Deborah Cooper is an outspoken feminist who feels that black women are consistently misled by the church and its leaders. In a popular book, Cooper wrote that many women are convinced by their pastors to stay single mainly because they want these women to be available for the men in the church. Her logic is similar to those in Polygamist communities, who are accused of kicking young boys out so they can have the young girls to themselves.
Cooper speaks passionately about the problems in the black church and says that a lot of black women miss out on the chance to have a good man by being too focused on whether he goes to church and not on whether he is a good person. She argues that the converse is also true, that women will often think that because a man goes to church, he is a good catch.
The evidence might support some of what she is saying. Recently, there was a pastor in Georgia who’d slept with women in his church unprotected and failed to inform them that he was infected with the HIV virus. This case is one of many in which men in the church are accused of taking advantage of the undying loyalty that some women have to their religious leaders.
Cooper speaks about her book in this video interview with Dr. Boyce Watkins and also talks about the ways that women in the church can consider making choices that will allow them to get married and have children as they desire. Tell us if you agree with what she is saying or think that she is going overboard.
