Wesleyan Holiness Connection The Salvation Army (TSA) is a Protestant Christian church and an international charitable organisation headquartered in London, England.

Some of its other facilities include:[3] The official mission statement reads: The Salvation Army, an international movement, is an evangelical part of the universal Christian church.

The mercy seat is a focal point in a Salvation Army Church, symbolizing God's call to his people, and a place for commitment and communion, and is available for anyone to kneel at in prayer.

"[36] In the United States, the Salvation Army's first major forays into disaster relief resulted from the tragedies of the Galveston Hurricane of 1900[37] and the 1906 San Francisco earthquake.

[47] The Salvation Army works with a specialist team in partnership with the UK service Modern Slavery Helpline (telephone 0800 0121 700) to help people who have been exploited for labor or profits.

William was motivated to convert poor Londoners such as prostitutes, gamblers, and alcoholics to Christianity,[53] while Catherine spoke to wealthier people, gaining financial support for their work.

[1]: 82 In 1891, William Booth established a farm colony in Hadleigh, Essex, which allowed people to escape the overcrowded slums in London's East End.

[55] The Salvation Army's main converts were at first alcoholics, morphine addicts, prostitutes, and other "undesirables" unwelcome in polite Christian society, which helped prompt the Booths to start their own church.

[citation needed] The Salvation Army's reputation in the United States improved as a result of its disaster relief efforts following the Galveston Hurricane of 1900 and the 1906 San Francisco earthquake.

[citation needed] Today, in the U.S. alone, over 25,000 volunteer bell ringers with red kettles are stationed near retail stores during the weeks preceding Christmas for fundraising.

[66][68] The involvement of the Salvation Army in work to combat slavery and human trafficking can be traced back to William Booth publishing a letter in The War Cry in 1885.

[70] An early precursor to the Salvation Army becoming involved in safeguarding work was Catherine Booth writing to Queen Victoria regarding a Parliamentary bill for the protection of girls.

[73] Its work included a petition (numbering 340,000 signatures, deposited on the floor of the House of Commons by eight uniformed Salvationists),[74] mass meetings, and an investigation into child prostitution.

Stead of The Pall Mall Gazette launched a campaign in 1885 by writing articles on The Maiden Tribute of Modern Babylon to expose the extent of child prostitution,[1]: 84  which involved procuring a girl, Eliza, for £5.

She was cared for by the Army, taken to France, and subsequently testified as a key witness at the trial of Stead and Rebecca Jarrett (the prostitute who had arranged the "sale" of Eliza) at Bow Street.

An imperial ordinance (written in classical Japanese which few could understand) declared the girls' right to freedom; the pioneer Salvationist Gunpei Yamamuro rewrote it in colloquial speech.

At the end of the 19th century, Staff-Captain Mary Murray was sent by William Booth to support British troops serving in the Boer War in South Africa.

[citation needed] In 1994, the Chronicle of Philanthropy, an industry publication, released the results of the largest study of charitable and non-profit organisation popularity and credibility.

[134] Because the Salvation Army is a church, Title VII of the U.S. Civil Rights Act of 1964 allows it to inquire into people's religious beliefs in its hiring practices.

The Salvation Army states that it does not "discriminate against hiring gays and lesbians for the majority of its roughly 55,000 jobs,"[135] but has historically supported legislation which would allow it to deny employment and federally-funded services to LGBT individuals.

It stated in part "We do understand though that The Salvation Army's official opposition to the Reform Bill was deeply hurtful to many, and are distressed that ill-feeling still troubles our relationship with segments of the gay community.

[144] The Salvation Army Western Territory approved a plan in October 2001 to start offering domestic partnership benefits to employees in same-sex relationships.

Focus on the Family founder James Dobson excoriated the Salvation Army for abandoning its "moral integrity" and urged his radio listeners to bombard the organisation's offices with phone calls and letters.

In November 2001 the Salvation Army US-wide rescinded the Western Territory's decision with an announcement that it would only provide benefits coverage for different-sex spouses and dependent children of its employees.

[citation needed] In 2004, the Salvation Army said that it would close operations in New York City unless it was exempted from a municipal ordinance requiring them to offer benefits to gay employees' partners.

[147] The city council member later partially retracted their statements, stating "The Salvation Army... do apparently have a policy of non-discrimination and they do not turn trans people away, but I'm not fully sold on their ability to actually understand the issue.

[151] On 15 December 2012, in Canada, Andrea Le Good noticed a Salvation Army bell-ringer carrying a sign reading "if you support gay rights: please do not donate".

[163][164] As of April 2018[update], the "Inclusion" page on the official U.K. website stated that the Salvation Army stands against homophobia and does not permit discrimination in its employment practices or delivery of care.

[166] On the website of its USA division, the organisation currently maintains an informative/promotional document titled "The LGBTQ Community and The Salvation Army" which states (among other things) that it is "committed to serving the LGBTQ community"; "[w]hen a transgender person seeks help from us, we serve them in the same manner as any other person seeking assistance"; it "is an Equal Opportunity Employer" with regard to "sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression" (et al.); and that it "provide[s] benefits to the spouses of employees in same-sex marriages".

While the employment-discrimination portion of the lawsuit was dismissed in 2005, government agencies agreed in a 2010 settlement to set up monitoring systems to ensure that the Army did not violate church–state separation in its publicly funded projects.