Tuesday, August 13, 2013

Donnie McClurkin misleads during interview about his homophobic rhetoric

And the Donnie McClurkin game of lying continues.

The "ex-gay" gospel singer has been steadily making the rounds of the radio shows and Christian media after being unceremoniously dumped from Saturday's concert celebrating the 50th anniversary of the 1963 March on Washington.

McClurkin was uninvited due to past comments he made regarding homosexuality, including implying that homosexuality is linked to pedophilia.

On Tuesday morning, he was on the Tom Joyner Morning Show explaining his side of the story. It was a very sad interview because it was one-sided and totally inaccurate in a big respect. Joyner and co-interviewer Roland Martin pretty much did everything but reach into their pocket and hand McClurkin money for his troubles.

I found the interview extremely nauseating. But one exchange between Martin and McClurkin caught my attention. According to the transcript:

ROLAND MARTIN:  Do you believe it’s fair, Donnie?  I mean the comments that gays and lesbians are upset about you made more than a decade ago about formerly being gay, talking about it as being a sin.  You made those comments more than a decade ago.  Is it fair for an activist to, you know, a decade later to say, oh, because he made those comments in that period he shouldn’t do something today here in 2013?

DONNIE MCCLURKIN:  Well, it’s not fair, and it’s been an ongoing battle. It’s been an ongoing political battle.  But in fairness we’re talking about a peace rally.  And we’re talking about a group of people who have been lobbying for a long time for equality and tolerance.  But now to have none concerning anybody else who said anything that is against, or not through their agenda.  I don’t have a problem. 

But Martin is inaccurate. McClurkin's anti-gay rhetoric is more recent than a decade ago. According to Rod McCollum from his blog, Rod2.0 Beta:

In November 2009, McClurkin preached an incendiary attack against LGBT youth and newly out gospel singer Tonex at the Church of God in Christ's Holy Convocation Youth Service in Memphis. McClurkin's hateful sermon went viral across the internet. McClurkin compared LGBT youth to "vampires" and added: "I see feminine men, feminine boys, everywhere I go.

And a portion of this is on video beginning at 6:17:



Now in all fairness, Martin - being the interviewer - is allowed to get some facts wrong. But wasn't it up to McClurkin to correct him?

As a matter of fact, I noticed that in the interview, McClurkin made no attempt to address specifically his comments about gays, except for to say the following:

 You can’t call me a homophobic if I’ve been a homosexual. That’s quite a stretch.  But for them to think that it’s fair, or okay, or tolerant, to uninvite someone simply because they have opposing views, but have never said anything derogatory about them, just simply gave my testimony about what happened with myself.

He also said:

I believe that (the Mayor) owes the City of D.C., an apology. He’s done a disservice to the faith based community. And I can take the blow, but he needs to be more concerned about his constituency.  And to do something like this at a Martin Luther King peace rally is totally against what Martin Luther King stood for.

McClurkin should be aware that King also stood for honesty and before he continues to cling to his cross of martyrdom, he should practice a little himself.

The cruelest thing said about same-sex families thus far by NOM

When opponents like Jennifer Morse of NOM's Ruth Institute claim that they speak against marriage equality and lgbt rights because they supposedly love gays, keep the following Facebook comment in mind:



Hat tip to Jeremy Hooper.