Some Chicago-area black clergy are
targeting members of the Illinois House Black Caucus less than a week
after its leader endorsed a proposed gay marriage bill.
According to the Chicago
Sun-Times, the African-American Clergy Coalition (AACC)
launched another round of 40-second robocalls featuring Pastor James
Meeks, a senior pastor of Chicago's Salem Baptist Church and a former
state senator, urging constituents to call their representatives and
encourage them to vote against legalizing such unions in Illinois.
“Your representative needs to hear
from you,” Meeks says in the message. “In my view same-sex
marriage should not be the law of the state of Illinois.”
Representative Ken Dunkin, the Democrat
who heads the 20-member caucus, on Tuesday co-sponsored the marriage
bill approved in February by the Illinois Senate.
“The families in my district include
gay and lesbian parents who are raising children, just waiting for
the state of Illinois to treat them with the respect and dignity they
deserve. Those families can no longer be regarded as separate and
unequal. I support this legislation because I believe it will help
us move our state forward and provide equal protection under the law
for all families,” Dunkin said.
The measure has the support of some
prominent African-America ministers in the state.