Black Churches Have Mixed Reactions As The US Supreme Court Overturns Roe V. Wade

Don Folden, a community activist, holds a sign outside the Supreme Court building. He says the abortion issue is undeniably divisive. Photo by Hamil Harris.

WASHINGTON— After years of fighting to overturn Roe v. Wade, the day the court voted 6-3 to do just that sparked joy and jubilation among many evangelicals and people of faith for one of the top issues pushed by Republican lawmakers.

Yet many Black American pastors aren't jumping on the spiritual caravan with White evangelical churches that largely vote Republican. Black churches have a complex relationship with religion and politics on the topic of abortion and other issues. Some see the recent decision as a win for right-wing Republicans who are determined to turn back the clock regarding race relations and civil rights. And while some Black churches and pastors support the ruling, plenty of others do not.

Only 8% of Americans want a total ban on abortion in every circumstance while only 19% of Americans say they want total unrestricted access to abortions, according to a March survey by Pew Research Center.

Most American Christians—including White evangelical Protestants, Black Protestants and Catholics— say their views on abortion fall somewhere between total bans and unrestricted access, according to Pew.

White evangelical Protestants are the group most likely to oppose abortion, with 21% saying that abortion should be illegal in all cases and 53% saying it should be mostly illegal but allowed in some situations.

Meanwhile, about two-thirds of Black Protestants said abortion should be mostly or always legal, Pew found.

“I’ve always believed a patient’s room is too small a space for a woman, her doctor, and the United States government,” said Sen. Rafael Warnock, D-Ga. He is also pastor of the Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, which was the home church for Martin Luther King Jr. Warnock is locked in a difficult reelection campaign against former Dallas Cowboys star running back Herschel Walker, who is a social conservative.

“The Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade ends a core protection for women to make their own health care decisions and is a departure from our American ideals to recognize and protect basic rights,” Warnock said in a statement. “This misguided decision is devastating for women and families in Georgia and nationwide.”

The 6-3 decision to reverse Roe v. Wade came the morning after many of the titans of the African American church took part in a Blessing of the Elders gala at the Museum of the Bible, honoring iconic leaders in the African American church that was entitled.

“Our hope for Blessing of the Elders is to honor — past and present — Black pastors who have impacted America with their significant ministry,” said museum CEO Harry Hargrave in a statement.

During the June 23 event, seven iconic figures were honored: John Perkins, A.R. Bernard, Tony Evans, Shirley Caesar, Charles E. Blake, Vashti McKenzie and T.D. Jakes. The ministers selected are held as champions among African Americans and Whites, and during their acceptance, most of them checked their politics at the door. But if one listened carefully, some speakers focused on the historical roots of their church traditions.

The first honoree was the Rev. John M. Perkins, 92, a civil rights activist, Bible teacher, best-selling author, philosopher and community developer. “What am I thinking about?” Perkins said as he accepted his medallion. “The Black church, the White church. …The Black church is the corner stone that the builder rejected.”

The Rev. Tony Evans, pastor of Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship in Dallas and host of the Urban Alternative TV program, had a message for evangelicals as he accepted his award: “God is not asking the church to fix the White House. If God is your problem, it doesn’t matter who you elect.”

Instead of preaching and making a long speech, Bishop Jakes used the occasion to honor his grandfather, Thomas Dixon Jakes Sr., who was drowned in Mississippi on June 9, 1928. Historians say Jakes Sr. died on his lunch break after he got into an argument with a mob at the plant where he worked. In his acceptance speech, T.D. Jakes said, “I’m safe to be here. … Let us march on.”

Protestors demonstrate in front of the U.S. Supreme Court in June after the decision to overturn Roe v. Wade. Photo by Hamil Harris.

The Rev. William J. Barber II is president and senior lecturer at Repairers of the Breach and co-chair of the Poor People's Campaign: A National Call for Moral Revival. “The state can’t make laws to enforce gun laws but can regulate a woman’s body. Hypocrisy,” Barber said in a tweet. “This is the criminalization of a woman’s health decision.”

Barber, who drew thousands to Washington last Saturday, also tweeted, “We must now hear what Fredrick Douglas said after the Dred Scott decision. “We must intensify and embolden our agitation.”

Warnock said the Roe v. Wade reversal is the beginning of a new civil rights battle. “Our work to restore the right of women to determine and access their own care must continue,” he said. “I’ll never back down from this fight because women should be able to make their own health care decisions.”

But some Black pastors applaud the decision.

“In 2019, the largest Pentecostal movement in the country passed a resolution on the sanctity of life,” said Crystal Walker, spokesperson for Bishop Vincent Mathews, pastor of Tabernacle Church of God in Christ in Southaven, Mississippi, and a leader in the Church of God in Christ in historic Memphis. “Bishop Mathews can speak on his experience as a Black humanitarian and Christian leader who prayed and worked diligently for this day to arrive.”

Meanwhile, the Washington Post and other outlets are reporting on protests emerging around the country in response to the Supreme Court decision, including pledges from pro-life/anti-abortion activists to protect churches with rifles and threats from pro-choice/pro-abortion rights activists to burn churches — except for Black churches.

Senior contributor Hamil Harris is an adjunct professor at the University of Maryland, College Park, and has been a lecturer at Morgan State University. Harris is minister at the Glenarden Church of Christ and a police chaplain. A longtime reporter at The Washington Post, Harris was on the team of Post reporters that published the series “Being a Black Man.” He also was the reporter on the video project that accompanied the series that won two Emmy Awards, the Casey Medal and the Peabody Award. In addition to writing for ReligionUnplugged, Harris contributes to outlets such as The Washington Post, USA Today, The Christian Chronicle and the Washington Informer.