Harris thanks church leaders who voted against striking down gay

Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee, thanked leaders of the African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church for their support this week and told them she is determined to move the country forward for them, but the church’s leaders don’t seem to want that when it comes to gay marriage.

Leaders of the AME church voted Wednesday at its 52nd quadrennial conference held in Columbus, Ohio, to strike down a bill that would have ended the AME church’s ban on same-sex marriage. 

In an address to attendees of the conference the same day, Harris slammed Republicans for trying to pull the country backward. 

“We face a choice between two very different visions for the future of our nation. One, ours, that is focused on the future. The other focused on the past,” Harris told those in attendance. “But we are not going back.” 

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Gay marriage was legalized by the federal government in 2015. 

The AME church is a predominantly Black church based in the U.S. It originated due to racial animosity between Black and White congregants in the Methodist church during the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Today, 92% of the AME church’s congregants identify as Democrats, according to the polling firm Pew Research Center. 

Leaders of the AME church have been credited with helping play a key role in getting President Biden elected in 2020 and this year have campaigned with prominent Democratic candidates.