c. 1996 Religion News Service

WASHINGTON _ As the number of suspicious fires at mostly black, Southern churches climbed to more than 40 in the last 18 months, President Clinton called Tuesday (July 2) for an emergency transfer of money to help combat the attacks.

Speaking in the White House Rose Garden, Clinton called for a transfer of $6 million from Justice Department coffers to prevent further church burnings in the 12 states with the highest number of incidents: Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Oklahoma, Tennessee and Virginia.

The funds, which Clinton asked Congress to approve quickly, would help pay for additional police officers to patrol church sites and back roads and watch for possible trouble. He said the money could also fund private security guards, install floodlights or pay overtime for current officers.”These new officers, working with local police and community watch groups, can maintain a wall of protection to ward off people who would strike out in hate at a house of worship,”Clinton said.

Meanwhile, across town, at Howard University School of Divinity, a group of attorneys general from southern states added their voices to the chorus of support for houses of worship that have been the recent targets of arsonists and vandals.

In addition, the African Methodist Episcopal Church, meeting in Louisville, called for an independent investigation of the incidents by the World Council of Churches.

At Howard University, the attorneys general and religious leaders spoke forcefully about the need to combat those who are attacking houses of worship.”Hate crimes against African-American churches, against Jewish synagogues, against Muslim mosques … will not be tolerated,”said Virginia Attorney General Jim Gilmore.”They will be investigated. They will be prosecuted.” His office has helped create a toll-free telephone hotline (1-888-855-5000) to receive information about attacks on houses of worship. The hotline is currently operating in Virginia, North Carolina, Kentucky, West Virginia, Tennessee, Maryland and the District of Columbia.

Scott Harshbarger, president of the National Association of Attorneys General, said the attacks on churches are not solely an issue in the South, but are a”national problem.””We will not solve this by law enforcement and prosecution alone,”said Harshbarger, who is Massachusetts’ attorney general.”We must as a community, as religious leaders, educators, parents, individuals, as teachers look to the role models we are setting for our children and take responsibility to work together in partnership.” Howard University School of Divinity Dean Clarence Newsome said church and state officials need to work together.”The root problem is very, very spiritual in nature,”he said.”From a spiritual problem comes a very … great social crisis.” Deacon Charlie Means of Mount Zion Baptist Church in Boligee, Ala., said he learned at the meeting that there have been more fires and more suspects arrested in his state than he realized. Means’ church was burned in December 1995.

Leaders of the 1.5-million-member African Methodist Episcopal Church, meeting at their quadrennial conference, said they would ask the World Council of Churches in Geneva, Switzerland, to send an”eminent persons team”to conduct an independent investigation of all the fires at houses of worship.

The team’s purpose would be to”bring peace and harmony and unity,”said Mike McKinney, a church spokesman.”We haven’t gotten to the root of the problem and … I don’t think we can count on law enforcement and the government to do that for usâÂ?¦The church (has) another agenda and our agenda is not necessarily to punish, but to solve and to heal.”END BANKS