citizens and to become active in the political life of their local communities, to vote and to speak out on the public issues of the day.... In the political realm, this means opening our public policy efforts and deliberations to the life of Christ and the teachings of the Church. In accord with our Bishops, the Knights of Columbus has consistently maintained positions that take these concerns into account. The order supports and promotes the
social doctrine of the Church, including a robust vision of religious liberty that embraces religion's proper role in the private and public spheres. The order opposed the
persecution of Catholics in Mexico during the
Cristero War, and
opposed communism. During the 20th century, the order also established the Commission on Religious Prejudices and the Knights of Columbus Historical Commission, organizations which fought against
racism. It was also supportive of
trade unionism, and published the works "of the broad array of intellectuals", including
George Schuster,
Samuel Flagg Bemis,
Allan Nevins, and
W. E. B. DuBois. During the
Cold War, the order had a history of waging
anti-socialist,
anti-communist and
anti-anarchist crusades. They lobbied for the addition of the words "under God" to the
Pledge of Allegiance, as a religious response to
Soviet atheism. The Knights have actively opposed the legalization of
same-sex marriage and in terms of funding, they have also been a key contributor to local measures against same-sex marriage. The Knights have donated over to the
Susan B. Anthony Foundation and other anti-
abortion and anti-
contraception organizations. == Subsidiaries ==