Ex-gay advocate holding concert for Obama in South Carolina

Singer Donnie McClurkin, an advocate of ministries for former gays who claims to have been rescued from homosexuality, will be featured at a concert in South Carolina for Sen.  Barack Obama.

Obama will not be present at the event, on Oct. 28 in Columbia, for his campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination.  McClurkin  is a top-of-the-charts gospel performer whose  work has been featured in the film “Prince of Egypt,” and who has performed for the first President  Bush and President Bill Clinton.

His entertainment credentials have not silenced concerns from the LBGT community.

“I think that it is unfortunate that the Obama campaign would work closely with someone with a reputation for intolerance,” said Sean Kosofsky, director of policy for the Triangle Foundation in Detroit. The Triangle Foundation is a statewide LBGT organization that works on policy issues and with victims of anti-LBGT violence.  “I would hope that any candidate running for president would distance themselves from someone who supports intolerance and discrimination.”

Continued -Obama’s campaign in South Carolina issued the following statement on McClurkin:  “I have clearly stated my belief that gays and lesbians are our brothers and sisters and should be provided the respect, dignity and rights of all other citizens.  I have consistently spoken directly to African-American religious leaders about the need to overcome the homophobia that persists in some parts our community so that we can confront issues like HIV/AIDS and broaden the reach of equal rights in this country.”

The statement continued:  “I strongly believe that African Americans and the LBGT community must stand together in the fight for equal rights.  And so I strongly disagree with Reverend McClurkin’s views and will continue to fight for these rights as president of the United States to ensure that America is a country that spreads tolerance instead of division.”

McClurkin’s position on gays is somewhat unclear, however. An Associated Press story on McClurkin said, “In his 2001 book, `Eternal Victim/Eternal Victor,’ and in last fall’s DVD documentary, `The Donnie McClurkin Story: From Darkness to Light,’ [McClurkin said that] `What I say in the book is simply this: If you’re gay, and you’re happy, if you don’t think you need to change, stay just how you are.’”

And in April 2005, the AP reported McClurkin was “critical of church leaders who demonize homosexuals from the pulpit. `You’ve got the church people who are lambasting and so demeaningly preaching hard against the person and not the sin. You’ve got the preachers calling them names,’ he says. `We become harsh and we haven’t portrayed the love of Jesus Christ.’ That message of love is what he tries to convey in his own church –  Perfecting Faith in Long Island, New York .”