The Black Church Will No Longer Accept Symbolism: National Faith Leaders Unite Behind "Substance Over Symbolism" Campaign Ahead of September 17 Rally

Campaign of the Black Church Center for Justice & Equality launches SOSforAmerica.org and declares basic economic rights the unfinished work of the Civil Rights Movement

CLINTON, Md., Sept. 15, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Two days before Black pastors and congregations rally outside the Democratic National Committee (DNC) headquarters and the offices of Third Way, the coalition behind the Substance Over Symbolism campaign — an initiative of the Black Church Center for Justice & Equality — is issuing a direct declaration to Washington: symbolic political gestures that do not provide redress for the substantive economic needs of the American people will no longer be acceptable. The campaign's new home, SOSforAmerica.org, is now live with registration, policy demands, and tools for congregations nationwide.

"We cannot feed our families on rhetoric, images, and aspirational politics," said Dr. Delman Coates, founder of the Black Church Center for Justice & Equality and Senior Pastor of Mt. Ennon Baptist Church in Clinton, Md. "For too long, policymakers have prioritized the special interests over the public interest, and for too long our community has been offered proclamations and photo opportunities in place of policy. That era is over. The role of government is to deliver for the people — and on September 17, the Black Church arrives in Washington to demand substance over symbolism."

The rally reclaims the unfinished policy objectives of the Civil Rights Movement, which centered on federal legislation to eliminate unemployment and provide universal health care. As Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. taught, what matters is "a better distribution of wealth for all of God's children." The coalition rejects efforts by the political establishment to brand these widely popular policies as "un-American," noting that those advancing that narrative are the ones out of touch with the American public — especially the poor, the working class, and the Black community.

The campaign calls for the establishment of basic economic rights through passage of policies with broad public support:

• A Federal Job Guarantee
  
  
• Universal Health Care / Medicare for All
  
  
• Universal Pre-K
  
  
• Fully Funded K–12 Schools
  
  
• Tuition-Free Public College
  
  
• Universal Affordable Housing
  
  
• Voting Rights Protections through the For the People Act

Short-term, the coalition seeks productive conversations with national political parties about the coalition's policy agenda. Long-term, it seeks to build public support for and passage of their policy demands.

A Growing National Coalition

"Families in our pews are working harder than ever and still cannot afford housing, health care, child care, or college," said Rev. George Parks, Pastor of Metropolitan Baptist Church, and Director of the Pastors & Ministers Division of the National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc. "They do not need another resolution or another press conference. They need meaningful policies that address affordability and change their material conditions. That is what this campaign demands."

"In 2023, our Fellowship formally adopted a policy agenda that centers around full employment legislation, universal health care, affordable housing, and more federal funding for public education K through college," said Bishop Joseph W. Walker III, Presiding Bishop of the Full Gospel Baptist Church Fellowship International, and Senior Pastor of the Mt. Zion Baptist Church in Nashville, TN. "It is my hope that those in Washington see the Black Church has and continues to support these commonsense proposals rooted in having a federal government that invests in making our lives better."

"The American people will need more than investigations of the current Administration in order to transform and improve their quality of life," said Dr. Keith Byrd, President of the National Progressive Convention, and Senior Pastor of Zion Baptist Church in Washington, DC. "Oversight is necessary, but oversight is not an agenda. Transformation requires a commitment to bold policy ideas related to guaranteed jobs, health care, and affordable housing. We will measure our leaders by whether they deliver them."

The leaders are united in the conviction that the Civil Rights Movement was always committed to a vision of universal health care, guaranteed employment at living wages, quality education, and decent housing for every American. The Substance Over Symbolism campaign, they affirm, is the continuation of that movement — not a departure from it.

Join the Rally

The public, faith leaders, and like-minded organizations are invited to attend. The rally begins Thursday, September 17, 12:00–2:00 p.m. at DNC Headquarters, 430 South Capitol St. SE, Washington, DC 20003, and continues 2:30–4:30 p.m. at Third Way, 1025 Connecticut Ave. NW, Suite 400, Washington, DC 20036. To attend, endorse, or bring a delegation, visit SOSforAmerica.org or contact Eve Hemby at [email protected] or (301) 856-2170.

About the Black Church Center for Justice & Equality

Founded in 2013 by Dr. Delman Coates, the Black Church Center for Justice & Equality is a Washington, D.C.–based 501(c)(3) organization that reaffirms the social justice tradition of the Black Church and amplifies the voices of progressive African American faith leaders, equipping pastors and congregations with tools for public policy advocacy and civic action. Learn more at theblackchurch.net.

SOURCE The Black Church Center of Justice and Equality