Rev. D.L. Foster, a pastor at Restoration Church in College Park, joined with state Sen. Mike Crotts (R-Conyers) and Sadie Fields, chair of the Christian Coalition of Georgia, during a rally on the steps of the state Capitol Feb. 17. Some black clergy members have been outspoken supporters of Crotts’ proposal that would ban gay marriage in the state constitution. (Photo by R.O. Youngblood)
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Apr 09, 2004  |  By: RYAN LEE  | COMMENTS |   |  

The same institution that was a leading force behind the struggle of African Americans for civil rights in the 1960s — the black church — is now on the front lines of another movement for social justice.

But in this fight, some black church leaders are among the most outspoken supporters of a state constitutional amendment that would ban gay marriage.

Some black ministers and politicians also criticize gay men and lesbians, and their supporters, for comparing the struggle for marriage equality to the turbulent civil rights movement.

“I don’t see [marriage for gays] as a basic civil right,” said Rev. D.L. Foster, a pastor at Restoration Church in College Park. “We discriminate in this country in a lot of ways, and all discrimination isn’t bad discrimination.

“I think [the gay marriage ban] is a form of good discrimination because we have to determine what is good for the nation, and what is bad for the nation,” said Foster, who says he was gay for 11 years.

“It is simply the people saying, ‘This is what we feel is good for the country,’” Foster added.

But black gay men and lesbians leading the fight for marriage equality said they are disheartened and disgusted by the apparent ease with which some black leaders embrace what they call discrimination.

“They don’t realize they’re discriminating against their own people,” said Jasmyne Cannick, media director for the National Black Justice Coalition, a New York-based ad-hoc group of blacks fighting for same-sex marriage.

“When many black people hear about anything gay, the first thing that comes to their mind is sex, sex, sex, sex; they’re not thinking about the rights that are at stake with this issue,” Cannick added.

With the proposed gay marriage ban now headed to the Nov. 2 ballot, advocates on both sides expect African-American churches to be instrumental in framing the debate for black voters.

Cannick said she can’t help but laugh at the irony of black churches leading the fight against same-sex marriage, since gay black men are among the most devoted churchgoers.

“Behind every good choir and in every pew, there’s black gay folks listening to themselves being demeaned and invalidated,” Cannick said. “That’s why it’s important that we get black gay and lesbian individuals to speak out, come out and stand up for their own rights.”

Pivotal role of black lawmakers
Black legislators overwhelmingly opposed the gay marriage ban in both chambers of the Georgia General Assembly: All 10 black senators voted against the amendment when it passed the state Senate on Feb. 16. On Feb. 26, 30 of the 31 black House members who cast votes voted against it when it failed in its first vote in that chamber.

But when the House voted for a second time on March 31, four black legislators supported the gay marriage ban, giving the measure two votes more than it needed to pass. Three had not voted Feb 26, while one — state Rep. Carl Von Epps — changed his vote from no to yes.

A group of some 30 black ministers rallying in support of the amendment during the time between the two House votes likely played a factor, Foster said.

“The black legislators were basically a unified group against this amendment, but because of our rallies, it was enough to persuade some middle-of-the-road black legislators to move this forward,” Foster said.

Two of the black legislators who voted for the amendment — state Reps. Sharon Beasley-Teague (D-Fairburn) and Randal Mangham (D-Stone Mountain) — said their decision was based on religious beliefs. They also refuted claims that they are discriminating against gay men and lesbians.

During a conversation with Beasley-Teague before the second House vote on March 31, a gay constituent asked her what she sees when she looks at gay and lesbian people.

“I don’t see God,” Beasley-Teague replied. “For this to be about discrimination I need to know more about you than I care to know. This is about a basic separation of standards.”

Voting to ban gay marriage was the morally correct thing to do for society, Mangham said in an interview Wednesday.

“As a Judeo Christian society, I think we have to have some moral framework,” Mangham said. “God does love everyone, but he does discriminate against our acts.

“The challenge we have is learning all how to love one another, and I can love you as long as what you do does not infringe upon my right to be free to think what is perfectly acceptable and not acceptable,” he said. “I don’t think it’s acceptable to ...