Queering the Black Church Through Storytelling
Donation protected
Campaign Description
Pride in the Pews is a nationwide grassroots campaign aimed at celebrating stories of resilient queer faith in the Black Church. Through the power of storytelling, we hope to address the harm of queerphobic theologies and to inspire pathways for communal healing and advocacy.
Campaign Media
Chicago Tribune Article
ABC7Chicago
FOX32
Articles
Lil Nas X is inviting the Black church in with ‘Montero’
How the Black church can help end the HIV/AIDS crisis (https://bit.ly/3mIvPzm)
The Black Church Is Queer
Campaign Background
Nearly every major predominantly Black Protestant denomination — the Church of God in Christ, the National Baptist Convention, and the African Methodist Episcopal Church — has greeted LGBTQIA+ suffering with contempt or ambivalence. In fact, many Black churches still see the sexual expression and gender identities embodied by my community as sinful and abominable in the eyes of God. To date, there has been no organized effort or mass mobilization to confront the astronomical rate at which Black trans women are dying, often at the hands of Black men. Neither has there been a national campaign sponsored by prominent Black clergy persons to address the startling rate at which Black LGBTQIA+ youth are committing suicide. Our community is experiencing multiple crises and the Black church is silent and complicit.
But it is not too late for the Black Church to be an ally to the Black LGBTQIA+ community. Change is still possible, but our voices and experiences must be centered as we address trauma caused by toxic theologies and advocate for change. For too long, our stories have been shunned, our pain has been ignored, and our plight has been disregarded. If healing is to occur, Black LGBTQIA+ stories must be honored and our pain must be acknowledged. The Black Church must confront the harm it has caused and, with concrete action, redress it.
Pride in the Pews will create virtual, physical, and digital spaces for LGBTQIA+ Christians in the Black Church to embody the fullness of their intersecting identities through storytelling. We will host conversations related to the LGBTQIA+ community, advocate for more inclusive and affirming Black churches, and provide mutual aid to community members. With your generous support, we will:
- Begin the process of becoming a 501c3 Organization
- Hire videographers to capture, curate, and publish the stories of Black LGBTQIA+ Christians in the Black Church
- Host a series of virtual events and compensate the artists, singers, preachers, scholars, and activists that we will feature
- Host in-person events (post-COVID19) and rent safe spaces for Black LGBTQIA+ Christians and our allies to advance critical conversation at the intersection of race, religion, sexuality, and gender in the Black Church
- Hire staff to support the work of building community in-person and online
- Support activities related to amplifying our work, our message, and our mission
Your support will enable us to center voices and stories that have been marginalized for generations in the Black Church. You will give us the ability to amplify the concerns of our community and to combat queerphobic theologies. Thank you in advance for helping us to queer the Black Church through storytelling!
Campaign Founder Bio
Don Abram is an adept thinker, writer, and public theologian at the intersection of race, religion, sexuality, and social change. He has earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Pomona College ('16) and a Master of Divinity degree from Harvard Divinity School ('19), both on full-tuition scholarship. Currently, Don manages the implementation of grantee programs and supports developing partnerships at Interfaith Youth Core. Prior to his role at IFYC, Don worked as a qualitative researcher with Stanford University and as a Partnership Development Fellow at Harvard Law School’s Charles Hamilton Houston Institute for Race and Justice. Don is a licensed minister and he has been in ministry since the age of 14. After coming out as queer in college, Don has been committed to ensuring that the Black Church is affirming and accepting of the LGBTQIA+ community.
Pride in the Pews is a nationwide grassroots campaign aimed at celebrating stories of resilient queer faith in the Black Church. Through the power of storytelling, we hope to address the harm of queerphobic theologies and to inspire pathways for communal healing and advocacy.
Campaign Media
Chicago Tribune Article
ABC7Chicago
FOX32
Articles
Lil Nas X is inviting the Black church in with ‘Montero’
How the Black church can help end the HIV/AIDS crisis (https://bit.ly/3mIvPzm)
The Black Church Is Queer
Campaign Background
Nearly every major predominantly Black Protestant denomination — the Church of God in Christ, the National Baptist Convention, and the African Methodist Episcopal Church — has greeted LGBTQIA+ suffering with contempt or ambivalence. In fact, many Black churches still see the sexual expression and gender identities embodied by my community as sinful and abominable in the eyes of God. To date, there has been no organized effort or mass mobilization to confront the astronomical rate at which Black trans women are dying, often at the hands of Black men. Neither has there been a national campaign sponsored by prominent Black clergy persons to address the startling rate at which Black LGBTQIA+ youth are committing suicide. Our community is experiencing multiple crises and the Black church is silent and complicit.
But it is not too late for the Black Church to be an ally to the Black LGBTQIA+ community. Change is still possible, but our voices and experiences must be centered as we address trauma caused by toxic theologies and advocate for change. For too long, our stories have been shunned, our pain has been ignored, and our plight has been disregarded. If healing is to occur, Black LGBTQIA+ stories must be honored and our pain must be acknowledged. The Black Church must confront the harm it has caused and, with concrete action, redress it.
Pride in the Pews will create virtual, physical, and digital spaces for LGBTQIA+ Christians in the Black Church to embody the fullness of their intersecting identities through storytelling. We will host conversations related to the LGBTQIA+ community, advocate for more inclusive and affirming Black churches, and provide mutual aid to community members. With your generous support, we will:
- Begin the process of becoming a 501c3 Organization
- Hire videographers to capture, curate, and publish the stories of Black LGBTQIA+ Christians in the Black Church
- Host a series of virtual events and compensate the artists, singers, preachers, scholars, and activists that we will feature
- Host in-person events (post-COVID19) and rent safe spaces for Black LGBTQIA+ Christians and our allies to advance critical conversation at the intersection of race, religion, sexuality, and gender in the Black Church
- Hire staff to support the work of building community in-person and online
- Support activities related to amplifying our work, our message, and our mission
Your support will enable us to center voices and stories that have been marginalized for generations in the Black Church. You will give us the ability to amplify the concerns of our community and to combat queerphobic theologies. Thank you in advance for helping us to queer the Black Church through storytelling!
Campaign Founder Bio
Don Abram is an adept thinker, writer, and public theologian at the intersection of race, religion, sexuality, and social change. He has earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Pomona College ('16) and a Master of Divinity degree from Harvard Divinity School ('19), both on full-tuition scholarship. Currently, Don manages the implementation of grantee programs and supports developing partnerships at Interfaith Youth Core. Prior to his role at IFYC, Don worked as a qualitative researcher with Stanford University and as a Partnership Development Fellow at Harvard Law School’s Charles Hamilton Houston Institute for Race and Justice. Don is a licensed minister and he has been in ministry since the age of 14. After coming out as queer in college, Don has been committed to ensuring that the Black Church is affirming and accepting of the LGBTQIA+ community.
Organizer
Don Abram
Organizer
Chicago, IL
