Black Ministers In Boston Endorse Warren

Democratic Senate candidate Elizabeth Warren received the endorsement of a group of black ministers in Boston on Thursday

Warren, once a Methodist Sunday school teacher, has made several visits to the churches of the pastors endorsing her.

At Roxbury's Twelfth Baptist Church in Dudley Square on Thursday, Warren quoted from the gospel of Matthew.

"I was a stranger, and ye took me in, and I am very grateful for that," Warren said. "I have prayed with many of you, and I have asked for the prayers from all of you."

Warren became uncharacteristically choked up at the event.

The ministers and Warren's campaign are counting on a high turnout in African-American neighborhoods to offset support for Sen. Scott Brown in the suburbs.

In his blog, Bob LeLievre, who breaks down the city's election data into neighborhoods rather than wards and precincts, reports that in 2010, Brown's Democratic opponent, Martha Coakley, won Roxbury with 92 percent of the vote, and Mattapan with 96 percent of the vote. But turnout was relatively low in those neighborhoods — 34 percent in Roxbury and 38 percent in Mattapan.

President Obama is expected to inspire a high turnout next month. The question is whether it will be as high as in 2008.

The Warren campaign has made an effort in recent weeks to make her more visible in African-American neighborhoods throughout Boston. The Rev. Jeffrey Brown said Warren has appeared at community meetings when invited, at one point speaking for two hours with those present.

"Do I want to see more of her? Absolutely!" Brown said. "I want to see all of our politicians. I'm satisfied with what I've been able to see and what I've been able to hear coming from her heart."