A coalition of black ministers and community leaders on Monday decried the "inconsistent, harsh and culturally insensitive" treatment of Adrian Peterson for his recent suspension from the Minnesota Vikings, days after pleading no contest to misdemeanor reckless assault for beating his 4-year-old son with a wooden switch.

Led by Rev. Alfred Babington-Johnson, head of the Stairstep Foundation, a network of churches and community outposts that works to improve access to health care in black neighborhoods, the group issued a statement denouncing NFL commissioner Roger Goodell's decision to suspend Peterson without pay for the remainder of the season. Under the ruling, Peterson, who has appealed the suspension, will be eligible for reinstatement next April.

Babington-Johnson insisted that while the group doesn't condone "child abuse of any kind…we are, however, clear that the black community historically has had a much different approach and attitude to the issue of physical discipline than whites."

"Much of the public discussion dominated by European American talking heads has not demonstrated any sense of legitimate cultural difference," he said. "Our community is not monolithic. We have different points of view, but we believe that our broader views are not being reflected."

The group, he added, is just "looking for fairness and clarity...in the process."

Babington-Johnson read from the statement -- which was signed by more than a dozen community leaders, including Rev. Jerry McAfee, president of the Minneapolis branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) -- at a Monday morning press conference at New Salem Baptist Church.

The group also strongly defended the records of DFL Sens. Bobby Joe Champion and Jeff Hayden, while criticizing the Star Tribune's reporting on the lawmakers' involvement with two community organizations, Community Standards Initiative and Community Action of Minneapolis.

Champion and Hayden face a state Senate ethics inquiry into their ties to both groups.