Methodist AME Church Wins Against “Proud Boys” Bigotry

Since the heinous and treasonous sedition riot on Jan. 6, 2021, there has been another bigoted group in the mainstream consciousness–the Proud Boys. And now, thanks to the divine wisdom and whimsy of the Metropolitan African Methodist Church in Washington D.C., the strength those boys had in terms of bullying pigheadedness has been cut down to size.

It wouldn’t be a far reach of imagination to think the rancor and vitriol from the Proud Boys has motivated them to vandalize other places like the U.S. Capitol. Some boys ransacked the Metropolitan AME Church only one month before that demonstration. This isn’t one of those churches that look like a hotel convention center. It was founded in 1838 as Union Bethel and is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Proud Boys, white supremacists, and Trump supporters rip a #BlackLivesMatter sign down from Metropolitan AME church in D.C. During the Jim Crow era, they burned crosses. Today they seek to terrorize by targeting Black churches. pic.twitter.com/8FznBGUz6e

— Kristen Clarke (@KristenClarkeJD) December 13, 2020

These are pathetic people who believe they have power over others. The church now has power over them, as in their literal name.

Last week, at the time of this post, the Superior Court of the District of Columbia ruled and gave the Metropolitan African Methodist Episcopal Church control of the “Proud Boys” trademark. This means the xenophobic group can’t promote or make “any sale, transfer, disposition, or license of the Proud Boys Trademark.” According to NPR, the landmark legal ruling comes as a result of a default judgment of $2.8 million in damages.

Default is the keyword because no one showed up to defend the Proud Boys in court, including their vociferous leader at the time, Enrique Tarrio. So, the judge found somewhere to remove that cash. Now that their cupboards are barren, Tarrio–who goes by “@NobleOne” on Xwitter–posted this:

My full quote to @nytimes

“As a follower of Jesus Christ, I see disturbing parallels between this church’s actions toward the individuals and families involved and the Pharaoh’s oppression of the Israelites in the story of Moses. This church has engaged in a campaign of… https://t.co/qtI75Us9r2

— Enrique Tarrio (@NobleOne) February 4, 2025

If that news makes you smile, you’ll love how the Metropolitan AME Church fights the power with marketing muscle.

Before we delve into that, do you want to stay in touch with faith-based issues that are “close to home?” Subscribe to our free newsletter and never miss what’s being said about the Church or what Christians can say back.

Proud Boys Get Shamed in DC

Hate is never allowed, including in front of the Supreme Court where this poster board is resting against a fence. — US Supreme Court along 1st Street between Maryland Avenue and East Capitol Street, NE, Washington DC on Tuesday afternoon, 12 January 2021 (Image Credit: Elvert Barnes Photography via Wikimedia Commons)

Now that the trademark belongs to the Metropolitan AME Church, Rev. William H. Lamar IV announced the establishment of the Community Justice Fund. If you’d like to donate to the fund and help the youth of Washington D.C., you can buy a black shirt with the “PB” logo surrounded by golden laurels–only instead of “Proud Boys,” there is a slogan: “Stay Proud. Stay Black.”

Rev. Thomas Reese, a Jesuit priest and Religion News Service senior analyst, shared the apparel.

A Black church that now owns the Proud Boys logo is using it to sell shirts https://t.co/NZeEVFfeq8

— Thomas Reese, S.J. (@ThomasReeseSJ) February 14, 2025

See what they did there? Lamar leans on Genesis 50:20 by saying the effort is “an attempt to turn evil to good.”

“For the first time in our nation’s history, a Black institution owns property of a white supremacist group,” reads the statement on the church’s website. “Metropolitan African Methodist Episcopal Church now owns the exclusive rights to the Proud Boys trademark, stripping them of the very name they rallied under. This also means that any money the Proud Boys makes from using the trademark must be paid to Metropolitan to help satisfy the multi-million-dollar default judgment.”

This church has hosted Booker T. Washington, Frederick Douglass, and Ida B. Wells-Barnett, one of the founders of the NAACP. In 1838, that church was founded on grit, faith, and striving for equal justice. The odds of Rev. Lamar not taking on those vandals were less than a court stenographer transcribing mumble rap accurately.

“They chose a Black church with the Black Lives Matter sign out as a continuation of political violence against Black churches, which have been the heart of creating democracy,” Lamar said.

The shirts can be yours for only $20. God bless America.