Posted on Sep 20, 2023
Southern Baptists expel church as pastor defends blackface and Native caricatures
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https://www.npr.org/2023/09/19/ [login to see] /southern-baptists-expel-church-as-pastor-defends-blackface-and-native-caricature
The Southern Baptist Convention has ousted an Oklahoma church whose pastor defended his blackface performance at one church event and his impersonation of a Native American woman at another.
The Executive Committee of the nation's largest Protestant denomination voted Tuesday that Matoaka Baptist Church of Ochelata "be deemed not in friendly cooperation with the convention" — the official terminology for an expulsion.
The church's pastor, Sherman Jaquess, dressed in blackface for a 2017 church Valentine's Day event, in which he claimed to be impersonating the late soul singer Ray Charles. Jaquess wore dark facial makeup, a large Afro wig and dark glasses and smiled broadly as he sang a duet. Some in the crowd can be heard laughing during the video of the performance.
The Southern Baptist Convention has ousted an Oklahoma church whose pastor defended his blackface performance at one church event and his impersonation of a Native American woman at another.
The Executive Committee of the nation's largest Protestant denomination voted Tuesday that Matoaka Baptist Church of Ochelata "be deemed not in friendly cooperation with the convention" — the official terminology for an expulsion.
The church's pastor, Sherman Jaquess, dressed in blackface for a 2017 church Valentine's Day event, in which he claimed to be impersonating the late soul singer Ray Charles. Jaquess wore dark facial makeup, a large Afro wig and dark glasses and smiled broadly as he sang a duet. Some in the crowd can be heard laughing during the video of the performance.
Southern Baptists expel church as pastor defends blackface and Native caricatures
Posted from npr.org
Native Americans
Ochelata
Video
Posted 9 mo ago
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PO1 William "Chip" Nagel
..."a Facebook post earlier this year, Lewis wrote: "He didn't just mimic Ray Charles, he distorted the features and culture of African Americans and also Indigenous Americans with his offensive Pocahontas caricature. He is promoting the hatred that sees African Americans and Indigenous Americans as not only different but less than. "
Jaquess did not immediate respond to a request for comment sent via email.
Lewis praised the Executive Committee's action.
"For him (Jaquess) to not apologize, and double down on it, to me I felt this is a pastor that needed to be exposed," Lewis said in an interview. "I'm grateful that the Southern Baptist organization said, 'We don't want to have anything to do with this.'"
Blackface performances date back to minstrel shows of the 1800s, in which performers darkened their faces to create bigoted caricatures of Black people.
Jaquess defended his actions when they came to light, saying he was playing tribute to Ray Charles and that he doesn't "have a racist bone in my body," according to the Examiner-Enterprise.
Jaquess, who has campaigned against public drag shows, said in a sermon posted on Facebook that his "dressing up like Pocahontas" was not a drag performance because it wasn't sexual. Drag performers are generally described as entertainers who dress and act as a different gender."...
..."a Facebook post earlier this year, Lewis wrote: "He didn't just mimic Ray Charles, he distorted the features and culture of African Americans and also Indigenous Americans with his offensive Pocahontas caricature. He is promoting the hatred that sees African Americans and Indigenous Americans as not only different but less than. "
Jaquess did not immediate respond to a request for comment sent via email.
Lewis praised the Executive Committee's action.
"For him (Jaquess) to not apologize, and double down on it, to me I felt this is a pastor that needed to be exposed," Lewis said in an interview. "I'm grateful that the Southern Baptist organization said, 'We don't want to have anything to do with this.'"
Blackface performances date back to minstrel shows of the 1800s, in which performers darkened their faces to create bigoted caricatures of Black people.
Jaquess defended his actions when they came to light, saying he was playing tribute to Ray Charles and that he doesn't "have a racist bone in my body," according to the Examiner-Enterprise.
Jaquess, who has campaigned against public drag shows, said in a sermon posted on Facebook that his "dressing up like Pocahontas" was not a drag performance because it wasn't sexual. Drag performers are generally described as entertainers who dress and act as a different gender."...
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