A coalition of black pastors is unveiling its national agenda and addressing what it calls “the current sabotage that is inspiring civil unrest against the new president.”

Led by Rev. William Owens (pictured), the Coalition of African American Pastors (CAAP) convened in Washington, D.C. Saturday to formally “denounce racial over tones against President-elect Donald Trump and challenge other black leaders to cease pushing division among people of Color for political expediency.”

“Leadership has to be proven,” Owens said. “The current path by Democrats and some Republicans is aimed strategically to disrupt, where in the end, it’s the citizenry that will lose; we need strong leadership to move America forward.”

CAAP was launched 28 years ago under “Give Me A Chance Ministries,” an education initiative which ultimately led to more than 400 black students in college with a 75 percent graduation rate, says the coalition’s press release.

Owens is extending the same premise to Trump, explaining the new president “must have the same platform – the chance to prove himself president, without intentional bombardment from both sides of the aisle.”

CAAP’s president is also inviting Rev. Al Sharpton and his organization, the National Action Network, to a “dialogue” to “discuss critical issues related to the future of the African American community.”

Owens observes he would like Rev. Sharpton to “consider discussing the disastrous policies his office has sometimes promoted–policies that serve to entrap blacks and minorities in a cycle of dependency and require their allegiance to a party and system that does not serve their interests.”