Mar 17, 2006  |  By: GREG MARZULLO  | COMMENTS     

A church leader in the Shaw neighborhood who has described homosexuality as a biblical curse has convinced local commissioners to protest the liquor license for a proposed gay bar he claims will exclude District residents, one of the commissioners said last week.

The liquor license for Be Bar, a gay-owned and operated neighborhood tavern scheduled to open in June at 1318 9th St., NW, was not on the agenda for the March 8 meeting of the Advisory Neighborhood Commission 2-C. In fact, the bar’s property actually sits in the adjacent 2-F district.

But Bishop C.L. Long, pastor of nearby scripture Cathedral, convinced 2-C’s commissioners that Be Bar’s owners planned to exclude neighborhood residents as patrons, said Alexander Padro, a gay ANC commissioner from 2-C, who attended the meeting.

Long "described how a representative from Be Bar had come to his office to meet with him," Padro said.

Padro said Long told ANC 2-C that "this individual proceeded to say that the bar would not be for neighborhood residents-—-that it was intended to serve people from Maryland and Virginia. There would be a bouncer to make sure no one from the community gets in."

Long declined numerous interview requests, saying his attorney, whom he would not name, was involved in the situation.

Pardo said Long reported having to call security to remove the belligerent Be Bar representative, but could not remember the representative’s name and could not describe him. Despite Padro’s questioning, other 2-C commissioners voted to file a protest against Be Bar’s liquor license with the Alcoholic Beverage Regulation Administration.

Attorney Andrew Kline represents gay businessmen Mike Watson, Tom McGuire and Christopher Zimmerman, who are opening Be Bar, and said there are no plans to exclude D.C. residents, who make up the bulk of customers at most of the city’s gay bars.

"I’ve talked to [Be Bar’s owners], and they haven’t met with [Long]," Kline said. "It’s either someone impersonating them, or it’s an utter work of fiction."

Overcoming obstacles

Opening a bar in the District can be a Herculean effort because of alcohol licensing, noise regulations and high demands for parking. Bar owners need to gain the approval of the ANC ward in which they are located.

Be Bar, technically located in 2-F, is close to the border of 2-C, and according to a law passed by the D.C. City Council in 2004, that borderline ANC has the right to weigh in on the bar’s opening, said Fred Moosally, government representative from ABRA.

Since 2004, neighboring ANCs that are within 600 feet of a proposed business can file legal protests with the liquor licensing agency.

The ABRA has not received the protest from ANC 2-C.

ANC 2-F’s commissioners’ experience with the Be Bar co-owners is much different than that purported by Long, said Christopher Dyer, a gay commissioner from 2-F.

"They are wonderful," Dyer said. "They’re doing it by the books. I know the neighborhood is enthusiastic about receiving businesses like Be Bar. I’m astonished by the lying and defaming of [their] character. It’s ludicrous."

Watson said he was stunned by the bishop’s claim to the ANC.

"It’s absolutely amazing that someone who would stand for moral-uprightness would outright lie," said Watson. "We’ve never met this bishop. We’ve never been across [the street] to talk to the church."

History of homophobia

scripture Cathedral, which claims more than 3,000 members, was founded in the 1960s by Long, who is identified with the title "Apostle" on the church’s website. The church’s ministerial programs include daily radio addresses on AM station WYCB, and a weekly Sunday television broadcast on D.C. cable channel 96.

Long was among the lead local supporters of last year’s Millions More rally, which stirred controversy after its executive director, D.C. pastor Willie Wilson, delivered a stridently anti-gay sermon in July. Two weeks later, Long hosted a Millions More organizing meeting at scripture Cathedral that was a rally for the embattled Wilson, the Washington Post reported at the time. Long was among those who spoke at the Millions More rally.

"The scripture Cathedral is one of those churches that is very politically active," said Phil Pannell, a longtime D.C. gay rights activist. "[Long] is a homophobe. Before that Millions More rally, he was interviewed by a couple of TV stations. He was talking the usual stuff about Adam and Steve."

Long’s protests to 2-C may not have an altogether anti-gay motivation, said Dyer.

"Reverend Long has a history of being opposed to liquor," Dyer said. "It’s amazing how they distorted the truth."