The Rev. William E. Dickerson II, pastor at Greater Love Tabernacle in Dorchester, was one of the black clergymen who helped organize a rally supporting Kennedy in Grove Hall in 1994, when Kennedy faced a tough bid for reelection to his Senate seat against Republican Mitt Romney. Hundreds gathered at the rally, and in November, the black community came out in large numbers to vote for Kennedy in the general election, Dickerson said, recalling Kennedy as a savvy politician who understood that the support of the city's black voters could be pivotal in a tight race.