In response to Birmingham's rising crime rate, Birmingham Mayor Larry Langford has issued an official proclamation designating Friday, April 25th as "It's Time to Pray Day," a day of public prayer in sackcloth and ashes.

WATCH VIDEO OF ANNOUNCEMENT>>

READ PROCLAMATION>>

READ ARTICLE FROM THE BIRMINGHAM WEEKLY>>

The Birmingham News reports that the event will feature the participation of Rev. Eddie Long, a homophobic televangelist from Atlanta who, in speaking of gays and lesbians, has declared from the pulpit, "God says you deserve death!"

READ COLUMN FROM THE BIRMINGHAM NEWS>>

Long, who preaches that "homosexuality and lesbianism are spiritual abortions," is described by the Southern Poverty Law Center as "one of the most virulently homophobic black leaders in the religiously based anti-gay movement."

READ SPLC ARTICLE>>

Dear [ Decision Maker ] ,

Dear Mayor Langford:

Crime, especially violent crime, is a serious problem in the city of Birmingham. As you know, Birmingham has the 7th highest murder rate in the country and is ranked 18th nationally for all forms of violent crime.

Gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people are particularly vulnerable to victimization. FBI statistics show that of more than 113,000 hate crimes committed since 1991, 14% were motivated by anti-GLBT prejudice. Anti-GLBT violence does not occur in a vacuum but in the context of a culture that denigrates and dehumanizes gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people.

Rev. Eddie Long is an especially notable purveyor of religiously based homophobia. He uses his pulpit to declare that GLBT people are deserving of death, providing a religious framework which motivates anti-GLBT violence.

I share your commitment to a strong, safe, and prosperous Birmingham, and I support legitimate initiatives to reduce violent crime throughout the city.

However, I do not support the participation of Rev. Eddie Long in It's Time to Pray Day events. Rev. Long's hateful rhetoric and ignorant prejudice against women and sexual minorities give rise to violence.

Accordingly, I respectfully urge you to repudiate Rev. Long's rhetoric and to withdraw his invitation to participate in It's Time to Pray Day. He may be entitled to espouse all manner of hateful and unthinking prejudice from the pulpit of his multi-million-dollar Georgia church, but he is not entitled to a platform in the city of Birmingham from which to do so.

Signed by:

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April 24, 2008