Black church says it won't return to racially troubled city

CINCINNATI, OHIO - Leaders of a black church group meeting in Cincinnati this week say they won&#39;t return to the city until race relations improve. <br> <br> The 600-member Christian Methodist Episcopal Church Women&#39;s Missionary Council would have heeded calls for an economic boycott and moved their meeting to Indianapolis, church officials said, but they feared economic reprisals and a lawsuit. <br> <br> ``We won&#39;t consider any more (conventions) until something happens in this city,&#39;&#39; the Rev. Nathaniel Linsey of Cincinnati said Friday. He&#39;s the Atlanta-based denomination&#39;s senior bishop and also bishop over its second district. <br> <br> ``We have to hit where it hurts, and that&#39;s the pocketbook,&#39;&#39; he said. <br> <br> Earlier this week, the 37,000-member Ohio Civil Service Employees Association confirmed it dropped plans to book a 2005 meeting in Cincinnati because of the boycott. <br> <br> The boycott came after three nights of rioting over the fatal shooting of an unarmed black man by a white police officer last April. The officer was acquitted in the shooting. Fourteen groups have called for economic sanctions until city leaders pay more attention to police, racial and economic issues. <br> <br> The Coalition for a Just Cincinnati, one of the boycott leaders, is counting any performance cancellations in Cincinnati as boycott victories. <br> <br> Jazz trumpeter Wynton Marsalis, the Temptations, the O&#39;Jays and actor-comedian Bill Cosby have backed out of performances in Cincinnati since the boycott began. <br> <br> The Cincinnati Arts Association announced Thursday that it was planning to sue the coalition unless the group repays more than $76,000 lost from the empty dates and agrees not to encourage other performers to cancel. <br> <br> The Black United Front is another leader in the boycott movement. The group&#39;s president, the Rev. Damon Lynch III, said Friday that the seven-month boycott is gathering strength. <br> <br> ``It&#39;s just the sentiment of a lot of people in the African-African community that have been fed up for awhile,&#39;&#39; he said. <br> <br> National civil rights figure Al Sharpton is planning a trip to Cincinnati in the next two weeks to encourage the city to change, Lynch said. <br> <br> Greater Cincinnati Convention and Visitors Bureau officials said they are disappointed that the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church intends to avoid the city. <br> <br> ``I think we did our job in terms of delivering what we promised them,&#39;&#39; said Julie Harrison, bureau spokeswoman. <br> <br> Linsey, whose office is suburban Walnut Hills, said his church hasn&#39;t scheduled an annual convention beyond 2003. <br> <br> The group brought 1,500 conventioneers to Cincinnati in 1997, generating $1.29 million. <br> <br> Linsey wants Mayor Charlie Luken to appoint a committee to negotiate the demands of boycott organizers. A message seeking comment was left at Luken&#39;s office on Saturday. <br> <br> ``The mayor has the power now to make the right decisions,&#39;&#39; Linsey said.