Clintons, Gores Help Rebuild Burned Church
President Clinton spent part of his birthday Monday putting up drywall at a Tennessee black church destroyed by a mysterious fire last December.
Clinton, clad in work clothing, said the people who have helped rebuild the 124-year-old Salem Missionary Baptist Church in this hamlet of 200 were “showing America what’s special about America.”
The church burnings, he said, reflected a weakness that humanity has for racial and other forms of group conflict. “We must not start down that road,” he said. “We must stamp out these feelings whenever we see them manifest.”
The church, located in a corn- and cotton-growing region about 75 miles northeast of Memphis, has received help for the $400,000 rebuilding effort from more than half a dozen congregations in North Carolina, Texas and elsewhere.
One of the churches contributing to the effort is New Shiloh United Methodist Church, a white church 3 miles away that is still rebuilding after burning in an accidental fire in 1994. When New Shiloh burned, Salem Missionary was the first to offer help. New Shiloh is now returning the favor.
In remarks preceding Clinton’s, the Rev. Daniel Donaldson of Salem Missionary said that the visit by the president and the huge White House entourage suggests to most people “a possibility of some politics involved” in the trip. But he added: “I truly believe that he’s here today not for the political reason but for the compassion of mankind.”
Clinton’s appearance, with First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton, Vice President Al Gore and his wife, Tipper, comes after months of intense news coverage of the church that has left its parishioners somewhat overwhelmed. While Clinton and Gore carried drywall and hammered nails, their wives wielded paintbrushes. The Clintons’ daughter, Chelsea, and the Gores’ children also helped.
The president, mostly out of view during last week’s Republican convention, plans a series of high-profile bill signings at the White House this week that is intended to highlight his role in the legislation.
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