Churches
ask congregants to wear black on #blacklivesmatter Sunday
Many African
American churches across the country this Sunday will hold special services
focused on black men, policing and the theme “black lives matter.” Congregants
are urged to wear black and to pray for the black men in their community.
Among the
denominations involved are the African Methodist Episcopal Church, the African
Methodist Episcopal Zion Church and Church
of God in Christ, whose combined membership is well into the millions.
The Reverend
Dr. Grainger Browning, pastor of the 8,000-member Ebenezer AME in Fort
Washington, Md., said Monday that he plans to turn over the pulpit for both
services to youth ministers “so the younger voice can be heard.”
Last Sunday,
Browning said, he asked his largely African-American congregation during
services how many people have had some negative interaction with police “and 99
percent of the hands rose.”
Browning said the
idea for Sunday – which will use the hashtag #blacklivesmatter – came out of
meetings with black leaders in different U.S. cities looking for ways to
express solidarity related to the string of recent prominent police-related
killings of black Americans. The relationship between African Americans and
their local police varies widely from place to place, he said, praising his
local authorities in Prince George’s County.
“Our solidarity is
not just on those [recent] cases. For African-Americans the relationship with
police has been an ongoing challenge,” he said.
Presiding Bishop
Charles E. Blake, Sr., leader of the 6.5-million member Church of God in
Christ, said in a news release about Sunday that it is meant to
honor Michael Brown and Eric Garner — both killed by police.
“We must find a
way, through God’s help, to continue the work of emphatically telling everyone
that will listen that: ‘Black Lives Matter!’” he said in a statement.
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