A Culture Warrior’s Perspective on Today’s Victories
Radio host Todd Herman recently asked me an interesting question: “What would Rev. Donald Wildmon (founder of American Family Association and one of America’s first culture warriors) think about some of the current political victories of the Trump administration?” As the filmmaker behind “Culture Warrior: Don Wildmon and the Battle for Decency,” I admit that is a question I have wondered with increased regularity. In the wake of the many executive orders and commitments that have marked the first few months of the new Trump administration, what would Rev. Wildmon think about where things are right now?
Encouraging Signs
My response to Mr. Herman was that I believe Don Wildmon would be very encouraged and hopeful about many of the things President Trump has done. The White House’s declaration of male and female as the only two genders and the push to keep men out of women’s sports are victories common-sense Americans should all be able to champion. Don warned about the ramifications of the breakdown of the family long before most people saw it, which was why he was concerned about network television and the impact of pornography.
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Seeing the government move away from wasteful or fraudulent spending would also be important to Don. The actions of DOGE are not altogether different from Don’s efforts in the early 1990s, when he exhorted House and Senate leaders to curtail the National Endowment for the Arts’ (NEA) use of taxpayer funds to sponsor pornographic artwork. While the NEA was never completely defunded, increased scrutiny was given to how much money they were allotted and the artistic projects to which they offered grants. Don’s awareness caused him to focus on the NEA and brought the agency much-needed pushback rather than blank checks.
Broader Culture Movements
Don would also, no doubt, be pleased to see some broader cultural movements away from a full embrace of transgender ideology — not just in terms of public sentiment but also in corporate posturing. This was evidenced in Target’s recent shift in promoting LGBTQ+ issues, even to the point of openly resisting the guidance of lobbying group the Human Rights Campaign. That marks a substantial change from where we have been for the past decade or more.
The Left’s crusade to normalize sexual confusion was a major focus of Don’s fight in the 1990s and 2000s. This is what led the American Family Association to take the following actions:
- Boycott Disney from 1996 through 2005
- Warn about the influence of Ellen DeGeneres’ “coming-out episode” of “Ellen” in 1997
- Combat the pro-gay propaganda being promoted in public schools through the PBS-aired documentary “It’s Elementary: Talking About Gay Issues in Schools,” which was put together by the National Education Association and the National Parent Teacher Association
- Call for constitutional amendments, at the state and federal levels, defining marriage as the union of one man and one woman
- Boycott Ford Motor Company from 2005 to 2008 for its sexualized, gay-themed advertising in overseas publications
- Boycott The Home Depot from 2010 to 2013 over their sponsorship of numerous gay-pride events
- Boycott Target from 2016 to 2024 for their transgender bathroom policy
These battles were hard fought, and not all were successful — at least not in an earthly sense. However, awareness was raised, and concerns were articulated. Christians were given a voice, and when Christians speak out on these issues, it is impossible to quantify the “ripple effects” of these stands. Sometimes, our concern finds a broader audience than we expected. Sometimes, companies are less willing to go out on a political limb due to potential pushback. Sometimes, other citizens are given the courage to stand up and speak about their own convictions.
Although the culture war continues today, and these issues seem to be compounding, there are many reasons to be optimistic. However, we also know that problems run deep; a return to sanity and morality will take more than a few executive orders. But it is okay to rejoice at the good things that have happened recently and to hope that there are more important corrections on the horizon.
It’s Not Over
I can’t say definitively that Christians have won the culture war because that war is not over. There have been some recent victories and some promising trends, but whatever has been gained can just as easily be lost. Surface victories under one administration could be undermined in another. Complacency is a constant threat in the church, and we must resist the pride, arrogance and entitlement that lead us there.
This is where I believe the example of Don Wildmon is so helpful. As he used to say, “God has not called us to be successful; He has called us to be faithful.”
In other words, we do what God has given us the strength and the burden to do, and we leave the results in His hands. When we approach the culture war from that perspective, we gain confidence alongside our urgency as we exercise our faith in the fight.
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M.D. Perkins is a documentary filmmaker and research fellow of church and culture for the American Family Association. Since joining AFA in 2014, M.D. has produced the award-winning documentaries: “The God Who Speaks” (2018) and “In His Image” (2020), as well as his most recent project, “Culture Warrior: Don Wildmon and the Battle for Decency” (2024). In addition to filmmaking, M.D. has written in-depth on the way LGBTQ+ issues have impacted churches in “A Little Leaven: Confronting the Ideology of the Revoice Movement” (2021) and “Dangerous Affirmation: The Threat of ‘Gay Christianity’” (2022). M.D. is married, with four children, and is an elder in his local church.
