Donnie McClurkin ramps up the ridiculous to speak in tongues and call gays "vampires". The infamously "ex-gay"—or should we say merely "re-closeted"—Grammy Award winning gospel singer and evangelist rants against gays, gay youth and recently out gospel singer Tonex at the Church of God in Christ's Holy Convocation Youth Service. This happened last Saturday at the COGIC convention in Memphis.
In the first of three disgusting YouTube videos, McClurkin begins his rant against Tonex, the gospel star and minister who recently confirmed his long-rumored sexuality. McClurkin says Tonex is a "perversion" and must pray away the gay: "God did not call young people to such peversion. Society has failed him, his church has failed him ... I would be homosexual to this day if Jesus hadn't delivered."
McClurkin also rails against against openly gay youth as "broken and feminine": "I see feminine men, feminine boys, everywhere I go ... No, don't applaud 'cuz it ain't funny. It's because we failed. I see them everywhere."
And just so the young lesbians aren't felt "left out," he says the following in the second video:
"These young girls are just as bad as the boys in homosexuality, you don't see it. They can hide ... but there are some evil young hard butch girls."
The videos Rod speaks of are here:
Quite a different turn of phrase from McClurkin who, a couple of years ago when he selling a book, was quoted as saying that he wasn't "anti-gay:"
"What I say in the book is simply this: If you're gay, and you're happy, if you don't think you need to change, stay just how you are. But there are some people who are in the gay and bisexual lifestyle that are broken . . ." - Donnie McClurkin puts the focus back on traditional gospel - in secular music, The Associated Press, 2005
I guess when you don't have a book to sell, you don't need to kiss as much ass.
Also, I'm confused about McClurkin's statement about no longer being gay. According to this link, the story of his "deliverance" keeps shifting.
Honestly speaking though, if McClurkin has a problem with "feminine acting" men and boys, he really needs to leave the black church experience. I mean just who is McClurkin trying to kid?
Certainly not myself, Rod 2,0 or anyone else who is aware of the black church experience. The black church is filled to the brim with gay men.
Gospel singer Tonex is probably the only who had the guts to come out and be honest.
But my rant is two-fold.
I know some folks out there are going to use this moment to bring up Obama aligning with McClurkin in 2007 to garner votes.
And to do so would be a mistake.
Certainly there is a point to be made about the Obama/McClurkin past allegiance, but I am willing to bet that while everyone is going to be so eager to make that point, the fact that McClurkin has just specifically harmed the well-being of young lgbts of color will be obscured.
To me as a gay man of color, that's a real problem.
We will get angry because we have felt the brush of McClurkin's slap. Are we going to forget those young lgbts of color who have felt the full sting of it?
Who is going to be there to hold up their heads in the face of such an ugly onslaught?
Who is going to be there to tell them that McClurkin is a self-hating so-and-so who, despite his lovely voice and popularity, is a little more "broken" than he would like to realize and that he has absolutely no business passing judgement on the lives of people he doesn't even know.
Something needs to be said to these young lgbts of color because nine times out of ten, they don't have access to support networks like GLSEN and no one such as Dan Savage or Michelangelo Signorile is writing about them or their needs.
Will they be ignored again even in the middle of this situation in which they are potentially the most hurt?
Let's not get so caught up in our righteous indignation that we forget about these young folks. If we do, expect to see more Donnie McClurkins springing up like ecclesiastical weeds.
Related post:
WATCH: Donnie McClurkin Calls Gays "Vampires", Rants Against Tonex and Gay Youth at COGIC
The black community is phony and hypocritical when it comes to lgbt issues
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