Alabama Episcoplaians Condemn Murder of Gay Man
Episcopal News Service. March 18, 1999 [99-023]
(ENS) Episcopalians in Alabama joined public outrage over the February 19 murder of a "quietly gay man" in Sylacauga, a small town about an hour's drive from Birmingham.
Bishop Henry Parsley of the Diocese of Alabama called the murder a "tragedy," adding that "this sad event in our state reminds us all of the terrible consequences of prejudice and hate in our life together." He added, "Let us pray that it will spur us to deeper tolerance and understanding in our human differences."
The Rev. Timothy Holder, rector at Grace Episcopal Church in Woodlawn, joined several clergy colleagues in praying over the scarred patch of ground where Billy Jack Gaither was bludgeoned to death and his body set on fire. Next to a creek that has been used for baptisms, he said, "Evil has happened here. It is very important to face evil immediately with love. Love will conquer it, and that's why we are here." And members of the Alabama chapter of Integrity, a ministry with gays and lesbians, later made a pilgrimage to the site.
A pair of local construction workers confessed to the crime, admitting that they killed Gaither because he was a homosexual, according to the sheriff's office. Charles Butler and Steven Mullins were charged with murder. They admitted that they lured him from a local bar, beat him with an ax handle, put him in the trunk of his car, drove to a secluded spot on the banks of Peckerwood Creek, beat him again and then set his body on fire in a pile of discarded tires.
Local reaction was disbelief -- and outrage. Many people were comparing the crime with the murder of Wyoming college student Matthew Shepard. Alabama's hate crime legislation does not cover sexual orientation, only racial and religious persecution, but a legislator has announced his intention to introduce an amendment.
"We live under a fear that this could happen at any point, at any time," said an openly gay man, Cliff Tinney. "There is an underlying element of fear. The killing of Mr. Gaither has made that fear a reality." He blamed fundamentalist teachings preached in local pulpits for helping create the climate of fear.
"How absolutely deplorable," said an editorial in the Birmingham News. "What kind of sick individuals would kill someone just because of his sexual orientation?" The editorial noted that Gaither's murder was "drawing the attention of the national media and gay rights groups, and he's fast becoming a national gay martyr. His death in many ways mirrors that of Matthew Shepard...who was killed last year because he was gay." It concluded, "There's absolutely no place in our society for the kind of senseless hatred and cruelty he suffered. May justice be swift and severe for his killers."
Holder sprinkled water on the site from his parish's baptismal font "because at baptism, following the example of Christ, we renounce Satan and all the spiritual forces of wickedness that rebel against God. We renounce the evil powers of this world which corrupt and destroy the creatures of God. At baptism, we commit ourselves to Christ by promising to seek and serve Christ in all persons, loving our neighbor as ourselves. We promise to strive for justice and peace among all people, and respect the dignity of every human being."
The church must address the underlying issues, Holder said in a statement, it "must be out front, relevant, unafraid, speaking to the souls and hearts of people in and beyond the pews. There is hurt, confusion, denial, hesitation, dismay and abandonment. That's why there is killing."
The Alabama Integrity chapter deplored the failure of a Hate Crimes Resolution at the diocesan convention only a week earlier. The resolution didn't even make it out of committee, said Ron Gatlin, convener of the chapter. "How many more senseless crimes of hate must occur before action is taken?" he asked. He said that it was time for the church, as a community of faith, to speak out in witness that "no one of God's creations deserves such treatment."
"Our outrage against hate crimes grows each time we add another example to the list: Matthew Shepard for being gay, James Byrd, Jr. for being black, and so many others whose names never make the national headlines," said General Secretary Joan Brown Campbell of the National Council of Churches. She urged church members to speak out and press Congress and the 29 states that have no hate crimes protection for legislation.
In a letter to deputies and alternates to General Convention, Pamela P. Chinnis, president of the House of Deputies, said that ''as people of conscience we must take action against murderous prejudice wherever it appears in our churches and communities," teaching and preaching tolerance and "working for a society in which every person can know the freedom of the children of God." She concluded, "We must find a way for love to replace hate."
Enclosed with her letter was a new "Stop Hate" brochure produced by the Episcopal Church's Peace and Justice Office. The brochure will be sent to all parishes.
The Rev. Brian Grieves, director of the office said, "The brochure is in direct response to the action of Executive Council and Chinnis and to a growing concern throughout the church."