GLOBAL UNITED FELLOWSHIP ISSUES STATEMENT REGARDING THE SHOOTING OF MIKE BROWN IN FERGUSON, MO
PRESIDING BISHOP NEIL C. ELLIS ALONG WITH GLOBAL SPOKESPERSON FOR THE FAMILY JUDGE GLENDA HATCHETT & GLOBAL LEADER OF SOCIAL JUSTICE BISHOP CHARLES M. HUDSON, JR., RESPOND TO INCIDENT
Nassau, Bahamas – August 13, 2014 – Global United Fellowship Today Released the Following Statements on Behalf of the Organization.
Statement from Global Leader of Social Justice
Bishop Charles H. Hudson, Jr.
It is appalling that in 2014 we are still treated as ‘less than a man’. We are definitely praying for the Brown family and for the Ferguson community. We are in full support of the ongoing investigation to reveal the facts and we stand firmly behind the Brown Family. Michael Brown represents our son, our brother, our nephew, our friend and our neighbor.
Statement from Global Spokesperson for the Family
Judge Glenda Hatchett
Yet again my heart bleeds for parents who must stand grieving at the grave side of a son. The life of another young African American man has been lost under tragic and questionable circumstances, and we are rightfully perplexed and dismayed. Anytime the blood of any young person flows through our streets all of humanity should and must be concerned.
On behalf of Global United Fellowship, I pray God’s strength, grace, comfort and peace for the family of Mike Brown and especially for his mother – as I am a mother of two sons and I have great sympathy for the unspeakable pain that she must endure. I have consoled too many mothers, too many fathers, over the years and the violence must end!
As upsetting as this incident is, I am pleading with the citizens of Ferguson not to disrupt the investigative process nor detract from the seriousness of this incident with criminal acts of any kind.
Our families, our community and our nation must unite and be vigilant in supporting responsible efforts to uncover the truth behind what happened when Mike Brown was shot. That must be our singular mission, and any willful, criminal act in protest is inexcusable and has the potential to impede the process and is not respectful of the memory of Mike Brown nor is it respectful of the Brown family.
To the family of Mike Brown and the residents of Ferguson, I want you to know that you have an extended family in Global United Fellowship that is supportive and praying for swift and righteous justice for Mike Brown and for healing throughout your city and the nation.
Statement from Presiding Bishop
Bishop Neil C. Ellis
It is with a deep sense of outrage and a heavy heart that I address the Ferguson, MO shooting of an unarmed teenager earlier this week. On behalf of Global United Fellowship, I offer my deepest condolences to the parents, family and friends of Mike Brown. Your loss, under any circumstances, would be intensely significant. Under the tragedy of these circumstances, your loss is indescribable. I pray that the God we know as comforter brings you peace as you wrestle with your unimaginable personal grief.
The death of Mike Brown is a loss to your community, and it is a loss to the world. All around the globe young people’s lives are being snatched away at an alarming rate and it is unacceptable. I cannot exist among unjustified killings and inhumane treatment towards my brothers and sisters, sons and daughters, without feeling the sting of this cruelty myself. I believe the words of the late Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., “an injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”
The Ferguson community has a right to be upset and in a state of unrest. The world community has a right to be alarmed. The Christian community has a right to be vigilant in its concern. As I watch the protests unfold in Ferguson, I want the family of Mike Brown and the citizens of Ferguson to know that Global United Fellowship feels your pain; hears your cries, and you do not stand alone in your fight for justice.
While we understand the outrage of the citizens of Ferguson and their high sense of frustration, Global United Fellowship does not condone acts of violence as an interim solution in this serious matter. We urge the citizens of Ferguson to continue peaceful demonstration. We stand firm in calling for a thorough investigation of the shooting of Mike Brown and swift justice to every perpetrator of wrong-doing in this situation.
We are intensely watching and we are praying that justice will prevail in the Ferguson, MO death of Mike Brown.
