Self-hatred?
Rev. Michael Pfleger, the colourful and often gratuitously emotive pastor of Chicago’s St. Sabina Church, is no stranger to controversy. Though well-meaning, Pfleger has throughout the years championed causes that the leadership of the Archdiocese of Chicago would just as soon he steered clear of altogether.
During the 1990s he led his parishioners in a protest outside the studios of “The Jerry Springer Show,” which he publicly decried as immoral. Pfleger has also taken on Howard Stern, billboard advertisers, gun manufacturers and rappers, much to the chagrin of Cardinal Francis George.
In the interest of fairness to Pfleger, some context; Pfleger, known affectionately by his parishioners as Father Mike, is not your average Catholic priest. He is by all indications an activist trapped in a preacher’s body. Prior to and since being appointed pastor of the predominantly black St. Sabina’s Church, Pfleger, a white man of German lineage, has immersed himself in communities of colour. His genuine concern for the benefit of the children, adults and seniors from within and without his parish community is evidenced by decades of hard work.
But for all of his good works, or perhaps emboldened by them, Pfleger can’t seem to resist landing in hot water. He made national news this week for mocking Hillary Clinton during a church service at, of all places, Trinity United Church of Christ. Trinity, you may recall, is the former church home of Rev. Jeremiah Wright and Sen. Barack Obama.
The clip below speaks for itself, but what I find more interesting is that I’ve not heard or read anyone suggest that Pfleger is afflicted by self-hatred. I’m not sure why, but that’s the first thing that occurred to me when I saw footage of Pfleger’s remarks.
What say you, my dears and good men? Is Pfleger just telling it like it is or does he hate the skin he’s in? Or, could both be true?
Also, am I wrong in thinking that had a black man mocked a black woman in front of an all-white audience, his Black Card would be under review by the Joint Committees on Cultural Correctness and Keepin’ It Real?
Hold forth.