Black pastors fail to recognize what Bush has done for Africa

By Shaylon Sharp

Near the end of June The Los Angeles Times published an article entitled “Black Pastors Criticize Bush on Aid to Africa: A letter from prominent clergy urges the White House to back a plan to double assistance.”

My church in Birmingham, Alabama, is multi-racial, and recently mothered a predominantly African-American church in a racially tense area that needed a witness of Christ. We had joint services with them, foot-washing services—straight up unity of races & a powerful voice of confrontation to racism in the Deep South. Both churches are doing great. I say that so you understand I am not some Southern, extremist right-wing racist.

I'm not a Republican or Democrat, I'm an Independent. While I did vote for Bush, that doesn't mean I agree with everything he's done. But on Africa, Bush has worked harder to get money for the AIDS epidemic and funds in general for Africa than Clinton, who was widely known as the "first black president."

During the Clinton years, AIDS ravaged Africa, infecting an estimated 32-34 percent of the adult population. The U.S. budget for total nonmilitary aid, including AIDS prevention/literacy programs, health care, etc. was $10 billion. President Bush as of 2003, tripled U.S. commitment, and it's up to Congress to get that money there.

President Bush pushed through Congress a $15 billion plan to halt the further expansion of AIDS/HIV in Africa. This initial plan has a lofty goal to cut the deaths in Africa from HIV infections by half and lower new infections by 60 percent over a three year period.

Where was the outrage of black pastors over Clinton's severe lack of action in Africa? I don't remember hearing anything! In fact I remember nationally reknowned black pastor, Bishop G.E. Patterson, of the Church of God in Christ, telling Clinton, on a national television broadcast of Patterson's church service, that "Mr. Clinton, you and yours [the Democrats] have always stood by the black community, and now we will stand by you!" This was made during Clinton's 1996 re-election campaign.

Freedom of speech is beautiful, but ignorance is not. Last summer, I was the best man in my best friend's (a black man) wedding. This summer, I will be preaching a youth camp for his church, a primarily non-white congregation. I've met many African Americans who do not appreciate how they are represented by either dominant political party.

By not recognizing the leaps & bounds we've taken towards aiding Africa under the current administration, these black ministers are playing right into the hands of the Democratic party, the Congressional Black Caucus, and manipulative ideologues like Jesse Jackson, who will only use this situation as ammo against Bush or any conservative figurehead.  These pastors are also failing to hold all of those people accountable for their lack of action!

That being said, I agree that not enough is being done by this administration, or by Congress, to help Africa. I could have summed it all up with this: the failure of the Clinton Administration is being overlooked, while the more generous Bush Administration is being criticized. It's a chess game of influential religious figures who by the very nature of their job, need to realize how their positions & opinions will be whored by political pundits of both major parties, and be two steps ahead.  Hey, nobody accused most American pastors of being deep objective thinkers did they? 

Shaylon Sharp is a 28 year old creative arts & college pastor in Birmingham, Alabama.