Newspaper Page Text
The Savannah Tribune • Wednesday, March 30, 2011-3
SOCIAL AND COMMUNITY NEWS
NAACP Celebrates 75th Anniversary
of Youth & College Division
Reflections of the Times:
The 1961 Freedom Rides
Roslyn Brock, NAACP Board Chairman
The NAACP is celebrat
ing the 75th anniversary of its
Youth & College Division,
created in 1936.
According to its
mission statement, the divi
sion aims to inform youth of
the problems affecting
African Americans and other
racial and ethnic minorities,
to advance the status of the
African American communi
ty, to stimulate appreciation
of the African Diaspora and
other people of color’s contri
bution to society, and to
develop intelligent and mili
tant youth leadership.
“The Youth & College
Division helped me develop
as a leader and as an activist,”
stated NAACP Chairman
Roslyn M. Brock, a former
youth member. “Over five
hundred members of the
Youth and College Division
have served on our National
Board of Directors since the
inception of youth designated
positions in 1963.”
“The Youth & College
Division is important not
only because it educates and
trains young leaders, but also
because of the notable
accomplishments of its mem
bers,” stated NAACP
President and CEO Benjamin
Todd Jealous, another former
member of the division. “The
division has seen a renewed
spirit of leadership and
activism in recent years, evi
dent in the powerful civic
engagement efforts like the
Upload 2 Uplift and Vote
Hard campaigns as well as
mobilization efforts led by
young people within the
Association.”
The division today is
composed of more more
than 25,000 young people
under the age of 25. They
represent 600 youth coun
cils, high school chapters
and college chapters, mak
ing the division one of the
largest organized groups of
young people of any secular
organization in the country.
From March through
December, the Youth &
College Division will cele
brate their 75th anniversary
with local coordinated activ
ities around the country, and
will host a national youth
town hall meeting during the
NAACP National
Convention in Los Angeles.
Additionally, later this year
the division will launch a
new social networking proj
ect as the NAACP continues
to engage young people in
21st century technology ini
tiatives.
“Young people are the
fastest growing demograph
ic in the NAACP,” stated
Stefanie Brown, National
Field Director & Director of
the Youth and College
Division. “They are often
the ones on the front lines,
Honorees
continued from page 1
on Savannah’s City
Council, serving from
1974 through 1991, and
served as Mayor Pro Tem
in 1991.
Tony Matthews
Yellow Dog Democrat
Award 2011 Award
Honoree- Alfreda J.
Goldwire-Currently
President of the Savannah
Federation of
Teachers/Paraprofessional
s and School Related
Personnel (SFT/PRSP),
Alfreda also was named
Labor Leader of the Year
by the Georgia AFL/CIO.
Under Alfreda’s leader
ship, SFT/PSRP has grown
from 600 members in 1999
to over 2,000.
“Our dinner having been
named after a long time
leader of Savannah’s Irish
Catholic community, the
CCDC is particularly
excited to announce our
2011 Toby Buttimer
Dinner award honorees
this week,” said CCDC
Chair Tony Center.
The Toby
Buttimer Awards dinner is
the CCDC’s major annual
fundraiser and get togeth
er. The dinner first began
in 1987 and annually hon
ors three local Democrats
for their achievements and
support. The dinner will
be held in late August or
early September with a
speaker of national promi
nence.
For more informa
tion contact Tony Center
912-233-9696
TonyCenter@comcast.net
or Dinner Chair Jolene
Byrne, 912-227-0159,
rjobyrne@comcast.net.
using their energy and enthu
siasm to bring attention to
important issues and effect
positive changes in their
communities. The steady
stream of new voices in that
cycle in every year ensures
that the division remains a
dynamic and enduring force
in the NAACP.”
Founded in 1909, the
NAACP is the nation's oldest
and largest civil rights organ
ization. Its members through
out the United States and the
world are the premier advo
cates for civil rights in their
communities, conducting
voter mobilization and moni
toring equal opportunity in
the public and private sectors.
A panel discussion,
"Reflections of the Times:
The 1961 Freedom Rides"
will be held Tuesday, April
12, 4 p.m. at the Southwest
Chatham Library, 925-
8305.
The Freedom Riders of
1961 had a simple but dar
ing plan: to board buses in
small interracial groups to
test and challenge segre
gated facilities in the
South.
They endured savage
beatings, humiliation, and
imprisonment, but ulti
mately their brave actions
and commitment to nonvi
olence changed America
forever.
Join our panel in a reflec
tion of the times that will
enrich your exhibit experi
ence and put a historical
perspective, not only on
the history of the civil
rights movement, but also
the history of the United
States of America.
Ms. Linda Bulloch, a
retired educator and jour
nalist whose family mem
bers were among white
Southerners involved in
the Civil Rights Movement
of the Fifties and Sixties
will be a speaker. The
author of two books, she
works part-time at the
Savannah College of Art
and Design.
Dr. Emogene
Middleton, a retired public
school educator who
served as the first secretary
for Rev. Hosea Williams
and Savannah Chatham
County Crusade for Voters
in the early 1960's will
also participate, along with
Dr. J.W. Jamerson III, a
local Savannah dentist and
current Chairman of Ralph
Mark Gilbert Georgia's
Official Civil Rights
Museum here in Savannah.
This promises to be
an enlightening and
enriching discussion for
all! This is the third install
ment in the Freedom
Riders series, proceeded
by a traveling exhibit, and
a special lecture on “The
Political Meaning of the
Freedom Riders.”
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