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Two of the men who accused Bishop Eddie Long of coercing them into sexual relationships gave an extensive interview to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Channel 2 Action News. Jamal Parris and Spencer LeGrande were among four young men who accused the founder of New Birth Missionary Church of sexual coercion. Their lawsuit against him was settled in May. The following is an excerpt from the story, which will be posted in its entirety on ajc.com around 5 p.m. Atlanta’s Channel 2 Action News will air the first part of their interview with the men in their 5 p.m. newscast.
Among those tuning in to watch the most anticipated sermon of Bishop Eddie Long’s career were two of the young men who, one week earlier, had filed suit claiming the powerful Lithonia pastor had coerced them into sexual relationships.
“It was like the Super Bowl for us,” said 24-year-old Jamal Parris, describing the anxiousness he felt before Long took to the pulpit last September. “This might be the day he finally says something.” Neither Parris nor fellow accuser Spencer LeGrande, now 23, expected an admission of wrongdoing or an apology.
“I knew who he was,” LeGrande said. “I knew what was coming.” In speaking before 25,000 New Birth Missionary Baptist members who packed the church and watched on television and online, Long vowed to clear his name. “This thing I’m going to fight,” he said, comparing himself to the biblical David, turning the table on his accusers.
Ironically, they say, Long often compared the two young men to David, the metaphorical armor-bearers to the bishop’s King Saul. Now they were being portrayed as Goliaths.
“I just got quiet,” Parris said. “I started crying. I couldn’t even stop crying because I was angry. The way he walked up [to the stage]. The way I saw people stand up and applaud this man. How dare you.”
Nearly one year later, the wounds are still raw for Parris and LeGrande who, along with two other plaintiffs, filed lawsuits last September alleging the charismatic pastor “uses monetary funds from the accounts of New Birth and other corporate and non-profit corporate accounts to entice the young men with cars, clothes, jewelry, and electronics.” Each alleged that, once they reached the age of consent, Long coerced them into sexual relationships. The cases were settled in late May after months of mediation talks.
Long has, through a spokesman, denied the allegations. He did not respond to requests from the AJC for an interview. Following the announcement of the settlement agreement the 58-year-old bishop released a statement saying the decision was made “to bring closure to this matter and to allow us to move forward with the plans God has for this ministry.” “This resolution is the most reasonable road for everyone to travel,” the statement continued. Documents were filed May 27 in DeKalb State Court confirming the lawsuits had been dismissed “with prejudice.”
Parris and LeGrande declined to discuss specifics of their settlement with Long, per the terms of their agreement. Their attorney, B.J. Bernstein, said at the time neither she nor her clients would be available for an interview “now or in the future.” By speaking out, Parris and LeGrande risk losing unspecified monetary rewards outlined in the settlement.
“The truth should’ve set [us] free,” said Parris, interviewed along with LeGrande in Miami late last week. “I thought I could cover the pain up. I thought I could move, start over and everything would go away. I was terribly wrong. I’m living a lifestyle meant to crash.”
The money is irrelevant, LeGrande said. “I’m going to tell the world – money does not buy happiness,” said LeGrande, who was 15 when he met the bishop. “When you sleep at night, the problems are still there. The money stuff, who cares about the number.” “I feel like burning [the money],” he said.
LeGrande was 15 when he met Long at one of New Birth’s satellite churches in Charlotte. The sermon, on the importance of fathers, left him in tears. “When I started crawling, that was the day [my father] left,” LeGrande said. “A lot of years I didn’t even see him.” LeGrande said Long embraced him. “I got you” … “I will be your dad,” the bishop told the teen. Soon they were talking regularly on the phone.
“The day I met him it was like a God moment,” LeGrande said.
Parris said he too was raised without a strong male influence. “I have a clown for a father,” he said. “My dad was abusive, my dad would flake out … that’s all a predator needs.”
Long was the father figure both youths craved. He called them his armor-bearers and their loyalty was rewarded with exotic trips, expensive gifts and, more importantly, a role model. “He did teach us good things,” LeGrande said, “but something had to be wrong with him.”
In 2004, when LeGrande was 16, he accompanied Long to Kenya. On another trip, to Johannesburg, they dined with Winnie Mandela. Rubbing elbows with the rich and famous became routine. “You’re thinking you’re the luckiest kid in the world, like someone’s always got your back,” LeGrande said. “For me, it was more of a spiritual connection. It was about God.”
Parris met Long a few years earlier, in 2001 when he was 14 and new to Atlanta. He was at choir practice when he met the man he’d soon be calling “daddy.” Parris said he left that day with the preacher’s cell phone number, which he called days later after getting into trouble at school. Long interceded, getting the teacher who had reprimanded Parris nearly fired, said Parris. The power wielded by the bishop made an impression on the teen. “It’s the power he commanded when he walked into the room. It’s like I’m with the president,” he said.
The bond was intense, say both accusers. Neither was aware of the other until after they broke away from Long. Beyond the gifts — each more expensive than the last, Parris said — and the trips, there were deep conversations about spirituality. “Out of nowhere he hits you with the most emotional question,” LeGrande said. “‘I know what you’re feeling. I know what it’s like.’” Parris equated their relationships to high school. He and LeGrande were like freshmen girls. Long, they said, was the senior with the fancy car, the big man on campus.
What’s the fastest way to squash rumors of a break-up? Make sure the paparazzi snaps photos to suggest otherwise. One day after denying their marriage was ending, Will and Jada Pinkett Smith stepped out together to shop in Malibu, Calif. Paps caught them this morning at the Malibu Colony Company, where they stopped into the Cross Creek store and Ultrecht Art Supplies after sharing breakfast at Bob Morris’ Paradise Cove Beach Café. “We are still together, and our marriage is intact,” the couple of 13 years said in a joint statement Tuesday, responding to tabloid reports of a split. In fact, earlier that morning they were spotted at a Michaels craft store picking out art supplies for Pinkett Smith. “They were laughing and being cutesy – they seemed to be getting along just fine,” an onlooker told People.com at the time.
The sad and unexpected death of Televangelist Dr. Zachery Tims is topping this week’s 4-1-1. Tims, 42, was the head of a popular church in central Florida. He and wife Riva had a ministry of thousands. He was well known on the TBN network and the Word network. A couple of years ago, Tims was involved in a scandal with a stripper that led to he and his wife getting divorced. They had four children. Over the weekend, Tims was found dead in a hotel in New York. Drugs were suspected after a powder substance was found in his pockets. Tims was a good minister, but many believe his personal demons took over his life. He often talked about his past drug use and addiction when he was a teen, and it’s so sad to hear his life ending this way.
LisaRaye McCoy says she is not the reason Stacey Dash got fired from the VH1 show Single Ladies. LisaRaye sent the world a message while vacationing in Italy. She says the decision to let Dash go was a network decision. Dash has been very quiet about her firing. Was she a drama queen? Was she late all the time? Was it her fighting with LisaRaye? LisaRaye and the head writer/creator of the show are close friends. Who is going to replace Dash because a replacement is being sought? Queen Latifah serves
Was Kobe Bryant fighting in church?According to reports out of San Diego, Bryant was in church service with his wife Vanessa when he spotted a man taking a picture. Bryant thought the man was taking a picture of him, so he grabbed the man’s wrists. The man screamed that Bryant hurt him and had to be rushed to the hospital. Hmmmmmmmmmmmmm! Can’t you smell a lawsuit here?
Who’s going to be on the new season of Dancing With The Stars? The new season kicks off next month, but don’t look for Queen Latifah, who was rumored to be joining the show. Former Boxer Mike Tyson may be signing up. That’s because he did the European version, so don’t be surprised.
Nick Cannon is signing on for more work. In addition to being married to Mariah Carey, being a new dad, hosting a syndicated radio show, being a Nickelodeon programming exec and host of America’s Got Talent, he is joining the cast of the NBC show Up All Night.
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Alicia Keys is headed to Broadway as a producer of the production Stick Fly. The show kicks off next year. Mike Tyson is teaming up with Spike Lee for a boxing drama on HBO. The show will focus on Tyson’s upbringing. Tyson also renewed his wedding vows with his wife Lakiah Spicer. They have two young children and had a splashy ceremony in Las Vegas. They originally married in 2009, the same year his daughter Exodus died, so the couple had a low key wedding. Congrats to Boyz II Men and the late Singer Barry White! They are going to be inducted into the Hollywood Walk Of Fame next year. Actor Vin Diesel and Jennifer Lopez also made the list of inductees for next year. |
Jada Pinkett Smith returns for a third season of Hawthorne, the show airs on TNT. Marc Anthony, who joined the show last year, has been named the show’s musical producer. The new season kicks off June 14th and will include a wedding. Along with smith and Anthony, the cast also includes Lauren Velez, Derek Luke and Michael Vartan.
Congrats to Rapper/Actor Bow Wow. He just became a dad with a former girlfriend.
Robert Redford is going ahead with plans to do a movie based on the life of Baseball Great Jackie Robinson. Robinson broke baseball’s color barrier. Redford would play Branch Rickey the man who made it happen. There is no word yet on who will play Robinson
Jennifer Hudson is ready to tell all about her weight loss. The book comes out next January, and she talks about her 80 pound weight loss. She says she grew up in an environment where healthy eating was not a priority. In her book, Hudson will be sharing tips for losing and maintaining weight and how exercise can be fun. Hudson has also signed on for the new Three Stooges movie.
Faith Evans may be divorcing her husband Todd Russaw, but he is going to remain her manager. The couple has had a rocky relationship, but Faith Evans feels he is the best person to guide her career. Evans is currently working on a reality TV project.
Is Fantasia pregnant by her married boyfriend Antwuan Cook? Sources say Fantasia is due in December, and she has been hiding her stomach. Last year, Fantasia was caught up in a scandal with Cook. His wife took them to court blaming Fantasia for the breakup of the marriage. Cook abandoned his wife and two kids when he started his affair with Fantasia. The drama proved to be too much for Fantasia, who overdosed on pills and had to be admitted to the hospital.
The First Lady is coming to Nickelodeon. First Lady Michelle Obama will be on the TV show iCarly. She’s teaming up with the cable network to promote her Joining Forces initiative which seeks to increase awareness and support for military forces.
There will be no Jennifer Lopez sex tape. Lopez’s first husband, Ojani Noa, has been trying to make money off of her since their 1998 divorce. He had a tape of him and Lopez from their honeymoon. There was no sex on the tape, just some nudity and spanking. Noa sold the tape to his girlfriend for a dollar. The girlfriend proceeded to sell the tape to a distributor, but a judge has blocked the release of the tape.
The NBC network has won the rights for the Olympic Games through 2020. In a fierce bidding war with ESPN and FOX, NBC won the rights for the 2012 games in London, the 2014 winter games in Russia, the 2016 summer games in Rio de Janeiro and the 2020 games with the host city to be announced.
Lauryn Hill is pregnant with baby number six, but who is the father? Hill has five children by Rohan Marley. Everyone assumed Marley was the daddy of baby number six, but recently Marley put Hill on blast. He said she may be pregnant, but he is not the father.
Is it over for Evelyn Lozada and Chad Ochocinco Johnson? I always thought this relationship was fake. Lozada is riding high with Basketball Wives, but Ochocinco’s career is on the decline. Lozada is looking for steady money, and she realizes that Ochocinco is looking for ways to stay relevant, make money and take care of his kids. Lozada wants another child, but does Ochocinco have enough money for more children? The relationship has been strained for a while. Lozada wants to go in another direction so she can make some money and continue her reality TV career.
We Remember: Former NFL Running Back Ron Springs Dies at 54. Former Dallas Cowboys running back Ron Springs, who spent the past four years in a coma after losing oxygen during a 2007 operation, has died without ever regaining consciousness. He was 54. Former Cowboys teammate Everson Walls, who donated a kidney to Springs for a transplant, says the Springs family informed him that his friend died about 4:30 p.m. Thursday at Medical City Dallas hospital, reports the AP. The hospital is where Springs first slipped into the coma in 2007 after undergoing surgery to remove a cyst from his forearm about seven months after receiving the kidney. In 2008, Springs’ wife, Adriane, filed a medical malpractice lawsuit against two doctors she says caused brain damage to her husband during the cyst surgery. Despite the lengthy coma, the death came as a surprise, Walls said. “We are people of faith, and we never gave up home that he would regain consciousness,” he said. “He seemed to be holding his own. They say he just took a breath and he flat-lined.” “He was such a worldly person who touched so many lives in every area code,” he said.
Speaking of Rihanna, the U.S. leg of her tour is not doing well. Poor tickets sales are doing her in. This goes to prove you can have a hit song on the radio, but you must have talent to back it up! Sing! Dance! Something!!!
SIDEBAR – You shouldn’t have psst off Donald Trump!
Blair Underwood is coming out with a signature men’s suit line. The BU Collection will be sold exclusively at the K&G Fashion Superstores. This spring, Underwood makes his Broadway debut in A Street Car Named Desire.
Rap’s favorite hype man has landed another reality show. Flavor Flav will be starring in Celebrity Wife Swap. Flav, 52, was recently ordered to attend drug counseling classes following a recent arrest. He was caught with drugs and was driving with parking violations and no insurance.
Janet Jackson is the new spokesperson for Nutrisystem. She talks about her weight challenges and she looks amazing in the commercials.
Oscar Winner Jennifer Hudson may have to testify in court about the 2008 murder of her mother, brother and nephew. A trial has been set for February. Hudson’s brother-in-law William Balfour has been charged in connection with the deaths, and he has pleaded not guilty to charges of first degree murder.
Former Football Star Deion Sanders and his beautiful wife Pilar are divorcing after 11 years of marriage and three kids. Sources say Sanders is mad because Pilar wants to pursue a TV career, and he’s having trouble keeping up with his beautiful wife.
R Kelly wants to give us more Trapped In The Closet. Kelly says he has written 32 more chapters of the Trapped songs, but he needs financial backing to turn it into a series. In 2007, Kelly made a 22-part series of Trapped In The Closet, and it was a big hit.
NeNe Leakes is going primetime. The Real Housewives Of Atlanta Star is joining the cast of the FOX TV show Glee. She is going to play a recurring role as a swim coach.
Get ready for the stage musical The Gate Called Straight with a new location and times. Stephanie Mills is directing and BeBe Winans will be appearing in some performances as the dad. The Gate Called Straight is a gospel adaptation of The Wiz, and is playing at Sharon Baptist Church, 3955 Conshohocken Avenue on January 11th and 12th. For more information go to thegatecalledstraight.com or urbantix.com.