Full-Page Ad Against "Ex-Gay" Preacher Donnie McClurkin Runs In NYC

The Black Gay Men's Network today published a full-page ad in the NYC daily newspaper Metro in reaction to attacks on the LGBT community by black clergy and in response to "ex-gay" preacher Donnie McClurkin's recent outrageous and hateful rantings, which were posted to YouTube. It reads in part:

Pastor Donnie McClurkin -We love you brother and in ways the traditional church cannot because we understand your pain. You are not a man who loves men because of being molested as a child. That grave and despicable tragedy broke your spirit and damaged your mind; however it did not have the capacity to change your DNA. There is so much love in our community for you. We want to see you healed and whole. Whenever you are ready, come home and we'll love you until it doesn't hurt anymore. That's how we do!

Read the entire ad at the above link.

(Tipped by JMG reader Jeff)

(Still Gay) "Ex-Gay" Preacher Donnie McClurkin Calls Gays "Vampires"

Donnie McClurkin, the supposedly "ex-gay" preacher that has been spotted having intimate dinners with "flamboyant" young men in quiet Manhattan restaurants, appeared at the Church of God In Christ's youth conference in Memphis to babble in tongues and call gays "vampires" (among other lovely things). Take it away Rod McCullom:

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." Quite rich coming from McClurkin. If anyone has seen him or the young men in his inner circle, well, let's say the observation about "feminine men everywhere" is spot-on. In the second video, McClurkin turns his hate toward young lesbians: "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."

You've got to read the rest of McCullom's post.

Obama Says Homophobia Isn't Christian

Speaking before a mostly black audience yesterday, Barack Obama chastised Christians that disrespect gay people.  Via Ben Smith at Politico.com:

Obama's rally in Beaumont today was the highest-energy of this Texas swing, with a crowd that was about three-quarters black cheering at almost every turn.

An interesting moment came when he was asked a question about LGBT rights and delivered an answer that seemed to suit the questioner, listing the various attributes — race, gender, etc. — that shouldn't trigger discrimination, to successive cheers. When he came to saying that gays and lesbians deserve equality, though, the crowd fell silent.

So he took a different tack:

"Now I’m a Christian, and I praise Jesus every Sunday," he said, to a sudden wave of noisy applause and cheers.

"I hear people saying things that I don’t think are very Christian with respect to people who are gay and lesbian," he said, and the crowd seemed to come along with him this time.

The moment reminded me of a conversation I had recently with a senior figure in the national gay rights movement, who noted that Obama's deference to some black Christian discomfort with homosexuality — his refusal to dump the "ex-gay" gospel singer Donnie McClurkin from a tour — angered some gays and lesbians; but conversely, that his ability to sell gay rights in the black church is unique and appealing.

I'm getting over the McClurkin thing, slowly, thanks to speeches like this.

HomoQuotable - Andrew Sullivan

Andrew Sullivan, October 30th: "Allowing this guy [Donnie McClurkin] to preach strikes me as a step far too far. [snip] I don't blame any gay American for jumping the Obama ship over it."

Andrew Sullivan, February 6th: "They [California gays] go for Clinton by 2 to 1 in the exit polls. Will they never learn?"

Well, which is it, Andrew?

Weighing the many pros and many cons of Hillary and Obama, the Donnie McClurkin incident was certainly my deciding factor. And Andrew, what's this "they" jazz?

The Donnie McClurkin Effect?Hillary Wins CA Gay Vote 2-1

As expected, yesterday's Super Tuesday primary did little to reveal a clear Democratic frontrunner. Hillary Clinton took eight states including the biggest: California and New York. Barack Obama took 13 states, including Illinois, his home state.

CLINTON: AR, AZ, CA, MA, NY, NJ, OK, TN
OBAMA: AK, AL, CT, CO, DE, GA, ID, IL, KS, MN, MO, ND, UT

Clinton's big win in California came via women, older voters, Latinos, and gays - who voted Hillary by more than a 2-1 margin there, taking 60% to Obama's 25%. I knew that Clinton would win the gays, but didn't anticipate such a huge margin.

It's still a horse race, 2025 delegates are needed to secure the nomination.

Obama Guest Posts On Bilerico

"Over the last several weeks, the question of GLBT equality was placed on center stage by the appearance of Donnie McClurkin at one of my campaign events. McClurkin is a talented performer and a beloved figure among many African Americans and Christians around the country. At the same time, he espouses beliefs about homosexuality that I completely reject.

The events of the last several weeks are not the occasion that I would have chosen to discuss America’s divisions on gay rights and my own deep commitment to GLBT equality. Now that the issue is before us, however, I do not intend to run away from it. These events have provided an important opportunity for us to confront a difficult fact: There are good, decent, moral people in this country who do not yet embrace their gay brothers and sisters as full members of our shared community.
We will not secure full equality for all GLBT Americans until we learn how to address that deep disagreement and move beyond it. To achieve that goal, we must state our beliefs boldly, bring the message of equality to audiences that have not yet accepted it, and listen to what those audiences have to say in return." - Barack Obama, in a guest post today on the Bilerico Project. The commenters have not been kind.

HomoQuotable - Andrew Sullivan

"McClurkin describes sexual orientation as something that God wants to save me and other gay people from. If one were being generous, one would say this isn't meant as an attack; but it is certainly experienced as an attack. McClurkin, in short, should never have been allowed to speak at this event, because his words are inherently divisive, his record of comments on gay people offensive, and the point of the event was allegedly unifying. It wasn't. To my mind, this isn't ultimately about the difficulty of forging any kind of alliance between gays and African-Americans. It is the inherent danger of mixing religion with politics. That's called Christianism. Some of us have not spent the last few years trying to rescue conservatism from the toxin of theocracy only to support a candidate who wants to do the same thing on the left. I don't think Obama wants to go that far; I still believe that broadly speaking, his is the only major candidacy right now that offers the kind of change we need. But what happened on that stage was inexcusable, stupid, and damaging. I don't blame any gay American for jumping the Obama ship over it." - Andrew Sullivan.

Obama Spins McClurkin

Notice at the 0:55 mark how Obama refers to the McClurkin controversy as happening "a while back." Uh, yeah. Waaaay back on Sunday. Spin, spin, spin.

Also from the same forum, but not in the clip:

Appearing at the Cedar Rapids Public Library, Abbi Swanson whose son is gay, asked what he would do to give him the same rights as opposite-sex couples. "You want the word marriage and I believe that the issue of marriage has become so entangled - the word marriage has become so entangled with religion - that it makes more sense for me as president, with that authority, to talk about the civil rights that are conferred [with civil unions]" he told her.

Both Swanson and Lamb later told the Des Moines Register they were not satisfied with Obama's position. "I'm not completely satisfied that he's not for gay marriage ... but I'm happy he does believe in equal rights for gay citizens," Lamb said.
Swanson told the paper, "There isn't an electable candidate out there that has given me the answer I want, which is everything."

We're not going to get "everything", but we should at least demand that candidates who purport to support most gay issues not hand the microphone over to the "ex-gays". When the McClurkin issue first reared up, I was perplexed, then disappointed. Now I'm just pissed.

The t-shirt now on sale at AmericaBlog:

Putting The "X" Back In "Ex-Gay"

This didn't take long. Clay Cane has posted an interview with an unnamed man claiming to have been "ex-gay" Rev. Donnie McClurkin's lover from 2001-2004, the height of the period during which McClurkin was making his anti-gay rants. McClurkin is still slated to appear at Sen. Barack Obama's fundraisers in South Carolina, despite a general outcry from gay activists.

According to Cane's source, McClurkin enjoys "rough play" as a submissive bottom and used to patronize the X-rated Show Palace, a now-closed gay strip club on 8th Avenue near Times Square. However, McClurkin didn't avail himself of the Show Palace's glory holes, telling his playmate, "I wouldn’t stick my six inch, small dick through a glory hole."

McClurkin's ex, who says the two had sex once or twice a month for several years, describes the "ex-gay" reverend's body in detail, and calls McClurkin a sex addict. When confronting McClurkin on his anti-gay rants, the source says McClurkin told him, "I have a problem. I don’t want people to believe that I’m still doing it.”

Read the rest of the (rather long) interview. Grain of salt, unnamed source and all that, but the details in the story ring of believability. The source says he last saw McClurkin earlier this year in a Manhattan restaurant. The "ex-gay" rev was allegedly in the company of an attractive, effeminate man. Yup.
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HomoQuotable - Wayne Besen

"We strongly urge Obama to part ways with this divisive preacher who is clearly singing a different tune than the stated message of the campaign. We can only hope that Obama is unaware of McClurkin's anti-gay history and will swiftly condemn such intolerance. Real leadership includes standing up to those who drive wedges between the American people.

McClurkin's explanations for homosexuality are patently absurd, unscientific and have no basis in fact. He is a sad figure who is using his celebrity to demean and diminish the lives of healthy gay people who have chosen to live openly and honestly. I can't imagine why the Obama campaign would choose to associate with a man who is so closely identified with hatred and discrimination." - Wayne Besen, head of Truth Wins Out, an organization devoted to exposing the lies of the "ex-gay" movement.

Late yesterday, after Besen said the above, Barack Obama issued this statement on the McClurkin controversy: "I have clearly stated my belief that gays and lesbians are our brothers and sisters and should be provided the respect, dignity, and rights of all other citizens. I have consistently spoken directly to African-American religious leaders about the need to overcome the homophobia that persists in some parts of our community so that we can confront issues like HIV/AIDS and broaden the reach of equal rights in this country. I strongly believe that African Americans and the LGBT community must stand together in the fight for equal rights. And so I strongly disagree with Reverend McClurkin's views and will continue to fight for these rights as President of the United States to ensure that America is a country that spreads tolerance instead of division."

Besen calls Obama's statement "inadequate and disappointing." I agree. There is no mention of removing the Grammy-winning "ex-gay" gospel singer from the Obama fundraiser tour. I don't believe Obama is anti-gay, but letting our enemies raise funds for him speaks to a questionable ethic.

Obama To Tour With Anti-Gay Preacher

In an effort to gain traction with black conservatives, Barack Obama will tour South Carolina with Pastor Donnie McClurkin, an "ex-gay" preacher and gospel singer.

McClurkin, who says he was molested as a child, frequently rails against "the curse of homosexuality." A choice quote: "There are countless numbers of people who are not happy in this lifestyle and want to be freed from it. They were thrust into homosexuality by neglect, abuse and molestation, and want desperately to live normal lives and one day have a happy home and family."

Progressive blogs are blasting Obama's decision.

From American Thinker: "This would seem to be an incredibly stupid move on the part of Obama. Whatever temporary gains he might make in South Carolina would surely be offset by angering a major Democratic constituency - the gay rights lobby. Is it possible he didn't know McCulkin's history of perceived gay bashing? If so, it shows a monumental lapse in judgement not to mention extremely poor staff work"

From Huffington Post: "He's [Obama] also sold himself as a healer and consensus builder. Legions have bought his pitch, and have shelled out millions to bankroll his campaign. But healing and consensus building does not mean sucking up to someone that publicly boasts that he's in "a war" against gays, and that the aim of his war is to "cure" them. That's what McClurkin has said. Polls show that more Americans than ever say that they support civil rights for gays, and a torrent of gay themed TV shows present non-stereotypical depictions of gays. But this increased tolerance has not dissipated the hostility that far too many blacks, especially hard core Bible thumping blacks, feel toward gays."

If Obama doesn't back out of touring with McClurkin, it will end what little support I have for his candidacy.
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