Black America's Gay Problem -- Can Attitudes Change in the Black Church?

After two years of public hatred toward gays from black ministers around the country, attitudes toward gays may finally be changing in the black church. But will cooler heads prevail as another contentious presidential election draws closer and dollars and pulpits are again up for grabs?

Fearing a repeat of the 2004 presidential election, and in an effort to counter the divisive messaging from the Republican Party and white Christian evangelicals, the National Black Justice Coalition, the nation's black gay civil rights group, hosted in Atlanta on Jan. 20-21 a summit of black ministers and black gay activists from around the country to discuss publicly the widespread prejudice against gay men and lesbians within black churches.

The first of its kind, the summit featured the Rev. Al Sharpton, who made good on his 2005 promise of fighting homophobia in the black church.

This meeting comes on the heels of a meeting between black lesbian and gay leaders and Nation of Islam Leader Minister Louis Farrakhan to discuss the inclusion of gays during last year's Million More Movement March.

Although there has been relatively little action on part of Congress or the president to move forward with a ban against same-sex marriage, many black gays are worried that conservative groups will attempt yet again to woo the black vote by using them as scapegoats.

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