Obama, NAACP Condemned by Black Pastor William Owens Over Gay Marriage Endorsement

This morning The Christian Post reports  that the founder and president of Coalition of African American Pastors, (CAAP) Reverend William Owens Sr., has declared that the issue of same-sex marriage is “only going to increase,” come November. This comes as no surprise as earlier this month  Owens remarked that President Obama was taking the black vote for granted because “he thinks just because we’re black, we’re going to vote for him.” Owens went on to scold the NAACP, saying “the NAACP has made a serious mistake by pandering to the president and endorsing same-sex marriage.”

Owens' remarks were made at a CAAP press conference at the National Press Club in Washington D.C. Owens also said, "The time has come for a broad-based assault against the powers that be that want to change our culture to one of men marrying men and women marrying women." 

Regardless of whether or not one agrees with Owens’ philosophy, he is right: it appears that animosity over the issue of gay marriage is only going to increase and prove to be a dividing-line in American politics and culture. What underlies this debate are understandings of sexuality and human nature that are mutually incommensurable.  It is at base a disagreement of worldviews.

Whether or not Obama’s backing of same-sex marriage will cost him the black vote remains unclear, as Romney clearly holds little if any sway in the black community, and hasn’t appeared to cultivate meaningful dialogue with black leaders. Owens seems to think that in the long run Obama’s support of same-sex marriage will hurt his campaign, saying that “when you look at the numbers, without a doubt, black Americans have unanimously come out to stand against same-sex marriage.” 

Only time will tell.