FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 7, 2011
For More Information: Rev. Dr. William J. Barber, II, President, 919-394-8137
Mrs. Amina Turner, Executive Director, 919-682-4700
For Media Assistance: Rob Stephens, Comm. Specialist, 336-577-9335,
NAACP STATE CONVENTION COMES TO HIGH POINT
WE WILL...AND WE MUST...FIGHT BACK To Secure America's Promise
OCTOBER 13th-15th, 2011
Go to the NC NAACP Website (www.naacpnc.org) for the full agenda
The mission of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People is to ensure the political, educational, social, and economic equality of rights of all persons and to eliminate race-based discrimination. The vision of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People is to ensure a society in which all individuals have equal rights without discrimination based on race.
DURHAM - The North Carolina NAACP's 68th Annual State Convention will focus on: educational equality, economic justice/jobs, equal protection under the law, enhancing and protecting voting rights, minority judicial appointments, connections between faith organizations and social justice, labor rights and rights to affordable healthcare. For three days, October 13-15, 2011, at the Best Western Plus Hotel in High Point, NC, the leading civil rights organization in the nation, with youth and adult leaders from across the state, will analyze, contemplate, and prepare to tackle the most pressing injustices facing our society.
This year's State Convention's lineup includes nationally renowned clergy, attorneys, educators, elected officials and labor and civil rights leaders.
The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is the nation's oldest and largest civil rights organization. The North Carolina NAACP is led by Rev. Dr. William J Barber, II, President; he is a National Board Member where he serves as Chair of the Political Action and Legislative Affairs Committee. North Carolina is also home to two additional national board members. Ms. Carolyn Q. Coleman of Greensboro serves as Secretary of the Board and is 1st Vice President of the NC NAACP. Mr. Lenny Springs of Charlotte serves as the Assistant Treasurer.
The NC NAACP is the second largest state conference in the nation and the largest in the South. The organization, along with its 110+ partner organizations in the Historic Thousands on Jones Street (HKonJ) People's Coalition, challenged the right-wing leadership in the NC General Assembly in its efforts to pass devastating cuts to public education, healthcare, indigent services and other public services. The NAACP also made a moral stand against the Legislature's efforts to pass voter suppression legislation, repeal the Racial Justice Act and take our State backwards. The NC NAACP has raised the stakes in the fundamental struggle for constitutional, high-quality, diverse public education for all children by confronting the right-wing school board majority in Wake County and others like it across the state.
The Convention will embrace the National NAACP's "This is My Vote" campaign for voter education, protection, registration and empowerment. Other critical struggles to be discussed in plenary sessions include "Misguided Priorities: Inequities in Criminal Justice" and "Economic Justice: Jobs, Housing and Tax Policy." Scholars and activists who have studied the interconnection between resegregation of our public schools, the increasing numbers of young people who don't graduate and who find themselves in the pipeline to prison, will lead the youth and adult delegates and observers from across the state in candid, thoughtful and action-oriented discussions about solutions and strategies for moving forward.
At-A-Glance
Pre-Convention Activities:
Wednesday, October 12th - 11:30 AM - 5:00 PM - Continuing Legal Education (CLE) "Education, Expectations and Incarceration: A look at how resegregation, high-stakes testing and the school-to-prison pipeline marginalize our children" - Best Western Plus Hotel, 135 S Main St. High Point, NC
Wednesday, October 12th - 6:30 - 9:00 PM Foreclosure Prevention Workshop - "What you need to about reverse mortgage" - Stella Adams, NC NAACP Housing Chair and Director of the Patricia Roberts Harris National Fair Housing Training Academy- Temple Memorial Baptist Church, 1458 Cedrow Dr. High Point, NC
Thursday Events will take place at Williams Memorial CME Church - 3400 Triangle Lake Road High Point, NC
Thursday, October 13th - 10:00 - 11:45 AM Necrology and Memorial Service
Thursday, October 13th - 12:00 - 1:30 PM - Religious Emphasis Luncheon Rev. Dr. Madeline McClenney-Sadler, founder of Exodus Foundation.org - Williams Memorial CME Church
Thursday, October 13th 1:45 - 2:45 PM - Plenary Session "Discerning the Signs of the Times: The Prophetic Role of the Church in Today's Society"
Thursday, October 13th 3:00 - 4:30 PM - Plenary Session "The Role of the Church in Building People's Mass Organizations"
Thursday, October 13th - 7:30 PM - Mass Meeting - Bishop Adam Richardson, Jr., the Presiding Prelate of the 2nd Episcopal District of the African Methodist Episcopal Church
Friday and Saturday Events - Best Western Plus Hotel - 135 South Main Street High Point, NC
Friday, October 14th - 7:00 AM - Labor and Industry Breakfast - Mr. General Holiefield, Vice President, UAW and the first African American to serve in the union's top staff position
Friday, October 14th 9:45 - 11:00 AM - Legislative Review - Senate Minority Leaders, Honorable Martin Nesbitt and Honorable Floyd McKissick Jr., Chair of Legislative Black Caucus
Friday, October 14th - 12:30 - 2:00 PM - Political Action Luncheon - US Congressmen Honorable G.K. Butterfield, from the North Carolina's 1st is the keynote speaker. Appearance by North Carolina Governor Beverly Perdue.
Friday, October 14th - 2:30 - 3:45 PM - Concurrent Sessions: 1) Economic Justice: Jobs, Housing and Tax Policy and 2) Misguided Priorities: Inequities in the Criminal Justice System
Friday, October 14th - 4:00 - 5:15 PM - Concurrent Sessions: 1) Organizing and Uplifting Branches 2) Broadband an the Digital Divide 3) Issues in Health and People of Color 4) Women in the NAACP (WIN)
Saturday, October 15th - 9:15 AM
"State of Civil Rights in North Carolina"
NAACP President, Rev. Dr. William J. Barber, II
Saturday, October 15th - 1:00 - 2:15 PM - Membership Luncheon, Attorney Barbara R. Arnwine, Prominent Civil Rights Attorney and Executive Director of Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under the Law
Saturday, October 15th - 2:30 - 4:00 PM -
Plenary Session: "Mobilization for HKonJ6 People's Assembly"
Saturday, October 15th - 7:00 PM - 10:00 PM - Freedom Fund Awards Banquet - Dr. Julianne Malveaux, the acclaimed Economist and 15th President of Bennett College for Women
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FULL REVIEW OF 68th NC NAACP STATE CONVENTION
Wednesday, October 12th - Continuing Legal Education (CLE)
Best Western Plus Hotel 135 South Main Street, High Point, NC 27260
5th Annual Romallus O. Murphy CLE
Education, Expectations and Incarceration:
A look at how resegregation, high-stakes testing and the
school-to-prison pipeline marginalize our children
The training will be held on October 12, 2011 in High Point from 11:30am to 5:00pm.The CLE entitled, Education, Expectations and Incarceration: A look at how resegregation, high-stakes testing and the school-to-prison pipeline marginalize our children, will focus on the issues our students are facing in the public education system.
Discussing these important issues will be experts from around the state and country, including Lewis Pitts of Advocates for Children's Services, Elizabeth Redenbaugh, New Hanover School Board member and recipient of the 2011 JFK Profile in Courage Award, Professor Catherine Kim, author of "The School-to-Prison Pipeline: Structuring Legal Reform," Nick Rhodes, Business Consultant (Ret.) & Former New Hanover School Board Member, Wendy B. Scott Professor of Law & Associate Dean Academic Affairs, NCCU, Dana Thompson Dorsey Assistant Professor of Educational Leadership and Policy, UNC-Chapel Hill, Jasmine Harris, Staff Attorney, Advancement Project, Brenda Reddix-Smalls, Associate Professor of Law, NCCU, Seema Ahmad, Staff Attorney, Advancement Project, Barbara Fedders, Clinical Professor of Law, UNC School of Law, Jason Langberg, Staff Attorney, Advocates for Children's Services, Legal Aid of NC, Larry Hall, Attorney & NC State House Representative, District 29 and Eric Zogry, Juvenile Defender, Office of the Juvenile Defender. Attorney Jennifer Marsh, NAACP Legal Redress Coordinator and Public Policy Analyst, will moderate the program.
Wednesday, October 12th - 6:30 - 9:00 PM - Foreclosure Prevention Workshop - Stella Adams, Housing Chair of the North Carolina NAACP and Director of the Patricia Roberts Harris National Fair Housing Training Academy will lead a session on "What you need to about reverse mortgage." If you know of families struggling to keep their homes, please encourage them to attend this free workshop. - Temple Memorial Baptist Church, 1458 Cedrow Dr. High Point, NC
Thursday, October 13th - Religious Emphasis Day
All events on Thursday will be held at Williams Memorial CME Church - 3400 Triangle Lake Road, High Point, NC 27260
Religious Emphasis Day will officially open the convention, building upon the tradition of the relationship of the Black Church, the civil rights movement and the NAACP. The exciting daylong series of events, on Thursday, October 13, at the Williams Memorial CME Church is for community leaders and members of the faith community. Open to the Public.
10:00 - 11:45 AM - Necrology and Memorial Service - Rev. Dr. T. Anthony Spearman of Clinton Tabernacle AME Zion Church in Hickory, NC and the Religious Affairs Chair for the State Executive Committee will open up the conference with a sermon at the Necrology Service.
12:00 - 1:30 PM - Religious Emphasis Luncheon - Rev. Dr. Madeline McClenney-Sadler, founder of Exodus Foundation.org,will give the keynote address at 12:00 PM at the Williams Memorial CME Church. Pastor Thomas Bannister, III of Temple Memorial Baptist Church and Pastor Michael Ellerbe of New Beginning Full Gospel Ministry, both of High Point, NC, will also be on the program.
1:45 - 2:45 PM - "Discerning the Signs of the Times: The Prophetic Role of the Church in Today's Society." Rev. Dr. T. Anthony Spearman will moderate a plenary session on the subject of Panelists will include Rev. Dr. Cardes Brown, Branch President, Greensboro, Rev. Mazie B. Ferguson former NC NAACP Religious Affairs Chair, Rev. Sherri Arnold Graham, Oberlin Baptist Church of Raleigh, NC, Dr. Jerome J. Washington, Mount Vernon Baptist Church, Durham, NC, and David LaMotte formerly, NC Council of Churches
3:00 - 4:30 PM - "The Role of the Church in Building People's Mass Organizations." Rev. Curtis E. Gatewood, HKonJ Coalition Coordinator, will moderate a panel discussion with faith leaders from across the state. Panelists include Rev. Dr. Earl Johnson of Martin Street Baptist Church, Rev. Dr. Nancy Petty of Pullen Memorial Baptist Church, Rev. Kojo Nantambu, Branch President, Charlotte-Mecklenburg and Rev. Valerie Melvin of First Christian Church in Reidsville, NC.
4:30 - 6:00 PM - A Soul Food Dinner will be served from 4:30 pm to 6:00 pm with proceeds going towards support for our Youth and College Division of the NC NAACP!
7:30 PM - Mass Meeting - Religious Emphasis Day will close with a Mass Meeting presided over by State President, Rev. Dr. William J Barber, II. The Presiding Prelate of the 2nd Episcopal District of the African Methodist Episcopal Church, Bishop Adam Richardson, Jr., will be the preacher for the evening service. Local and state elected officials will also bring greetings during the program.
Friday, October 14th
All programs will take place at the Best Western Plus Hotel -135 South Main Street, High Point, NC 27260 - unless otherwise noted
7:00 - 7:50 AM - Labor and Industry Breakfast - Friday's events will begin with Mr. General Holiefield Vice Presidentof the International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America (UAW) as the featured speaker.
9:00 - 5:00 PM - Daylong Voter Action Network (VAN) Training - Representatives from branches across the state will participate in this daylong training on Friday, learning the Voter Action Network (VAN) tool for a state of the art Get Out the Vote campaign for elections in 2011 and 2012. Participants must pre-register for the event. Jamaa Bickley-King and Marvin Randolph, who both serve as Political Consultants for the National NAACP, are traveling to High Point to guide the grassroots participants during this program. Erin Dale Byrd, Political Action Committee Chair of the NC NAACP, will provide support throughout the training.
9:45 AM - 11:00 AM - "Operation Fight Back" The first plenary session will highlight the National NAACP's "This is My Vote" campaign, which includes Get Out the Vote (GOTV), voter education protection and empowerment and the issues the civil rights community must challenge. Erin Dale Byrd, Political Action Chair of the NC NAACP, Bob Hall, Executive Director of Democracy NC, Anita Earls, Esq., Executive Director of the Southern Coalition for Social Justice and Dr. Jarvis Hall, Director of the Institute for Civic Engagement and Social Change at North Carolina Central University (NCCU) will present. Members of the North Carolina General Assembly, Senator Floyd McKissick and Senator Martin Nesbitt will join this session as well.
12:30 - 2:00 PM - Political Action Luncheon - North Carolina US Congressman from District 1, Honorable G.K Butterfield will be the keynote speakers at the Political Action Luncheon from 12:30 PM to 2:00 PM. North Carolina Governor Beverly Perdue will join the luncheon as well. The program will also include special recognition of military service men and women.
2:30 - 3:45 PM - Following the luncheon, there will be two concurrent sessions.
- "Economic Justice: Jobs, Housing and Tax Policy" will feature Andrea Harris President of the North Carolina Institute for Minority Economic Development (NCIMED), Stella Adams, Director of the Patricia Roberts Harris National Fair Housing Training Academy, Abdul Rasheed, CEO of NC Community Development Initiative, Inc. in Raleigh, NC and Sue Perry Cole, President and CEO of the North Carolina Association of Community Development Corporations (NCACDC) and Representative Dan Blue, member of the NC General Assembly and Managing Partner at Blue, Stephens & Fellers law firm and Lindsay Siler of Organizing for America. Reuben Blackwell, Community Coordination Committee Chair of the NC NAACP and President of OIC Rocky Mount will moderate the discussion.
- "Misguided Priorities: Inequities in the Criminal Justice System" will feature James E. Buxton, Jr, NC NAACP District 9 Director and Fayetteville Branch President, Bernest Hewett, Brunswick County Branch President Lon D. Moore, NC NAACP District 13 Director and Martin County, Branch President, Keith Rivers, NC NAACP District 12 Director and Pasquotank County, Branch President and Rev. Dr. Cardes Brown President, Greensboro Branch President, Darryl Hunt, Director of the Anti-Death Penalty Project of the NC NAACP and Founder of the Darryl Hunt Project for Freedom and Justice and Dr. Niaz Kasravi, Senior Manager for Law Enforcement Accountability for the National NAACP. Dennis Gaddy, NC NAACP Prison Support/Criminal Justice Chair and Exec Director of Community Success Initiative (CSI) will moderate the discussion.
4:00 - 5:15 PM - Four concurrent sessions will follow.
- "Organizing and Uplifting Branches" will feature Carolyn Q. Coleman, NAACP National Board Member and 1st Vice President of the NC NAACP, Mr. Woody Woodard, Former Statesville Branch President, Rev. Curtis E. Gatewood, HK on J Coalition Coordinator and Amina J. Turner, Executive Director of the NC NAACP.
- The "Broadband and the Digital Divide" session will be hosted by Andrea Harris, President of the North Carolina Institute for Minority Economic Development (NCIMED). Nationally-renown political analyst Jamal Simmons and Carlos Sanchez, Statewide & Government Affairs, AT&T of North Carolina.
- "Issues in Health and People of Color" will be led by Dr. Allen Mask, NC NAACP Health Chair. Presenters include Barbara Pullen-Smith, Director of the new NC Office of Minority Health and Health Disparities and Dr. Rodney Sessoms, medical internist physician of Clinton, NC.
- "Women in the NAACP (WIN)" will feature Angella Dunston, Director of the Office of Citizen and Faith Outreach for the North Carolina Governor's office and Charmaine Fuller-Cooper, Executive Director of the N.C. Justice for Victims of Sterilization Foundation, and Penny Lauricella, Executive Director of Pretty in Pink Foundation. The discussion will be moderated by O'Linda Gillis, NC NAACP WIN Chair. There will be a Special Visit from Mrs. Doris Ann Shipman, Regional Director, WIN, NAACP.
Saturday, October 15th
All programs will take place at the Best Western Plus Hotel -
135 South Main Street, High Point, NC 27260
Saturday, October 15 at 9:15 AM
Unity Session
"State of Civil Rights in North Carolina" Address
NC NAACP Youth and College Division President, Nicholas Green and
North Carolina NAACP President, Rev. Dr. William J. Barber, II
10:15 - 11:15 PM - "State of Education in NC" Plenary - Presidents from nine local branches will make presentations on the challenges in their respective school systems, including issues such as resegregation, disparate rates of detention and suspension rates, lack of resources for under-served communities and others. They include Charlotte-Mecklenburg: Rev. Kojo Nantambu, President, Halifax County: Mr. David Harvey, President, New Hanover County: Ms. Debra Maxwell, President, Pender County: Rev. Dr. Rachel Stephens, President, Pitt County: Mr. Calvin Henderson, President, Wake County: Rev. Portia Rochelle, President, Raleigh-Apex Branch, Wake County: Mr. J. Ronald White, President, South Central Wake County Branch & 3rd Vice President, NC NAACP, Wake County: Mr. Charles Upchurch, President, Wendell-Wake County Branch, Wayne County: Min. Sylvia E. Barnes, President, Secretary, NC NAACP. Attorney Mark Dorosin, Adjunct Professor of Law and Managing Attorney for UNC Center for Civil Rights and Edward Hailes, General Counsel and Managing Director of Advancement Project in Washington D.C. will follow with presentations.
1:00 - 2:15 PM - Membership Luncheon - NC NAACP Membership Chair and President of the Durham Branch of the NAACP, Fred Foster, will preside over this Luncheon. The program will feature Barbara R. Arnwine, Executive Director for the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law as the keynote speaker. Membership laydown awards will also be presented during the luncheon.
2:30 - 4:00 PM - Mobilization for HKonJ6 Plenary - The statewide HKonJ People's Coalition---with its 110+ partner organizations---will hold their planning meeting in preparation for "HKonJ 6 in February 2011." The session will be presided over by Rev. Dr. William J Barber, NC NAACP President. The plenary will be moderated by HKonJ Coalition Coordinator Rev. Curtis E. Gatewood and HKonJ Steering Committee Chair and Community Coordination Committee Chair of the NC NAACP, Reuben Blackwell. Other presenters at the plenary session include Attorney Larry Hall, NC House Representative from District 29 and Desiree Parker, President of the North Carolina Central University branch of the NAACP. "HKonJ" stands for Historic Thousands on Jones Street, which brings thousands of North Carolinians to a People's Assembly in Raleigh to present a social justice, anti-racist and progressive agenda for all of North Carolina to the General Assembly every February.
7:00 - 10:00 PM - Freedom Fund Awards Banquet - The 68th Annual North Carolina NAACP State Convention will close with this much-anticipated banquet. It is our honor to announce Dr. Julianne Malveaux as our keynote speaker for the evening. Dr. Malveaux is the 15th president of Bennett College for Women in Greensboro, North Carolina. She is a nationally recognized author, economist, public speaker and education leader. Her recent book, Surviving and Thriving: 365 Facts in Black Economic History, is in the bookstores now and will be available at the banquet.
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