WASHINGTON (AP) 鈥� There is so much history between the walls of Metropolitan African Methodist Episcopal Church, which has hosted funerals for Rosa Parks and Frederick Douglass and opened its pews to American presidents and civil rights icons.
It made history again this year: Thanks to , Metropolitan AME now controls the trademark to the Proud Boys, the far-right group that once vandalized the church鈥檚 property in Washington.
After a pro-Donald Trump rally in December 2020, Proud Boys at two historically Black churches during a violent night in the city.
鈥淭he act of destroying these signs was not just alcohol-lubricated, infantile frat-boy stuff,鈥� said the Rev. William H. Lamar IV, Metropolitan鈥檚 pastor.
鈥淭his is a softer version of cross-burning, designed to keep us quiet,鈥� he said.
It was political intimidation, according to Lamar. A judge awarded the church $2.8 million in damages in 2023, condemning the Proud Boys鈥� 鈥渉ateful and overtly racist conduct.鈥�
In February, after the Proud Boys didn鈥檛 pay, the court gave the church use of the group鈥檚 name and symbols 鈥� seen on its black-and-yellow gear and laurel wreath logo.
The church can seize money the Proud Boys make through merchandise sales. And the congregation has begun to sell lookalike shirts on with lines like 鈥淪tay Proud, Stay Black.鈥� It plans to offer similar apparel for Pride Month and Juneteenth, with proceeds going to a community justice fund.
Lamar said it鈥檚 鈥渙ur way of leveraging something that was intended for evil.鈥�
The church has a long history of activism
Despite the humor and subversion, Lamar sees the lawsuit as part of a long line of civil rights activism that has relied on the courts, from who successfully to lawsuits that pushed desegregation.
鈥淢etropolitan institutionally is doing what Black women and men have always done,鈥� he said, 鈥渁nd that is to use the available means to fight.鈥�
In January, members of the Proud Boys who were convicted for their role in the at the U.S. Capitol. Included in that pardon was the group鈥檚 former chairman, , who had been serving a 22-year sentence and is a named defendant in the church鈥檚 lawsuit.
Two weeks later, when church member Khaleelah Harris heard about the trademark win, her first response was to pray for the safety of Metropolitan, which at one point was paying $20,000 a month for increased security.
鈥淚 just hope they don鈥檛 touch the church. That was my main concern,鈥� said Harris, who is pursuing ordination within the AME.
鈥淎s overwhelming as this all has been, in a sense, we have no choice,鈥� she said. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 the legacy of our church.鈥�
Founded in 1838 and part of the nation鈥檚 first independent Black denomination, the congregation laid the building鈥檚 cornerstone in 1881. around the country, from Mississippi to Connecticut, paid for its construction as their national cathedral, positioned a half-mile from the White House.
鈥淲ashington鈥檚 been a very interesting town, because Black people have been able to live lives here that they couldn鈥檛 live elsewhere,鈥� Lamar said. It was not without segregation and racism, but 鈥渢hey built their own spaces to preserve their own humanity, their own joy.鈥�
Growing up in Macon, Georgia, Lamar first learned about Metropolitan AME from a textbook his mother brought home. Almost 30 years later, he became its pastor.
The decision to take on the Proud Boys
The decision to sue the Proud Boys was made with a unanimous vote of church leaders, though Wayne Curtis, a Metropolitan member for nearly three decades, is still cautious about the victory, not wanting it to give the Proud Boys more attention. But he said before a Sunday service that 鈥渋t鈥檚 an opportunity to hopefully bring a little more humility to a pretty extreme organization.鈥�
The Proud Boys, though fractured as a movement, resurfaced at Trump鈥檚 inauguration. Tarrio, who got in jail in part for burning the second church鈥檚 banner, suggested on the social platform X after the latest court decision that they change their name to the 鈥淎frican Methodist Episcopal Boys.鈥� His lawyer did not respond to a request for comment.
Even if the Proud Boys change their name, the organization and some members are still indebted to the congregation, whose legal team plans to pursue the money. The Proud Boys have paid $1,500 so far of the judgment, which with interest is at least $3.1 million, according to the church鈥檚 attorneys.
鈥淲e will be unrelenting in pursuing justice,鈥� Lamar said. 鈥淎nd it is not just for Metropolitan. It is to send a clear signal to anyone who would intimidate any house of worship or any individual of any race, color, creed, or no creed at all.鈥�
Three blocks from the red-brick church, the city recently demolished its . In contrast, a bold Black Lives Matter sign still stands outside Metropolitan, which is sandwiched between two tall office buildings.
Inside the sanctuary on a recent afternoon, Lamar pointed to pieces of church history: the names inscribed in marble, the places marked in stained glass.
Lamar is working on about Black ancestors, whose presence he often feels spurring his church to fight for justice. He has felt them during the court case too.
鈥淭he victory for me was ancestral in that it said, keep going. You鈥檝e won this, but it鈥檚 not over.鈥�
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Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP鈥檚 with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.
Tiffany Stanley, The Associated Press
