Strife-Ridden Black Baptists Reconcile

[Rose Siding]

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Four black Baptist groups whose churches were a training ground for prominent civil rights leaders, but split partly over how that fight should be waged, said Friday they were embarking on a new era of cooperation meant to put the concerns of their community atop the national agenda.
...
Like white evangelicals, black Baptists generally oppose abortion and consider gay sex immoral. In the presidential race, Republicans made common cause with some black leaders over blocking gay marriage, hoping the issue would chip away at the overwhelming black support for Democrats.

However, the Baptist presidents said they would not highlight either issue for now because the topics are divisive and not a priority for their members, who face poverty, discrimination and other pressing ills.

The Rev. Jesse Jackson, during a keynote speech, asked the audience if any of their churches had fielded requests to perform same-sex weddings. When there was no visible response among the thousands packed into a cavernous hotel ballroom, he wheeled around the podium and shouted, "Then how did that get in the middle of our agenda?" People stood and cheered.

http://www.newsday.com/news/nationworld/wire/sns-ap-black-baptists,0,6627738.story?coll=sns-ap-nationworld-headlines

[Pirate Smile]

1. No shit! Thanks, Jesse!

[Tomee450]

2. Good

for Jesse Jackson.

[xultar]

3. JESSE! JESSE!!! JESSE!!!! N/T

[itzamirakul]

4. That's great to hear...I hope that Jesse and some of the other

respected civil rights leaders can explain the dangers of the Bush administration to some of the church members who might have voted Republican.

On edit:
And Jesse Jackson is by no stretch of the imagination a "centrist" Democrat. He definitely leans left.

[VegasWolf]

5. Thanks, Jesse, for shedding a little light into the darkness. n/t

[Helga Scow Stern]

6. Whew. I was getting worried when I heard that they were in the

sights of Rove-Bush.

[aikido15]

7. Jesse, my man!

:toast:

[fortyfeetunder]

8. Jesse was not the first to say this.

It's nice that Rev. Jackson offers this statement, where was he before the election?

Rev. Al Sharpton stated the same case BEFORE the election.

[Rose Siding]

9. Chicago Trib's coverage: Black Baptist leaders put demands to Bush

snip>
After an unprecedented assembly of four historically divided Baptist groups, presidents of each denomination declared their opposition to the war in Iraq and to the nomination and expected confirmation of Alberto Gonzales as attorney general.

They also called for a higher minimum wage, discontinuation of recent tax cuts, investment in public education and reauthorization of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, some provisions of which are up for review in 2007....

Leaders also demanded that Bush stop privatization of prison construction, reinvest in children's health insurance and increase global relief for black nations such as Sudan and Haiti.
...
"The history of the civil rights movement shows how potent the black church is," Jemison said. "If we take the time to do what our mothers and fathers have done, we can get things done."

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-0501290142jan29,1,2052254.story?coll=chi-news-hed