THE WHITE HOUSE Office of the Press Secretary ________________________________________________________________________ For Immediate Release August 16, 1994 STATEMENT BY AFRICAN-AMERICAN RELIGIOUS LEADERS The White House today released the following statement by African-American religious leaders supporting the crime bill. "In the words of an African proverb 'It takes an entire village to raise a child.' We believe there is no more important responsibility of society than to raise its children to become upstanding adults. Parents and families must shoulder the burden of this duty, but all of society -- including government --must pitch in. That is why we support the President's crime bill. While we do not agree with every provision in the crime bill, we do believe and emphatically support the bill's goal to save our communities, and most importantly, our children. We believe and support the $8 billion in the bill to fund prevention programs such as grants for recreation, employment, anti-gang and comprehensive programs to steer our young people away from crime. We believe in drug treatment to help get federal and state inmates out of the cycle of dependency. We believe in programs to fight violence against women. We believe in banning assault weapons, and preventing these deadly devices from falling into the hands of criminals and drug dealers. We believe in putting 100,000 well-trained police officers on the streets of our most violence-plagued communities and urban areas. We believe that 9-year-olds like James Darby of New Orleans, who was killed by a stray bullet only days after writing a plea to President Clinton to stop the violence, must have the opportunity to live and learn and grow in safe, decent communities. For all these reasons, we support the crime bill and we urge others to join us in this crusade." A list of the leaders releasing the statement is attached. 30-30-30- Charles Adams National Progressive Baptist Convention, President Detroit, Michigan Bishop H.H. Brookins, AME Denomination Los Angeles, California Rev. Dr. Amos Brown Third Baptist Church San Francisco, CA Bishop E. Lynn Brown Christian Methodist Episcopal Los Angeles, California Rev. John A. Cherry Full Gospel AME Zion Church Temple Hill, MD Rev Howard Chubbs Providence Baptist Church Greensboro, N.C. Father George Clements The Alliance for Rights and Responsibilities Washington, D.C. Bishop J. Clinton Hoggard AME ZION Church Washington, DC Rev. John Doggett, Superintendent United Methodist Church St. Louis, MO Rev Jerry Drayton New Bethel Baptist Church Winston-Salem, N.C. Rev. Walter Fauntroy New Bethel Baptist Church Washington, D.C. Bishop Louis Ford Church of God in Christ Chicago, Illinois Bishop William Graves Christian Methodist Episcopal Church Memphis, Tennessee Rev. Joe Hardwick Praises of ZION Baptist Church Los Angeles, CA Rev Calvin A. Harper Morning Star Baptist Church Cincinnati, OH Bishop Fred James AME Denomination Washington, DC Dr. T.J. Jemison, President National Baptist Convention USA Baton Rouge, LA Rev E. Edward Jones Galilee Baptist Church Shreveport, LA Rev. Odell Jones Pleasant Grove Baptist Church Detroit, Michigan Rev. William A. Jones Jr. Bethany Baptist Church Brooklyn, NY Rev W. B. Lewis President North Carolina General State Baptist Convention Raleigh, NC Bishop S.C. Madison United House of Prayer Washington, D.C. Bishop Haskell Mayo African Methodist Episcopal Fourth Episcopal District Chicago, Illinois Rev. Randall McCaskell Concerned Black Clergy of Philadelphia, President Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Dr. John Miles Morning Star Missionary Baptist Church Kansas City, Missouri Rev. James E. Milton Southern Baptist Church Cincinnati, OH Rev Dr. Frank Pinkard Evergreen Baptist Church Oakland, CA Bishop Norman Quick Church of God in Christ New York, New York Dr. W. Franklyn Richardson, General Secretary National Baptist Convention USA Mt. Vernon, NY Joseph L. Roberts Jr. Ebenezer Baptist Church Atlanta, GA Bishop J.H. Sherman Church of God in Christ Charlotte, North Carolina Rev. Dr. E.E. Stafford Mt. Tabor Baptist Church Los Angeles, CA Rev. Charles Stith Union United Methodist Church Boston, Massachusetts Bishop Frederick Talbot African Methodist Episcopal Arkansas/Oklahoma Dr. M.T. Thompson Berkeley Mount ZION Baptist Berkeley, CA Wyatt T. Walker Canaan Baptist Church New York, NY Bishop L.T. Walker Church of God in Christ Little Rock, Arkansas Bishop George W. Walker Sr. AME Zion Denomination New York, NY Dr. Kenneth Whalum Olivet Baptist Church Memphis, Tennessee Rev. Frederick Williams Episcopal Church of the Intercession New York, NY Bishop Milton Williams AME Zion Church Washington, DC