March 2006 TransGriot Column

Faith Based Homophobes
Copyright 2006, THE LETTER

photo-Rev. Bernice King, Bishop Noel Jones

African-American author Ralph Ellison once wrote in his novel ‘Invisible Man’ that ‘I am invisible because they refuse to see me.’

It seems as though that’s the attitude that some peeps in the African-American community have taken towards GLBT people. Many of them either want to deny that we exist or implore us to keep it quiet so that we don’t ‘embarrass the race.’ Being GLBT is one of those ‘dirty little family secrets’ that Caucasian people aren’t supposed to know about us.

Well, that secret’s out along with another one: We can be just as homophobic as the rest of America. It was one of the reasons the GOP made that alarming 4% gain of the African-American vote during the 2004 presidential election. (12% versus 8% in 2000). The Republican Party for years has been desperately searching for a wedge issue to use that would resonate with African-Americans and they struck pay dirt with this one.

While the rap music world has been saddled with much of the blame for this state of affairs and rightly so, the Black church is equally responsible. An institution with a long history of battling bigotry and oppression is unfortunately taking cues from its White fundamentalist brethren. It’s picking up where rappers like Jamaica’s Beenie Man and friends left off. We have a group of GOP leaning homophobes who are groveling for faith based bucks from the Bush administration. They hang out with Lou Sheldon and James Dobson professing their support for the worst president in US history and polices that adversely affect their congregations. It also explains some of the odious anti-gay tirades that have come from their pulpits recently that would make Fred Phelps proud.

Rev. Gregory Daniels of Chicago stated in February 2004, “If the KKK opposes gay marriage then I'd ride with them."

Rev. Willie Wilson of Washington DC suggests during a July 3, 2005 sermon that “Black women are becoming lesbians because they are making more money than their black counterparts and that "lesbianism is about to take over our community." The sad part about Rev. Wilson’s comments is that he was once considered a friend of the Washington DC GLBT community.

That list of anti-gay preachers unfortunately includes Rev. Bernice King, the baby daughter of Dr. Martin Luther King. You needed to have more frequent chats with your late mother Coretta about where your father would’ve stood on this issue. I’m willing to bet that it wouldn’t have been at the side of Atlanta’s Bishop Eddie Long leading an anti-gay march that started at the foot of your father’s grave. .

Then there’s Bishop Noel Jones of LA. The brother of disco diva Grace Jones took a November 2004 trip to Jamaica to implore them not to bow to pressure from US based gay-rights groups to change their anti-gay laws. He’s been divorced for a decade and is a running buddy of unmarried ex-gay New York gospel singer and pastor Donnie McClurkin. McClurkin was quoted on the CBN website in 2004 as saying "I'm not in the mood to play with those who are trying to kill our children." I wonder if one of the songs Rev. Donnie has been singing when his friend Noel visits is ‘Pull Up To the Bumper’?

Frankly Donnie, I’m not in the mood to put up with homophobic bigotry from the pulpit of Black churches. What pisses me off is that they are climbing in bed not only with the Republican Party but White fundamentalists that were front and center (and still are) in actively opposing the Civil Rights Movement.

Time for y’all to check the alarm clock and wake up.

The Religious Right Ten Commandments

1-Thou shalt exalt wealth and power before me.

2-Thou shalt make unto thee graven political images to bash Democrats with

3-Thou shalt not take the name of George W. Bush in vain

4-Remember the holy Sabbath day is great for pitching GOP policies and talking points

5-Honor the Republican Party and the conservative movement above thy mother and father

6-Thou shalt not kill unless it is a death row prisoner

7-Thou shalt not commit adultery unless you are a GOP legislator or a conservative defender of 'family values'

8-Thou shalt not steal unless it is an election or you’re working for a company that supports GOP candidates

9-Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor unless you work for Fox News or are a right wing talk show host

10-Thou shalt not covet anything that is thy neighbor’s unless it is their oil reserves or other valuable natural resources

The Black Church Summit

One of the things that really pisses me off is the Jurassic attitudes of my people when it comes to gender issues. It's mind boggling to me that a child who is a frequent visitor of the court system or is on drugs gets much unconditional love in the family and the Black church. Let that same child be gay or transgender and that unconditional love and understanding becomes non-existent.

I was heartened to see the Black Church Summit that was recently held in Atlanta January 20-21. Its stated goal is working to reverse the hateful rhetoric coming from African-American church pulpits. More than 200 ministers took part in this NBJC (National Black Justice Coalition) sponsored event at First Iconium Baptist Church with the keynote speeches given by Rev. Al Sharpton and Bishop Yvette Flunder. Several Black conservative pastors were invited such as Rev. Bernice King and Bishop Eddie Long among others but they refused to attend. (Guess they didn't want to jeopardize their faith-based hush money.)

This conversation took place because conservative Republicans are using the gay marriage issue to manipulate Black ministers and create a wedge issue designed to gain minority votes. The GOP increased its share from 8% to 12 percent in the 2004 election despite pursuing policies that have clearly NOT benefitted Black Americans.

"These anti-marriage proponents are pandering to the Black church for their own agenda. It is imperative that religious leaders realize and recognize the
contributions of the LGBT community and the impact marriage discrimination will have on African-American children and families," said Sylvia Rhue, religious affairs and constituency development director for NBJC, said in an interview.

"We have sat back and allowed the right wing to shape the political agenda," said the Rev. Al Sharpton. "Now it is important that the Black church break the backs of those who are trying to use homosexuality as a political weapon."

Sharpton also criticized some Black churches for their role in the 2004 election, explaining that right wing outsiders "came in and invaded the Black church with homophobia." He argued that religious right was not really concerned about same-sex marriage but more concerned about having the "same president" in office.

"They couldn't come to Black churches to talk about the war, about health care, about poverty. So they did what they always do and reached for the bigotry against gay and lesbian people."

Calling the 2004 election tactics an "insult to our intelligence," Sharpton said the religious right "should not be allowed to play this game" in the future. "If we had not been fooled, maybe some of the states that went red would not have gone red."

"It's time for our church to have a nonpunitive discourse on human sexuality," Bishop Flunder said in her remarks. "It's time for Black folk to get together and have a conversation so we can eliminate the opportunity for others to defile and separate us."

Amen. Now let's see if they will follow through on that.