Breaking Ranks -- African-American Pro-Family Leaders Pull Away from Left
by Jenni Parker
March 16, 2005
(AgapePress) - Since November 2004, few political analysts dare to question the significance of Christian conservatism in the United States. New attention has been focused on the American "values voter" in general and the Religious Right in particular. But it remains to be seen how well those who are watching this emerging social force will come to understand the forces at work within it.
Already, many who are catching on about the power of the Religious Right are overlooking an important factor in its influence -- the fact that pro-family Christians are forging alliances across one of the most intractable political boundaries. Race has entered the race, and black Christians, despite a longstanding tradition of Democratic allegiance, are increasingly breaking ranks to forge new ties more in keeping with their pro-family values.
Christian Leaders Focus Black Community on Family Values
Last year, at a Traditional Values Coalition-sponsored event in Washington, DC, more than 60 African-American pastors gathered to voice opposition to homosexual marriage and civil unions, calling on the national Black Caucus to sponsor a constitutional amendment protecting marriage as a union of one man and one woman.
Around the same time, Kenneth Coles, a black pastor in Nashville, Tennessee, hosted a Life of a People rally at his church, with speakers from regional and national pro-life organizations and crisis pregnancy centers, as well as from the area's National Right to Life chapter and its Black Americans for Life Outreach. An African Methodist Episcopal pastor serves as the chaplain of that organization, and several other A.M.E. and A.M.E. Zion ministers and other black clergy serve on the board of the multicultural Alliance for Marriage, which works to promote healthy marriages and reverse the crisis of fatherless families in America.
Also last year, Pastor Clenard Childress, director of the Life Education and Resource Network (LEARN), responded with outrage to the declaration by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People of its official support for abortion. In addition, he announced his group's plans to counter-demonstrate "to show our opposition to this horrendous decision of the NAACP." Childress, a vocal pro-life spokesman and proponent of abstinence education, has noted on a number of occasions the NAACP's unhappy alignment with the Democratic Party. He has also criticized the once great civil rights organization for its role in pushing "liberal propaganda resurrecting our worst fears of Southern bigotry to further the Democratic Party's stronghold on Afro-Americans."
And while the NAACP was affirming its Democratic ties during campaign 2004, Bishop George McKinney of the Church of God in Christ (COGIC), one of America's largest black denominations, endorsed George Bush for President, citing among the reasons his administration's positions "that uphold the traditions of protecting the sanctity of families." More recently, the bishop has offered commentary on the Social Security crisis, an issue high on Bush's second-term agenda.
McKinney contends Social Security is in trouble today because baby boomers aborted much of the generation that would have supported their retirement. He says abortion has not only affected the nation's economy but its spiritual and moral climate as well, and that is why he says the COGIC denomination, which boasts about five and a half million black members, is increasingly turning away from pro-choice candidates.
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Chris Sanders, former NFL star turned minister, addresses a pro-life rally at the Tennessee State Capitol on the 32nd anniversary of Roe v. Wade. (Photo by Jenni Parker, c. 2005 AgapePress)
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Another black Christian minister, former NFL football player Chris Sanders, says, "It's not about being a Democrat or a Republican, or making this an 'us against them' or pro-life against pro-choice fight. It's about being a voice for the unborn."An active participant in the ministries of Champions for Christ, the former Tennessee Titan started the Chris Sanders Foundation to move homeless families out of shelters and into newly refurbished homes. He also holds football camps and golf tournament fundraisers for underprivileged children and does other charity work, public speaking, and preaching.
Although he expresses great unwillingness to "get into a shouting match" with people over political ideology, Sanders says when he does voice his convictions publicly, "It's not about being politically correct, it's just a heart situation. I'm coming from my heart. You've just got to get to the point where if Jesus says it's wrong, it's wrong."
Inching to the Right
Sadly, black Christian leaders like these do not speak for the majority in their community. That fact is lamented by Pastor Johnny Hunter, a Baptist minister in Virginia Beach, Virginia. Hunter founded the pro-life LEARN network and now heads Global Life & Family Mission (GLFM), a ministry dedicated to promoting traditional family values, racial harmony, and the survival of children around the world.
Once, when asked about why the black community still votes overwhelmingly for pro-choice candidates, the Virginia minister noted, "When you see the African-American voting for the Democratic Party, it has more to do with the Democratic Party having a real presence during the Civil Rights Movement than the Republican Party." But, although the Democratic Party continues to tout itself as the party that champions the oppressed and fights for civil rights, the pastor contends that its reputation as such today is undeserved.
"While one party may say to you, 'Hey, we're going to give you better job opportunities, better education; we're going to help keep your streets safe; and we're going to give you abortion,' then that party has just denied an individual every one of those things they said they would give, because a safe playground means nothing to a dead child," Hunter says. "Better job opportunities mean nothing to a dead child. If the Democratic Party wants to support abortion and the killing of the children, any other thing they have to offer is moot."
The African-American community has traditionally supported Democratic candidates by a broad margin. The Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies, a think-tank devoted to studying issues of concern to the black community, has sampled both African-Americans and the general public. Its surveys found, predictably, that blacks in America remain overwhelmingly loyal to the Democratic Party, supported John Kerry by a broad margin in the November 2004 election, and are starkly more critical than other Americans of Bush's job performance and handling of the Iraq War.
Also, the Joint Center survey indicated that the Bush years have driven younger blacks into an even tighter embrace of the Left. In a 2000 survey, the Joint Center found that only about half of blacks ages 18 to 25 identified as Democrats, and 36 percent as independents; but in 2004, 71 percent of this group identified as Democrats and only 22 percent as independents. But the labels may be deceiving.
Independent studies find that, party loyalties aside, there is a strong conservative leaning even among 18- to 25-year-old blacks. A study conducted a few years ago in Howard County, Maryland, showed that while 85 percent of those young blacks surveyed identified themselves as Democrats, they also scored 80 percent on the conservative index -- mostly skewing liberal only on the issue of affirmative action. Social justice and economics matter to African Americans of all ages, but evidence suggests that, across the board, the black community is largely conservative on most issues.
The Joint Center survey may offer clues as to why there is such a strong showing of conservatism among blacks. Among the most surprising revelations of that study were statistics on a subgroup within the African-American population -- self-described Christian conservatives -- and significant shifts toward the right in black public opinion. For instance, four years ago, Democrat Al Gore led Bush 69 percent to 11 percent among black Christian conservatives. In 2004, Kerry was ahead -- but only 49 percent to 36 percent.
Obviously political conservatism has made dramatic inroads with black Christian conservatives, finding a hook with issues like same-sex marriage and faith-based initiatives.
The Bush administration's federal support for church-based charities, demonstrated concern for pro-life issues such as abortion and embryonic stem-cell research, and professed commitment to the defense of traditional marriage have struck a resonant chord within the Religious Right. It is understandable that black conservatives have responded to these messages as well, since the Joint Center found that blacks tend to be less supportive than the general public of homosexual marriage and civil unions. And Christian researcher George Barna found in a 2004 study comparing the religious behavior of various ethnic groups in the U.S. that African-Americans ranked highest on the activity scale for several religious behaviors, including charitable giving to churches; so, again, with the administration's promotion of faith-based initiatives, it is no wonder the GOP has scored some critical points among black Christians.
Conscience Over Conflict
Much of the evidence for the growth of African-American Christian conservatism is anecdotal, less measurable but increasingly prevalent.
Paul Rogers, a college junior who attends a church in Birmingham, Alabama, recounts his own struggle as a young, black Christian at election time. "It's unfortunate," he says, "but I'm one of the people that decided in the voting booth. I watched the media coverage of the campaign, but one day they would tell you to lean one way, and the next day you would hear something to make you lean the other."
A major influence on his ultimate vote, Rogers says, was the pastor of his predominantly African-American church. The minister was boldly and unequivocally vocal about the importance of putting moral values ahead of "less fundamental concerns." He did not tell church members how to vote, the university student says, but the pastor did stress that he personally "would never get involved with anything in the political arena unless the issues of abortion and gay marriage came into play, because these things are wrong, and they go against God."
For many black Americans, a conflict emerges out of having grown up with a traditional sort of brand loyalty to Democratic Party identification and a strong cultural connection to the traditional black church. But for most conservative black Christians, a war between cultural politics and faith is one in which faith must necessarily prevail.
Therefore, black religious leaders are increasingly aligning themselves with the Christian Right and calling upon their constituencies to emerge from those long-held but increasingly radical liberal alliances as well. Apart from being in conflict with Christian faith and morality, these black Christian leaders contend, in many cases the values of the Left are working against the best interests of black families and their community.
Conservative statesman and commentator Alan Keyes, founder of the grassroots organization RenewAmerica, is one of the most prominent voices of black Christian conservatism. His movement's purpose is "to faithfully and courageously advance the cause of our nation's Founders," but as the Republican spokesman noted in a recent speech, "The only thing that we need to understand is that we need to be engaged in this whole process, not as Republicans, not as Democrats, not to get victory, not to get votes .... We need to do it as Christian people for the sake of God and His truth."
In terms of party label, Keyes says, black Christians must "wear the party label that seems most consistent with our allegiance to God." While he personally believes that, at present, that qualifier describes a Republican label, he also points out, "There are things the Republicans can do that will change my mind about that in a flash." But for now, Keyes asserts, "We need to keep our allegiance where it belongs and act in such a way that we will keep at least one of the major parties where it needs to be, so that we can effectively participate in American politics."
Jenni Parker is associated editor of AgapePress. This article appeared in the March 2005 issue of AFA Journal, a monthly publication of the American Family Association.
