Thoughts from Sunday's vigil - that little story we never notice

A couple of hours ago, I took part in the South Carolina Gay and Lesbian Pride Movement's vigil that was held outside Columbia's Township Auditorium.

The vigil was held to voice disappointment with Senator Barack Obama aligning himself with gospel singer Donnie McClurkin through a series of concerts.

McClurkin, in the past, has claimed to have been "delivered" from homosexuality. He has also gone on record comparing gays to pedophiles.

I am pleased with what happened. We had a small but determined group who used dignity and order to get our message out. It is interesting as to the spin that may be put out by the anti-gay industry, as well as the media, about the controversy.

No matter how many times it was emphasized that none of us care about McClurkin's personal decisions regarding his orientation, folks have continued to claim that we are angry at McClurkin's belief that he is "ex-gay" rather than his statements against the lgbt community.

But I am not upset over that. I am a very cynical person about such things.

However in this controversy, there was another story that will probably not see the light of day.

A black woman who stood in line for the concert marched over to us and declared:

"God made man for woman and woman for man."

She said a couple of other things of a Biblical nature (how homosexuality is ugly in God's sight, blah blah blah), but I tuned her out. I have learned that little trick over the years.

The ironic thing is that if this vigil was held in the 1950s, the subject would be about segregation and her role would be played by a white person claiming that the "separation of the races" was Biblically mandated.

The other ironic thing was that as she went on her tirade, I recognized a few of the faces going into the concert as those belonging to gay black men I knew.

As more attendees went in, I recognized quite a few more gay black men.

And let me tell you from the start that these men were not going into this concert looking to embrace McClurkin's message of being "delivered."

These men probably went in, clapped loudly, danced in religious ecstacy . . .

and then went back home to their psychological closets.

And that puts things in perspective.

The woman who came at us preaching probably thought she was doing God's will.

But who exactly did she think she was helping?

Certainly not those gay black men who stood in line for the concert.

If anything, her words told them that they have to choose between their lgbt orientation and their ethnic identity; an vicious and harmful lie.

For every so-called religious statement coming from her mouth, I could hear closet door after closet door slamming shut.

I could see even more black gay men (many of them married) trolling down the streets in the darkness of the night looking for a physical fix because they have been bamboozled to think that a quick thrust in the dark is all they deserve as gay men.

I could see more black women assembling themselves in "down low spotter groups" and doing inane things like checking their men's underwear for blood.

And I see the HIV/AIDS rate in the African-American community going sky high.

South Carolina's lgbt community took a stand today against ignorance and lies.

However in the middle of it all, God's Word was used as a whip to beat someone down, a chain to keep someone in a place that others thought he or she should be.

And to me, that's just sad.

This woman will probably go back to her church and claim that she stood up for God; as if God was just waiting on her to save Him.

Meanwhile, the gay organist will most likely play his usual song. The gay men in the church choir will probably sing as excellently as they do every Sunday. And those other gays and lesbians who attend her church will stay in their private miseries.

From what I understand, Mr. McClurkin distorted the issue at the concert.

He claimed that the issue was one about his personal decision to be "ex-gay" and did not address his comments linking homosexuality and pedophilia.

I am not surprised. Mr. McClurkin has continuously shown himself to be a huge charlatan. Why should he change? After all, lying in the name of God is very lucrative.

As to be expected, the audience gave him a loud applause.

And these are the same people who will, in the future, scratch their heads and wonder just how HIV/AIDS has become a scourge in the black community.

I have to ask myself

How can so many of my black brothers and sisters come so far and yet still be so far behind?

Holy Bullies and Headless Monsters a bestseller on amazon.com!

I bet you thought that this was going to be another Obama post. Rest assured I do have one more thing to say because I was one of the spokespeople at today's Columbia, SC vigil.

But allow me to indulge in a bit of self celebration.

The sales of my book, Holy Bullies and Headless Monsters, have gone practically through the roof on amazon.com

So I am happy to say that my book is a bestseller. Granted, a bestseller on amazon.com but I ain't mad at it.

One victory at a time, I always say.

In fact, there is only one more copy of the paperback left to be bought (hint, hint, hint.)

Now just in case by some magical coincidence, this last copy (and the used copies and hardback copies) are sold out, interested people can still buy my book at xlibris.com and barnesandnoble.com

Oh stop it, Paul! Just stop it!

I am all Obamaed out.

And luckily for me, an old "friend" has come to my rescue.

Paul Cameron has come out with yet another "new" study:

Teacher-Pupil Sex Across the World: How Much Is Homosexual?

Paul Cameron, Ph.D.

Family Research Institute

PO Box 62640, Colorado Springs, CO 80962

Abstract: In news stories in English across the world for 1980-2006, 902 teachers engaged in sex with 3,457 pupils. Teachers engaging in same-sex sex constituted 63% of perpetrators in Ireland, 62% in New Zealand, 60% in Canada, 54% in Scotland, 48% in Australia, 47% in England, and 35% in the U.S.; in smaller samples, homosexuals accounted for 71% of perpetrators in mainland Europe, 26% in Africa, and 13% in Asia.

Proportionately more same-sex sexual activity with pupils occurred in the West as compared to Asiaand Africa.Most (54% of 810 male, 83% of 92 female) teachers violated only opposite sex pupils; 43% of perpetrators engaged in homosexuality; and 55% of victims were boys. Findings for each country or set of countries were consistent with U.S. studies based on superintendent report, principal report, self-report, and convictions indicating that a male homosexual is the most and a female heterosexual the least apt to have sex with pupils.

This nothing more than Cameron's usual "gays are diseased freaks" spiel that he has been doing since the early 1980s. I have documented Cameron's lies on many occasions on this site and my book that it tires me out to do it this time.

Thank you again Barack Obama.

But you gotta give Cameron points for persistence. He apparently loves to bang his head against that brick wall.

No matter how you try, Paulie, you will never get your credibility back.

And for those who will claim that I am attacking Cameron without showing how his study is wrong, I encourage you to check out past posts here or on www.boxturtlebulletin.com

There goes that ugly juxtaposition again. Thanks a lot Senator Obama

In an attempt to quell the controversy over putting on a concert with anti-gay gospel singer Donnie McClurkin, Barack Obama has recruited Columbia Pastor Andy Sidden to take part.

Sidden is openly gay and the pastor of Garden of Grace United Church of Christ.

He is also white.

I know folks are getting uncomfortable because I made that observation. Well don't waste good uncomfortability because I am about to put you more ill at ease.

Inviting Pastor Sidden is a huge faux pas. Why couldn't Obama's people have found an openly gay black pastor?

Yes, I know. I sound racist. But I don't care. I am just one of many people who have voiced this concern. In fact, there has been a lot of justifiable anger over it. However, I don't think folks have correctly articulated the reason for the distress.

Allow me to break it down.

When Obama first included McClurkin in his campaign, he made himself look like a hypocrite. Here is a man who onced addressed homophobia in the black church now inviting a purveyor of it to raise money for him via a series of black gospel concerts.

And when he is criticized for this decision, he seeks to soothe wounded feelings by inviting an openly gay white pastor to take part.

So on one side of Obama is Donnie McClurkin, who represents the black church. On the other side is Pastor Sidden, who represents the lgbt community.

That is the wrong symbol to put forth.

Inviting an openly gay black pastor would have been an excellent way to demonstrate the commonalities between the lgbt and African-American struggles for self-determination.

Obama's clumsy invitation to Pastor Sidden only perpetuates the myth that being black and being gay are two separate identities that don't overlap.

Furthermore, it means that folks like myself (lgbts of color) are once again shown how invisible we are.

No. More than that.

We have been given the hook, pushed to the side, had the trapdoor to the alligator pit released under our feet.

LGBTs of color haven't been just pushed to the back of the bus in this controversy. We have been kicked off of the bus and told to find our own way home.

Perhaps Obama's people couldn't find an openly gay black pastor in time for the event? I don't know. I guess I will give them a little slack.

But I won't give slack to the Human Rights Campaign. In their statements regarding this issue, I don't think the group even once addressed the fact that lgbts of color exist. And whether anyone wants to admit it or not, we are the ones who will suffer the most from this controversy.

We already know that the mainstream African-American community doesn't give a damn about us. Now we see that the mainstream lgbt leadership may feel the same.

Apparently we don't exist except when it is convenient to fit someone's agenda.

But back to Pastor Sidden. Of all the parties involved, he is the least guilty (by that I mean he has done nothing wrong.)

I implore the blogging community as well as the lgbts angry over this situation not to sharpen their knives on him or his reputation.

I know Pastor Sidden. He is a good guy who probably jumped into the middle of this situation because he wants people to know that God loves them no matter what orienation they are.

The ironic thing is this entire controversy could have been avoided if Donnie McClurkin had practiced that same principle.

Things I have learned from the Barack Obama/Donnie McClurkin controversy

How is this for a wild juxtaposition:

Rod McCullom (thank you Pam Spaulding) is noticing that the African-American media have been conveniently silent about the Obama/McClurkin controversy:

The black non-response is to be expected, given the hisoric black church's uneasy relationship with the many black gays who pack the church choirs on Sunday mornings. "I long for the day when blacks gays and lesbians stop supporting their music," Darian Aaron writes in his post on the McClurkin backlash. Aaron is a young black gay activist, blogger, and contributor to Clik, and also grew up in the Pentecosal Church. "And find the courage to walk out of the churches that turn a house of prayer into a house of pain." It's a good that chuches such as Kendal Brown's Church of the Open Door and Kevin E. Taylor's Unity Fellowship Church have welcomed black gay men and lesbians.

At the same time, a gay man posting on a blog site (which shall remain nameless) took it upon himself to call black people in general "un-intellectual" as well as "uneducated, unrestrained homophobes."

Dealing with homophobic black people and racist gay people is standard occupation when you have an identity in both communities.

But we should learn from the Obama/McClurkin mess. I know I have:

4. Senator Obama's people are either very stupid (or very shrewd).

3. "I was misquoted" is becoming a more popular excuse than "we were just following orders."

2. I love my black ministers but some of them have a habit of saying stupid shit (this point is further illustrated by the comment of Pastor Gregory Daniels featured in the template under my profile).

1. Donnie McClurkin is a stone cold liar.

This just in: Donnie McClurkin evades the issue

Donnie McClurkin has finally gone on record regarding the controversy with presidential candidate Barack Obama's concert this weekend in South Carolina. Obama has come under fire for inviting McClurkin, who has claimed that he is an "ex-gay."

McClurkin addresses the situation in the Chicago Tribune. But, at least in my mind, Mr. McClurkin's statements raises more questions. I think he is evading the issue:

"I don't believe that even from a religious point of view that Jesus ever discriminated toward anyone, nor do I," McClurkin said in an exclusive interview with the Tribune. "Most of the things that were said were totally out of context and then other things weren't true."

. . . For years, McClurkin has talked from the pulpit about how he was raped by a male family member as a child. It was that act, he has said, that sent him into living as a gay man for the better part of 20 years. He now says he is straight and that his ministry is open to those who say they no longer want to live as a gay person. What he doesn't do, he says, is crusade against homosexuality.

McClurkin conveniently did not mention his statements on the 700 Club that accused gays of harming children. As far as I know, he has never repudiated the following comment:

"The gloves are off and if there's going to be a war, there's going to be a war. But it will be a war with a purpose? I'm not in the mood to play with those who are trying to kill our children."

Mr. McClurkin, as they say in the street, you need to recognize.

Your evasions are foul and they put your credibility in serious jeopardy.

Does Donnie McClurkin still believe gays are trying to hurt children?

It was just a matter of time before the other side of the "cultural war" starts lying to defend Donnie McClurkin.

The following comes from a PFOX press release:

"Ex-gays have the same right to participate in the political process as other Americans and should not have to endure this type of abuse because they chose to leave homosexuality," said Regina Griggs, PFOX executive director. "Gay rights groups demand hate crimes laws and sexual orientation non-discrimination legislation, but would deny the same protection to ex-gays who want full inclusion in society at the same level that gays currently enjoy."

"This irrational behavior towards those who have overcome unwanted same-sex attractions perpetuates misunderstanding and harm against ex-gays. It also demonstrates a disregard for diversity and a refusal to respect a basic human right to dignity and self-determination," said Griggs.

I am sure that Peter and Americans for Truth (in name only) won’t be far behind saying the same thing.

To me, the situation is not what Donnie McClurkin chooses to refer to himself as. I don’t care what he calls himself whether it be "ex-gay" "super 'ex-gay'," or "super duper 'ex-gay.'"

My post yesterday was a way to tell folks to know the intricasies of the entire situation. The fact of the matter is that this controversy could still turn into a divide and conquer against lgbts and the mainstream African-American community.

Maybe one way to prevent this is to be clear on why we are angry at Senator Obama for his embracing of McClurkin.

McClurkin used his personal story to demonize the lgbt community as a whole. During an appearance on the 700 Club in 2003, he accused the lgbt community of wanting to harm children:

From GayWired:

McClurkin has accused gays of “trying to kill our children” and has called homosexuality “a curse”. The gospel singer who says he is a "reformed homosexual" in a 700 Club interview said he was ready to declare war on homosexuality.

From Wayne Besen:

McClurkin, currently a senor pastor at Perfecting Faith in Freeport, N.Y., was particularly outspoken against New York's funding of Harvey Milk, a gay high school in New York, suggesting that the school will lead to molestation of children.

"The gloves are off," he said on the Sept. 23, 2003 episode of Rev. Pat Robertson's 700 Club. "And if there's going to be a war, there's going to be a war. But it will be a war with a purpose. This is not a privately funded school. It is a public school funded by taxpayers' money. Why isn't anyone else speaking out? Everyone knows that everyone at the high school is homosexual. That makes for an easy target."

World Net Daily:

HRC condemns Mr. McClurkin . . . for the sin of publicly laying out the threat that the homosexual agenda poses to families and children

. . . But what really sticks in homosexual activists' craw is Donnie McClurkin, who, they say, on "The 700 Club" "has accused gay Americans of trying to kill our children." Mr. McClurkin, an accomplished gospel singer and author, overcame homosexuality himself.

Was McClurkin misquoted? Did he say those comments but later repudiated them?

I don't know, but one thing is for sure.

He certainly isn't a victim in this matter.

And he needs to clarify his beliefs on gays and children.