Annuity Board responds to Carnival Cruise controversy

DALLAS (BP)—Amid recent reports that a homosexual advocacy group is planning an event called “Gay Days” on a Carnival cruise ship, the Annuity Board has issued a release to address concerns about its investment in Carnival Cruise Lines.

O.S. Hawkins, president of the Annuity Board, said he wants Southern Baptists to be aware of the facts regarding the issue and of the entity’s investment policy.

“The Annuity Board is very much in sympathy with those who have concerns related to investing in certain companies,” Hawkins said in the May 18 news release. “We have a strong investment policy which states, ‘Investments are prohibited in any company that is publicly recognized as determined by the Annuity Board as being in the liquor, tobacco, gambling, pornography or abortion industries, or any company whose products, services, or activities are publicly recognized as being incompatible with the moral and ethical posture of the Annuity Board.’”

Hawkins noted the Annuity Board does not invest in the hundreds of companies on its restricted list and said the entity is continually monitoring and evaluating companies at its regular meetings. He said the entity is still committed to its Baptist identity and will make sound business decisions in accordance with appropriate moral judgment.

The release emphasized that Carnival Cruise Lines has not endorsed the proposed Gay Days vacation package, organized by Gay Days, Inc., an Orlando-based company.