A group of black pastors met with Donald Trump last week at The White House and praised him as “the most pro-Black president that we’ve had in our lifetime.” Now, they are being accused of selling out and being “Uncle Tom’s,” and are facing criticism from their congregations and other prominent church leaders alike.
Politics
The event was billed as a meeting to discuss prison reform, but it didn’t take long for it to quickly morph into a Donald Trump lovefest and photo-op for his benefit.
“This is probably the most pro-active administration regarding urban America and the faith-based community in my lifetime,” said early Trump supporter, Pastor Darrell Scott of Ohio. “This is probably going to be … the most pro-Black president that we’ve had in our lifetime.”
Despite claims that the meeting was not intended to be a Trump PR event but was meant to allow minority voices to have a seat at the table, the black pastors in attendance were captured on camera as if they were “Uncle Tom’s” grinning and shucking and jiving for “Massa Trump.”
Needless to say, not everyone was amused.
Rev. Greg Holston, the executive director of the interfaith group Philadelphians Organized to Witness Empower and Rebuild (POWER) said he was very “flabbergasted” by Scott’s comment.
“To call this president the most pro-black president when you allow people with these kinds of very violent, hatred-filled ideals and thinking into the White House, I’m flabbergasted that you would even say that or even think that,” Holston said. “There is no way that this president can be called pro-Black or pro people or color in any shape, form or imagination.”
Rev. Kevin Johnson of the Dare to Imagine Church in Philadelphia also agreed with that sentiment.
“President Trump is probably the one who is doing the most to hurt, devastate the Black community,” Johnson said. “If you look at what Jeff Sessions is doing to civil rights and also to criminal justice reform, it’s not moving the Black community forward, but backward.”
Johnson added that the meeting between Trump and the black pastors only served to benefit Trump and not the Black church or the Black community.
“Preachers were there are pawns, not even knowing how to play the chess that Donald Trump is playing,” Johnson said. “It was buffoonery in the fullest sense and it did not help the Black church, but it just further emphasized the lack of the prophetic voice in the Black community.”
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Devil is so slick 2invite a group of black preachers 2 a praise party 4 N unworthy underserving lying POTUS 2 divide the Body of Christ in trusting man instead of God God Please don’t allow the Very Elect 2b fooled by a man who is not concerned abt blacks or the poor but himself
— Bishop Paul S Morton (@BishopPMorton) August 2, 2018
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“They are prostituting themselves and, in essence, the black church,” said Rev. Jamal Bryant, pastor of the Empowerment Temple Church in Baltimore after explaining he refused to attend the meeting and be a sellout to his community.
“It’s 15 minutes of fame,” Bryant continued. “It gave them a chance to be on television and in the newspaper, where otherwise, nobody would have ever known their names.”
With only 13% of African-Americans acknowledging in a new Gallup Poll that they approve of the job Donald Trump is doing, it’s safe to say Black America clearly does NOT back these black pastors or the belief that Trump is the most pro-Black president in history.
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WATCH PASTOR JOHN GRAY DISCUSS THE MEETING WITH TRUMP:
CLICK X TO UNMUTE SOUND
I had only heard just a snippet about this until now. Pretty darn sad. But not all that surprising.
I’ve caught a bit of “Pastor” Darrell Scott’s shtick on CNN from time to time. He is indeed one of Trump’s major tools and a shameless “sell-out” to the Black race in America.
My beloved grandfather (now deceased) used to refer to the Darrell Scotts of this world as “jack-legged preachers” who AIN’T about nothing but serving their own craven wants and desires. My grandfather despised the actions of preachers of that ilk and so do I. My grandfather wanted nothing to do with such men and neither do I.
“They are prostituting themselves and, in essence, the black church,” for “15 minutes of fame,” – Rev. Jamal Bryant
And let the church say AAAAMEN!