Rev. Andre Allen Calls for Unity Among African-American Leaders

NEW YORK, NY, July 17, 2012

Texas Senator, John Cornyn and many House Republicans have connected the recent death of one Border Patrol Agent named Brian Terry to the law-making decisions put in place by Attorney General Eric Holder. According to a recent article from The Houston Chronicle, Holder had declined to "turn over all requested documents in connection with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms' Operation Fast and Furious." While many believe Holder's decision had no real connection to the death of Terry, the actions of GOP representatives have many civil rights activists, such as Rev. Al Sharpton speaking against the claims made by Cornyn. Rev. Andre Allen, a notable senior pastor in Illinois hopes that these issues can quickly be resolved to allow Eric Holder to continue on with his work.

Many African-American political voices have expressed sharp criticism of Congress' decision to hold a vote regarding Eric Holder's contempt charges. The vote occurred on the same day the Supreme Court ruled on health-care reform, which many speculate was a tactical move to keep press attention off the matter. Leaders such as Rev. Al Sharpton, have remained outspoken about the misappropriation of focus on Eric Holder's status. According to Wade Henderson, CEO of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, "Holder is not in contempt of Congress, he is in contempt of the narrow political agenda of some of the House leadership."

Sharpton adds that the activist agenda is not meant to belittle Terry's death, but to return Eric Holder to his position. He states, "Slowing down Holder slows down the enforcement of civil rights in this country. Religious leader, Rev. Andre Allen shares similar sentiments, as he believes the focus on Holder is not where government focus needs to be.

Rev. Andre Allen comments, "We understand that Brian Terry's family, congress as well as the nation wants answers in the death of agent Brian Terry. It's my prayer that the answers will come and that they will come through the nation's Attorney General Eric Holder being released and cleared from contempt charges. Our nation needs our Attorney General freed from the weight of unprecedented contempt charges to do the job he was assigned to do."

As a citizen concerned with civil rights matters, Rev. Andre Allen hopes African-American politicians will unite and act on behalf of civil rights and not race. According to some critics, civil rights leaders are only raising concern of the contempt charges because of Eric Holder's race. However, Sharpton quickly refuted those accusations and states, "We would take this position if he was white, if he was black, if he was polka-dotted. For those who say that we only bring up race because he's black -- no, we bring up race because the issues he fought."

ABOUT:

Rev. Andre Allen is the Senior Pastor at New Beginnings Ministries Worldwide. Located in Carol Stream, Illinois, he has served in ministry for almost 40 years. He is also the former associate minister of Christ Tabernacle Missionary Baptist Church in Chicago, Illinois, where he worked for nearly 12 years. Rev. Andre Allen earned a Bachelor of Science in Education from Northwestern University and also holds a Master of Divinity from the Garrett Evangelical Theological Seminary. Rev. Andre Allen lives with his wife and has five daughters and ten grandchildren.

Website: http://pastor-allen.com