The Zionist Organization of America protested a planned address by Barack Obama’s former pastor at an NAACP dinner.
The Rev. Jeremiah Wright Jr. is slated to speak at the 53rd Annual Fight for Freedom Fund Dinner organized by the Detroit branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.
The ZOA called on the chapter to rescind the invitation, describing Wright in a statement as “anti-American, anti-white, anti-Israel.” The news release included a series of inflammatory quotations from Wright, beginning with the pastor’s infamous “God damn America” riff that became an issue in the presidential campaign when it was first aired last month.
“Reverend Wright has challenged the nation, challenged our comfort zone and stimulated nationwide discussion on the issues of how we must move forward together as both a nation and a people,” said an NAACP news release announcing the dinner. “We look forward to his participation here in the city of Detroit.”
In a letter to the Detroit branch president, the Rev. Wendell Anthony, ZOA President Morton Klein wrote that Wright’s “record of words and deeds does not challenge the nation – it defames it.”
