Government

White Georgia politician believes racial mixing goes against the Bible

ROLLINGOUT.COM — A White politician in Georgia is accused of using religion to justify segregation. The incident took place in Hoschton, Georgia after the city’s mayor refused to hire a candidate because he was Black.

Published

7 years ago

May 13, 2019

A.R. Shaw

By A.R. Shaw

A White politician in Georgia is accused of using religion to justify segregation. The incident took place in Hoschton, Georgia after the city’s mayor refused to hire a candidate because he was Black.

A.R. Shaw

According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Mayor Theresa Kenerly told a member of the City Council she pulled the resume of Keith Henry from a list of four finalists “because he is black, and the city isn’t ready for this.” City Councilwoman Hope Weeks confirmed that Kenerly made the statement.

According to the 1964 Civil Rights Act, it’s illegal to discriminate on the basis of race and sex.

Hoschton, Georgia is a nearly all-white city 50 miles north of Atlanta. In a statement, Kenerly denied the claim by saying, “I do not recall making the statement attributed to me regarding any applicant for the City Administrator position, and I deny that I made any statement that suggests (sic) prejudice.”

However, she was defended by another White politician who claimed that race mixing goes against Christianity.

“I’m a Christian and my Christian beliefs are you don’t do interracial marriage,” Councilman Jim Cleveland told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.“That’s the way I was brought up and that’s the way I believe.”

“I have black friends, I hired black people,” Cleveland continued. “But when it comes to all this stuff you see on TV, when you see Blacks and Whites together, it makes my blood boil because that’s just not the way a Christian is supposed to live.”

Kenerly has yet to reveal if she plans to resign as mayor.

A.R. Shaw is an author and journalist who documents culture, politics, and entertainment. He has covered The Obama White House, the summer Olympics in London, and currently serves as Lifestyle Editor for Rolling Out magazine. Follow his journey on Twitter @arshaw and Instagram @arshaw23.

This article originally appeared in Rollingout.com.

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IN MEMORIAM: William ‘Bill’ Patterson, 94

Bill devoted his life to public service and education. In 1971, he became the founding director for the Peralta Community College Foundation, he also became an administrator for Oakland Parks and Recreation overseeing 23 recreation centers, the Oakland Zoo, Children’s Fairyland, Lake Merritt, and the Henry J. Kaiser Convention Center.

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William "Bill" Patterson, 94. Photo courtesy of the Patterson family.

William “Bill” Patterson, 94, of Little Rock, Arkansas, passed away peacefully on October 21, 2025, at his home in Oakland, CA. He was born on May 19, 1931, to Marie Childress Patterson and William Benjamin Patterson in Little Rock, Arkansas. He graduated from Dunbar High School and traveled to Oakland, California, in 1948. William Patterson graduated from San Francisco State University, earning both graduate and undergraduate degrees. He married Euradell “Dell” Patterson in 1961. Bill lovingly took care of his wife, Dell, until she died in 2020.

He served on the boards of Oakland’s Urban Strategies Council, the Oakland Public Ethics Commission, and the Oakland Workforce Development Board.

He was a three-term president of the Oakland branch of the NAACP.

Bill was initiated in the Gamma Alpha chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity.

In 1997 Bill was appointed to the East Bay Utility District Board of Directors. William Patterson was the first African American Board President and served the board for 27 years.

Bill’s impact reached far beyond his various important and impactful positions.

Bill mentored politicians, athletes and young people. Among those he mentored and advised are legends Joe Morgan, Bill Russell, Frank Robinson, Curt Flood, and Lionel Wilson to name a few.

He is survived by his son, William David Patterson, and one sister, Sarah Ann Strickland, and a host of other family members and friends.

A celebration of life service will take place at Henry J. Kaiser Convention Center (Calvin Simmons Theater) on November 21, 2025, at 10 AM.

His services are being livestreamed at: https://www.facebook.com/events/1250167107131991/

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Euradell and William Patterson scholarship fund TBA.