Gov. Bob McDonnell, who came into office with an inaugural address emphasizing inclusiveness, is finding a growing divide with minorities -- and is now rattling black pastors.
Baptist pastors from 19 churches released an open letter to McDonnell yesterday, criticizing policies his administration advanced in its first three months as reflecting "a reactionary agenda that seeks to reverse the gains that we have made in Virginia and in America."
That came the same day that the College of William and Mary's chapter of a black fraternity -- whose members included the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Thurgood Marshall -- boycotted a ceremony at the Executive Mansion in protest of McDonnell's Confederate History Month proclamation.
The admonishments come after a string of incidents that have troubled minority and civil-rights groups. The governor responded that he intends to have the administration that he outlined in his inaugural speech and pointed to the diversity of his staff.
"I believe with all my heart this ought to be a state where people of all political parties, races, creeds have the opportunity to use their God-given talents to pursue the American dream," McDonnell said yesterday after signing bills intended to make government smaller and more efficient.
He said he had not yet read the pastors' letter but that he looked forward to "engaging" them.
The concerns outlined by the group, including some of the Richmond area's most influential African-American Baptist pastors, extend beyond the omission of slavery from the Confederate History Month proclamation, for which McDonnell has apologized. He amended the decree to include a reference to slavery.
The 19 pastors also criticized the governor's executive order barring employment discrimination, which did not include a specific protection based on sexual orientation; proposed budget cuts that "disproportionately" affect the vulnerable; and a proposal to require nonviolent felons seeking the restoration of their voting rights to write McDonnell a letter.
"These actions are totally contradictory to the inclusivity that [McDonnell] stated he wanted to provide both in his inaugural address and his recent apology," the pastors wrote. "It is more consistent with the Massive Resistance of the 1950s and not of the commonwealth of 2010."
On restoring felons' voting rights, McDonnell stressed that his goal is to give an answer within 90 days. He said he had personal experience with the issue when, as a private attorney, he helped felons trying to restore their rights.
"I am passionate about it personally," he said. "It took over a year, and then I got a 'no.' I mean, it was disheartening."
His administration will announce a final process for restoration of rights in the coming weeks, he said.
McDonnell met this week with 11 groups interested in the restoration process, including the American Civil Liberties Union, the NAACP, the Virginia Legislative Black Caucus and the Mid-Atlantic Innocence Project.
"I deeply believe people ought to fully participate in democracy," he said.
It's a point he stressed at a Republican fundraiser earlier in the day, where he spoke to a sold-out crowd of about 300. McDonnell encouraged civic involvement, especially among young people who traditionally have not been as engaged.
Also yesterday, an Executive Mansion reception honoring community service went on without the Kappa Pi chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc. That group said it was boycotting because of the Confederate History Month proclamation. But the chapter's president, William B. Morris III, said he was telephoned by a McDonnell staff member to set up a meeting.
Contact Olympia Meola at (804) 649-6812 or omeola@timesdispatch.com.
Staff writer Jeff E. Schapiro contributed to this report.
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