Future of the African-American church vote

A black Christian leader says there is evidence from the recent election that more and more blacks are starting to realize that the Democratic Party does not represent their core values on a number of important issues. This past weekend, a panel of black religious conservatives held a forum to discuss the future of the African-American church vote. One of those attending was Dr. Johnny Hunter, the national director of the Life Education and Resource Network (L.E.A.R.N.), who noted that in New Jersey alone President Bush received 17 percent of the black vote in 2004. That compares to just eight percent four years earlier. Hunter says black pastors are waking up. "It's only been recently that many of the African-American leaders, especially in the pulpit, have begun to recognize [and say] 'Wait a minute! We've been voting for some people here on the opposite side [who] don't agree with us on some of the top moral issues of this nation,'" he states. Hunter says many blacks are beginning to recognize the horrible toll abortion has had on the black community. "They realize how many blacks are being killed each day by the abortion industry alone -- 1,452 a day," he points out. "They are waking up to that [and it] has rubbed them the wrong way." According to the L.E.A.R.N. leader, most blacks are also concerned about the Democrats' support of same-sex marriage and their opposition to Social Security reform. [Chad Groening]