US Church Leaders Call for Discussion on Race Issues Post-Katrina

Churches in the Atlanta area have called on political leaders this week to take a deeper look at the United States' racial and economic disparities made apparent by Hurricane Katrina.
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The accusation of government racism has been a hot topic since the storm two weeks ago, with a poll by the Pew Research Centre finding that two-thirds of black Americans think Bush would have responded faster if most of the victims had been white.

The group of around 30 churches and social service agency leaders is an unprecedented coalition which will see the likes of the traditionally white Regional Council of Churches of Atlanta working close-knit with the predominantly black Concerned Black Clergy of Metropolitan Atlanta.

The Rev Robert Franklin, a black theologian and the current president of the Regional Council of Churches said he was not aware of any such previous partnership between the two bodies.

The group has also organised a Katrina-themed interdenominational service for the 23 October, deliberately much later in order to keep public and political attention on the issues thrown up by Katrina.

“By that time the media won’t be covering it, by that time folks will have forgotten about it, by that time the evacuees will become invisible again,” said the Rev. Tim McDonald, senior minister at Atlanta’s First Iconium Baptist Church.

“This is an opportunity for us to raise the issue up again so hopefully we will continue to address it,” he added.
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The group, addressing reporters at a media conference Wednesday, also hit out at the government for inadequate planning and response to the hurricane, which, they said, led to the poor and minority groups suffering disproportionately.

A special service for evacuees and support workers in the Atlanta area will be led on the same day by the Rev. Gerald Durley, pastor of the Providence Missionary Baptist Church.

“One of the symbols of New Orleans, whenever there was a funeral people came together and they moved somewhat slowly down the path. But when the funeral was over, they came back in the second line, shouting and celebrating,” explained Durley.

“We want to give these people something to celebrate after we’ve gone through all these things,” he said.