Dear Sheriff Smith:
We recently saw an online video in which you tell the Rev. Hannah Adair Bonner, leader of demonstrations about Sandra Bland's death, to "go back to that church of Satan that you run." Since it seems you have misunderstood Rev. Bonner's affiliation, we thought we'd offer you some more information.
Rev. Bonner is an ordained clergywoman in The United Methodist Church, a denomination of some 11 million members worldwide. She is assigned to St. John's United Methodist Church, a predominantly African American congregation in inner-city Houston, southeast of your town of Hempstead.
According to church records, Hempstead lies in the West District in our regional unit known as the Texas Annual Conference. The Texas Annual Conference journal says there are three United Methodist congregations that give Hempstead as their location: First UMC on 7th Street, Bethlehem UMC on 8th Street, and Harper UMC on Harpers Church Road. Together these congregations have close to 300 members, which may not seem like much to some, but in a rural county like Waller makes up a fairly sizeable group of folks. Altogether, the West District to which Hempstead belongs includes some 18,000 United Methodist members, who make up part of the 285,000-plus members in the total Texas Conference area.
So Sheriff Smith, with your one heated remark about going "back to that church of Satan that you run" to Rev. Bonner, you've insulted the reputations of nearly 300,000 God-fearing, Christ-following United Methodists just in your part of the Lone Star State. Whether or not we agree with what Rev. Bonner is doing, we agree on one thing: together we profess faith in Jesus Christ, not Satan. In fact, our stated public mission is "to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world."
In other words, It doesn't make us Satanists just because one of us wants Waller County authorities to dig deeper into the circumstances surrounding the death of Sandra Bland, an African American woman who died after three days in your jail because of a traffic stop. Many of us, both white and black, give Rev. Bonner our blessings, support and prayers for what she's doing in Hempstead. We, too, are asking for a more detailed explanation of why Ms. Bland was jailed for a misdemeanor and of how she died. Most of all, we want to know whether her race played any role in her incarceration and death. We commend you for asking for an independent investigation of your department.
Nonetheless, Sheriff Smith, we think you owe Rev. Bonner and the entire United Methodist Church an apology for saying that we're agents of Satan. We insist on these more detailed explanations because Jesus requires that his disciples care for "the least of these," including those in prison (Matthew 25:31-40). As Jesus' disciples, we are witnessing through Rev. Bonner's presence to our care for Sandra Bland. As American citizens, we are exercising our right to demand accountability from our elected and appointed officials, especially now as our nation struggles with racial injustice.
We're alarmed to learn from Rev. Bonner via her Facebook account that you intend to target her for harassment. In her own words: "Sheriff R. Glenn Smith told me to go back to the Church of Satan again, admitted to taking pictures of our plates and faces, and said that by tomorrow things will be different - they are going to build a barricade. He singled me out as the person who provoked but would not respond to how I did so, just said that was his assumption. He has made it clear he plans to target me."
If Rev. Bonner is correct in her assessment of your behavior and intentions, and you follow through on these threats, be warned: Hannah Bonner won't stand alone. United Methodists from all across the United States will converge on Hempstead to stand with her and protect her and her fellow demonstrators until we have answers to Sandra Bland's death.
We hope that in future you will respect our exercise of religious freedom, and support our mutual quest for truth and justice. Thank you for your time and consideration.
Sincerely,
United Methodists in support of Sandra Bland and Rev. Hannah Adair Bonner
