RENWL

LB City Council Candidate Steven Neal Apologizes For Gay Marriage Comments: We Respond

Long Beach City Council candidate Steven Neal issued a letter that was published in the Long Beach Post responding to the four Democrat Clubs who questioned his statements on gay marriage and LGBT lifestyle as a choice. You can read about it here: Local Black Candidate Called Out On Same Sex Marriage Remarks.

In this letter Mr. Neal apologized for the statements and emphasized his commitment in working in the interests of all Long Beach residents whatever their ethnic background, gender or sexuality. The letter is below:

In recent days it has become clear that my comments in the Long Beach Business Journal have caused concern within the LGBT community. To be clear, that was not my intention.

As an active member of the Democratic Party and tireless advocate for progressive causes, I have spent my career serving all segments of our community – regardless of race, gender, or sexual orientation.
I have reached out to Councilmembers Garcia and Schipske, as well as the Long Beach Lambda Democratic Club to have a meaningful dialogue on this important matter.

Should I have the honor of serving the residents of the 9th District on the Long Beach City Council, I look forward to working with the LGBT communty to meet the needs of all Long Beach residents.
Respectfully,
Steven Neal, Candidate
Long Beach City Council

We honestly feel Mr. Neal’s words are heartfelt and sincere. And any fool can look at the man’s community involvement record and clearly see that he would be an outstanding asset to the Long Beach City Council—-the man cares. It is quite obvious why Mr. Neal would be backed by black politicians such as Karen Bass, Mark Ridley-Scott and others. There’s not a shadow of a doubt that he’s the right stuff.

So it’s a done deal, right? No harm, no foul.

We’re very much inclined to go that route. There’s really no point in harping on the matter any further. Fact is, that would just be plain petty and churlish. He apologized eloquently we think and that should be that.

It’s just that…well, there was a comment made by a reader of the Long Beach Post responding to the letter above. There were many comments, actually. But this one stuck out.

What bothers me isn’t so much that Neal opposes gay marriage – although I disagree with that position. What’s really troubling is how casually he, and others on this thread and in our country, justify their policy goals with “scripture” or “God”. I’m a practicing Christian but I’m shocked to hear a candidate who believes his personal religious beliefs should be the basis of the law. Why isn’t anyone arguing about the Constitution?

In all fairness, we don’t recall Mr. Neal saying anything about the scriptures being a part of his policy goals or that his personal religious beliefs should be basis of the law. What we remain concerned about however is an almost synonymous and intertwined relationship these days between politically-minded black clergy, religious intolerance and the continuous unchecked and unchallenged melding of church and state in their political and social views specifically as they pertain to issues surrounding homosexuality and marriage equality.

And what concerns us even more is how the LGBT community and supposed LGBT equality organizations in California have and continue to avoid at all costs any criticisms or challenges aimed at black clergy——-especially those who have stepped into the political realm bringing their religious convictions with them.

Before we say one more thing here cause we know somebody’s gonna go there, we are not by any stretch of imagination or perceived bias implying that all black preachers and black ministry are anti-gay or anti-gay marriage. That’s just not true. And we have an endless database of same gender loving supportive churches and black ministers to back that up.

There was much hysteria and media attention as we all know about the Mormon Church’s involvement and endorsement of Yes On 8. While many white gays got straight up racial about the black vote (and some like white LGBT bloggers Dan Savage and David Mixner continue to be so) those mouthpieces and leadership behind Yes On 8 in the black community—-black church ministers who were in support of the measure—-were not subject in the least to any criticisms or challenges to their highly vocal and highly visible endorsements of Yes On Prop 8. Not one of them was called out that we know of for their aggressive and almost chilling enthusiasm for the abolishment of same sex marriage in the state of California.

And even that wouldn’t be so bad if not for the dog-vicious battle led by Bishop Harry Jackson and his merry group of black ministers in Washington DC against same-sex marriage. What stands as impressive from our view is the fact that black LGBT in DC are front row and center as the opposition in support of marriage equality. And we cannot be prouder of our black LGBT and same-gender loving brothers and sisters getting DOWN DOWN for the right fight.

Because the fact of the matter is those black LGBT folk know the real deal:

This is not about religious views for those black ministers who stand in opposition of same sex marriage—–it’s not about marriage equality or even the so called redefinition of marriage. Those black LGBT in Washington DC know just like the rest of the nation’s black LGBT community who have been raised in the black church like ourselves that IT’S ABOUT HOMOPHOBIA AND NOTHING BUT HOMOPHOBIA.

And for you black LGBTs who are still blathering on about how we are not a single-issue community, you can stop that right now. It went well and beyond a single issue when some black clergy assumed leadership in the opposition of gay marriage—-as if gay marriage is going to somehow jack up their worlds beyond repair, recognition or redemption. Actually when it comes right down to it we agree with the opposition towards focusing on any single issue. There are plenty of issues the black community is grappling with—-so many—all the more reason why we find out it beyond troubling and straight out ridiculous that some of our clergy spend so much time campaigning against gay marriage when they’re desperately needed elsewhere in regards to the multitude of issues their own communities viscerally deal with on a day to day basis.

Please understand—in no form or fashion are we saying that Mr. Neal just by merely responding that his religious views don’t jive with gay marriage makes him a fag hating bigot to be brought down by any means necessary. No, that’s not what our concern is at all. Our concern is the fact that at least here in Los Angeles, as African American LGBTs who love love love our African American community and the people and beautiful culture of that community:

Goddammit it’s time to take a stand.

And if  as consequence we’re throwing salt in the game plans of the local black political community for doing so—-well too bad.

It’s time to say, “You know what my black brother in Jesus Christ, I hear you. And I most certainly respect your religious beliefs and views—Lord knows some of ‘em I share with you. But you see, when you say your religious beliefs determine your views on same sex marriage we wonder if you adhere to all that your religious beliefs finds impermissible and aberration against God’s word. Because the fact of the matter is, we know you don’t. Now what’s really going with you using the cloak of religion to stand in the way of your black same gender loving brothers and sisters and others sharing all the liberty, freedom and rights that you enjoy? What’s really going with that my black brother? Why? Why would you do that? When you and I both know that the white slave master did the same thing to justify keeping our mothers and fathers of this land in chains and misery. He preached and quoted from the over one hundred scriptures in the bible supporting slavery and our inferiority from the pulpit just like you’re doing today with homosexuality and same sex marriage. Why would you stand in the white slave master’s shadow doing the same thing to gay folks? How can you possibly justify the repetition of this behavior and assault towards your fellow man?

Nobody is encouraging black LGBTs or anyone else to seek out black ministers who are against same sex marriage and challenge them in a duel of biblical knowledge and Christian tightrope walking, but Steven Neal is running for a public service position. He’s a black minister who has voluntarily stepped into the political realm with his religious views intact. Not only are the labor unions one hundred percent behind him, so are some of this state’s most powerful black politicians.

We’ve taken some flack over the last couple of days because we dared to call out the very honorable assembly speaker Karen Bass on her support of Steven Neal. And guess what? If comes to it we’ll take even more. Because the fact of the matter is, she can get married. There ain’t no preachers in our community saying or implying that she’s not deserving of enjoying the same rights as everybody else. There are no black preachers holding rallies about the rights  or constrictions on black womanhood—even as abortion rights wars rages on elsewhere in other religious communities and political battlefields across the nation. Our black ministers who say they are so concerned about the black family and moral values ain’t said nary one funky word about abortion. But they’re hey hey hey hella quick to pipe up about why gays shouldn’t have the full civil rights as themselves. So getting back to Miss Bass, thanks to the battles that our forefathers and mothers fought putting their lives and all on the line, she now enjoys full civil rights and the respect and esteem of all her peers and community. She certainly has ours—even as we continue to question and challenge her, Mark Ridley-Scott and Senator Curran Price for their support of a candidate who does not believe or feel that all Americans should have the same rights and privileges. That’s the rock bottom of it, folks. Aint nothin’ else goin’ on but the rent.

Who knows? Maybe someday, a young black gay man will say thanks to Derrick Mathis for making the unpopular move of speaking up and out to our black community leaders in unyielding criticism and inquiry on the issue of the separation of church and state.

We doubt it. But it’s a nice thought.

Long Beach Post: UPDATED: LB Dems Question Candidate’s Gay Marriage Stance