The lead pastor of Freedom House Church in North Carolina sent an e-mail to her congregation requesting that “only white people” serve as greeters.
Carmen Thomas, an African-American member of the church, reached out to WBTV upon receiving the e-mail.
“I was floored,” Thomas said during an interview with the local station. “Like it was a jaw dropper. You can put a white face all over the front door. But when you come through those doors, you’re going to see African-Americans, you’re gonna see Asians. You’re going to see people of color.”
Paster Makeda Pennycooke, a black woman, is the author of the controversial e-mail.
Freedom House Church has apologized and has issued this statement to WBTV: ”Freedom House believes in a diverse relationship within its membership, reflecting the larger community in which the church resides, doing life together as a church representative of everyone — culturally, ethnically, economically, and generationally.”
