Black pastors pressure Biden to call for ceasefire in Gaza

As the war between Israel and Hamas enters its fourth month, a coalition of Black faith leaders is putting pressure on the Biden administration to push for a ceasefire — a campaign spurred in part by their parishioners, who are increasingly saddened by the suffering of the Palestinians and critical of the president's response to it.

More than 1,000 Black pastors representing hundreds of thousands of congregants across the country have made the demand. In sit-down meetings with White House officials, and through open letters and advertisements, the ministers made a moral case for President Biden and his administration to pressure Israel to end its offensive operations in Gaza, which have killed thousands of civilians , to stop. They also call for the release of hostages held by Hamas and an end to the Israeli occupation of the West Bank.

The attempt at persuasion also carries a political warning, detailed in interviews with a dozen black faith leaders and their allies. Many of their parishioners, these pastors said, are so baffled by the president's attitude toward the war that their support for his reelection could be in jeopardy.

“Black faith leaders are extremely disappointed in the Biden administration at this point,” said the Rev. Timothy McDonald, the senior pastor of First Iconium Baptist Church in Atlanta, which has more than 1,500 members. He was one of the first pastors of more than 200 black clergy in Georgia, a key swing state, to sign an open letter calling for a ceasefire. “We are scared,” Mr McDonald said. “And we've talked about it – it's going to be very difficult to convince our people to go back to the polls and vote for Biden.”

Any cracks in the usually rock-solid base of black support for Mr. Biden, and for Democrats nationally, could be hugely significant in November.

The intense feeling about the war in Gaza is among the countless unexpected ways the war has roiled American politics. And it comes at a time when Mr. Biden is already facing signs of waning enthusiasm among black voters, who have been Democrats' most loyal voting base for generations.

The coalition of black clergy pushing Biden for a ceasefire is diverse, from conservative-leaning Southern Baptists to more progressive nondenominational congregations in the Midwest and Northeast.

“This is not a fringe issue,” said the Rev. Michael McBride, founder of Black Church PAC and lead pastor of Way Church in Berkeley, California. “There are many of us who feel this government has lost its way. on this.”

Seeing images of the destruction in Gaza, many black voters whose churches have become involved in the ceasefire movement have expressed growing disillusionment with Democrats, who they say have done little to stop the war.

Their pastors said their congregants' strong responses to the war were striking.

“Black clergy have seen war, militarism, poverty and racism all connected,” said Barbara Williams-Skinner, co-founder of the National African American Clergy Network, whose members lead about 15 million black churchgoers. She helped coordinate recent meetings between the White House and religious leaders. “But the war between Israel and Gaza, unlike Iran and Afghanistan, has stirred up the kind of deep-seated fear among black people that I haven't seen since the civil rights movement.”

When Hamas invaded Israel on October 7, killing some 1,200 Israelis and taking some 240 people hostage, unions of black preachers joined their counterparts in interfaith prayer for Israel, whose land they revere as sacred.

But since then, the pastors' Palestinian allies in the United States, Gaza and the West Bank have reached out to help on behalf of civilians suffering from Israel's counteroffensive. And the pastors have heard from their own congregants, especially younger churchgoers, about the conflict and Mr. Biden's full-throated support for Israel.

That sentiment more broadly reflects a strong sense of solidarity between black Americans and Palestinians that has shaped opinion since the war began.

“We see them as part of us,” said the Rev. Cynthia Hale, the founder and senior pastor of Ray of Hope Christian Church in Decatur, Georgia. “They are oppressed people. We are oppressed people.”

The efforts of Black pastors have forced the Biden administration to pay attention as the president prepares for what is expected to be an extremely close election against former President Donald J. Trump.

It began in late October, when a delegation of black faith leaders from across the country descended on Washington, where they called for an end to the fighting during meetings with the White House and members of the Congressional Black Caucus. Hundreds of pastors signed open letters to Democratic leaders and paid for full-page ads in national newspapers, including The New York Times, urging a ceasefire on humanitarian grounds and calling for the release of all hostages held in Gaza are being held.

Since its founding, the Black Church has been considered a power center of black political organization. In addition to offering spiritual guidance and challenging political leaders on moral grounds, black religious leaders have pushed their members to exercise their hard-won right to vote, often with great success.

Mr. Biden, in particular, has recognized the importance of the Black Church. One of his first campaign events of 2024 took place at Mother Emanuel AME in Charleston, SC, on January 8, making him the first sitting president to speak from the church's legendary pulpit. When protesters interrupted his speech with calls for a ceasefire, their chants were drowned out by cries of “Four more years!”

Mr. Biden's campaign did not comment for this article.

Some leaders say Mr. Biden still has time to change the trajectory of the conflict abroad and in turn repair the lost love between his administration and Black voters.

“As long as blacks feel that the president is sincere, I think he will continue to have our support,” said Bishop Reginald T. Jackson, who leads more than 500 African Methodist Episcopal churches in Georgia. He also signed the letter calling for a ceasefire and the return of the hostages. “I think he demonstrates his authenticity by the friction that exists between him and Netanyahu when it comes to what's going on in the Middle East,” he said, referring to Israel's prime minister.

Still, six Black faith leaders who spoke to The New York Times said they or their colleagues had considered withdrawing invitations to Democratic politicians hoping to speak at their Sunday services, or withholding public support for Biden's reelection until his administration committed to a ceasefire.

“What they see from the government in Gaza is a blatant contradiction of what we thought the president and the administration meant,” said the Rev. Frederick D. Haynes, senior pastor of Friendship-West Baptist Church in Dallas and the president. and CEO of the Rainbow PUSH Coalition, the civil rights organization founded by Rev. Jesse L. Jackson. His church has over 12,000 members. “So when you hear a president say the phrase 'save the soul of America,' it is a stain, a scar on the soul of America. There is something going on that is becoming hypocritical.”

Black faith leaders are nonetheless aware of the risks of Biden agreeing to a ceasefire, with Trump emerging as the likely Republican presidential nominee. Even pastors most critical of Mr. Biden on the war in Gaza agreed that a Trump re-election would be a worst-case scenario for their largely black and working-class congregations.

They also suggested that Mr. Trump, who has said he would ban Gaza refugees from entering the United States, would most likely have less sympathy than Mr. Biden for the plight of Gaza's citizens.

But the difference between reluctance and enthusiastic support can be significant. Asked whether the war in the Middle East could threaten Mr. Biden's chances in November, the Rev. Jamal Bryant, the senior pastor of New Birth Missionary Baptist Church in Stonecrest, Georgia, said: “I think Biden threatens his own success.”

Democrats, Mr. Bryant noted, seemed “almost on cruise control and felt like, Oh, the black people will come around. They will be forgiving and go with us.” But, he added, as the war continues, “I really think the bar will be raised.”

The calls for a ceasefire have strained some relationships between black pastors and Jewish leaders.

Rabbi Peter S. Berg, the Temple's senior rabbi in Atlanta, described in an email his “extraordinary relationship” with black ministers and recalled a service at nearby Ebenezer Baptist Church during Martin Luther King Jr.'s holiday weekend, in which Christians and Jews prayed together for peace and the safe return of the hostages.

However, he added that he felt the demand for a ceasefire from some pastors he has long considered friends did not fully take into account the feelings of Jews with ties to Israel.

“While we all want peace and for this war to end, I was disappointed to see some faith leaders calling for a ceasefire without focusing on bringing the hostages home and holding Hamas accountable for the atrocities that they committed,” Rabbi Berg said. , adding: “Now is the time to double down on our strong relationships and be open and honest with each other.”

Black pastors said they had tried to reassure Jewish leaders who objected to the ceasefire, stressing that their demand was not rooted in anti-Semitism and also calling for the release of Israeli hostages and protection of Israel against attacks.

“Our call for a ceasefire should not be read as a call to kill or terrorize Jewish individuals and families,” said Mr. McBride, who took part in the Washington rallies. “We are against all these evil expressions of dehumanization and terror wherever they appear.”