William DuBay

Who is William DuBay?

William DuBay was a U.S. Catholic priest and social activist whose reform activities and suspension from the priesthood created controversy in the mid-1960s.

In February 1966, DuBay was suspended from the priesthood by Cardinal James Francis McIntyre, archbishop of Los Angeles, for criticizing the Catholic Church and for writing The Human Church, a book that was highly critical of the Church hierarchy. In 1964, DuBay publicly requested that Pope Paul VI remove McIntyre from office for his failure to support civil rights for Black people, a demand that garnered national headlines. Wrote DuBay:

His Eminence [McIntyre] has condemned direct action demonstrations on the grounds that they incite violence. But as a matter of fact he has contributed to the possibility of serious racial violence by depriving civil rights groups of responsible Catholic and clerical leadership necessary to encourage Christian forms of nonviolent protest. His inaction has promoted the prolongation of Negro grievances by failing to mobilize the Catholic population against the social evils of segregation.

DuBay also proposed creating a trade union for Catholic priests. Under DuBay's Federation of Priests, arbitrary transfers would be ended, a tenure policy would give priests the right to a hearing before they could be suspended, and priests would be paid a professional salary in lieu of Mass and baptism offerings.