[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 46 (Tuesday, April 25, 2006)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E589-E590]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




CIVIL RIGHTS STRUGGLE FAR FROM OVER: NAACP REMAINS IN FOREFRONT, ALMOST 
                      A CENTURY AFTER ITS CREATION

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. CHARLES B. RANGEL

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, April 25, 2006

  Mr. RANGEL. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to enter into the Record an 
editorial from the April 11, 2006 New York CaribNews entitled ``Civil 
Rights Struggle Far From Over: NAACP Remains In Forefront, Almost A 
Century After Its Creation''; that praises the longevity and extreme 
effectiveness of the most influential civil rights organization in the 
United States known as the National Association for the Advancement of 
Colored People or the NAACP.
  Since its inception the National Association for the Advancement of 
Colored People (NAACP) was poised for a long, tumultuous and rewarding 
history. Although it may be possible to chronicle the challenging and 
harrowing legacy of the NAACP, the real story of the Nation's most 
significant civil rights organization lies in the hearts and minds of 
the people who would not stand still while the rights of America's 
people of color were denied.
  The history of the NAACP is one of blood, sweat and tears. From bold 
investigations of mob brutality, protests of mass murders, segregation 
and discrimination, to testimony before congressional committees on the 
vicious tactics used to bar African Americans from the ballot box, it 
was the talent and tenacity of the NAACP members that saved lives and 
changed many negative aspects of American society. While much of its 
history is chronicled in books, articles, pamphlets and magazines, the 
true movement lies in the faces--black, white, yellow, red, and brown--
united to awaken the conscientiousness of a people, and a nation. This 
is the legacy of the NAACP.
  Mr. Speaker, This article that I enter today reiterates the facts 
that the civil rights struggle is far from over as it proudly details 
from history a few of the organization's past successes. I am confident 
that such leaders as Bruce Gordon, President and Chief Executive 
Officer of the NAACP and Karen Boykin-Towns, President of the Brooklyn 
Chapter of the NAACP will continue to keep the legacy alive and also 
keep the NAACP in the forefront, as progress and accomplishments 
continue, for years to come.

        [From the New York CaribNews Editorial, April 11, 2006]

Civil Rights Struggle Far From Over: NAACP Remains In Forefront, Almost 
                      A Century After Its Creation

       It was a succinct and forceful reminder. And it came from a 
     person who knows the issues and from an organization that has 
     led the fight for respect for Black people's civil rights and 
     political liberties. ``There is still a lot of civil rights 
     work to be done,'' was the way Bruce Gordon, President and 
     Chief Executive Officer of the National Association for the 
     Advancement of Colored People, NAACP, put it in an interview 
     with this newspaper. ``Many people believe the passing of 
     Rosa Parks, Coretta Scott-King and other icons of the 
     movement signals that the task is over,'' he added. ``Nothing 
     could be further from the truth.'' Well said!
       Anyone looking at the state of Black America, the lack of 
     jobs in Black communities, limited access to adequate health 
     care, a dire shortage of affordable housing, the intolerance 
     of tens of millions of whites, the virulent strains of 
     racism, the glaring attempts to cast young Black men as 
     villains, the policy of cutting off much needed federal, 
     state and local government assistance to families that need 
     it the most and the poor schools that saturate our 
     communities would readily endorse Gordon's marching orders, 
     if you will.
       The NAACP is in an excellent position to assess the needs 
     and to address them. And they have earned our support.
       Founded on February 12, 1909 by a multi-racial group of 
     activists, who answered the ``Call'' to action, the NAACP has 
     been at the helm of the long struggle from that historic 
     occasion. We expect it to continue its important work for at 
     least another century.
       Turn back some of the pages of history and the record of 
     America's largest and oldest civil rights organization would 
     become clear. A handful of examples, in:
       1913 when President Woodrow Wilson officially sanctioned 
     segregation in the federal government, a horrified NAACP 
     launched a nationwide protest.
       1915 the NAACP took to the streets and the barricades to 
     condemn D.W. Griffith, the movie producer, for his 
     ``inflammatory and bigoted silent film, ``Birth of a 
     Nation,'' which today draws rave reviews from white critics 
     for what they call his ``creativity'' while ignoring the 
     bigoted nature of the film's content.
       1922 In an unprecedented step, the NAACP placed large 
     advertisements in many of the nation's major newspapers to 
     focus national attention on the despicable and inhuman 
     practice of lynching.
       1935, NAACP lawyers Charles Houston and Thurgood Marshall 
     battled successfully in the courts to have Black students 
     admitted to the University of Maryland.
       1939 When the Daughters of the American Revolution 
     prevented world famous soprano, Marian Anderson, from 
     performing at their Constitution Hall, the NAACP sprung into 
     action. It moved the concert to the Lincoln Memorial and 
     75,000 persons attended.
       1948, the organization led the fight that forced President 
     Harry Truman to ban racial discrimination by the federal 
     government, especially in the military.
       1954, the NAACP won the landmark case before the Supreme 
     Court that forced an end to segregation in public schools. 
     Brown vs. Board of Education stands today as a battering ram 
     against official segregation.
       1965, Congress passed and President Lyndon Johnson signed 
     into law the Voting Rights Act, which gave Blacks the 
     unfettered right to participate in the electoral process as 
     voters and candidates. The NAACP was a driving force behind 
     its enactment.
       1985, it led a massive anti-apartheid rally in New York 
     that dramatized the plight of millions of Blacks in South 
     Africa.
       1997, the organization launched its ``Economic Reciprocity 
     Program to fight against conservative efforts in Congress and 
     the courts to end affirmative action.
       2000, at the helm of a march by 50,000 persons to protest 
     the flying of the confederate flag over state buildings. It 
     was the largest civil rights demonstration ever held in the 
     South. On and on we can cite chapter and verse about the 
     successes and indeed the relevance of this noble institution 
     whose effectiveness was demonstrated in almost every section 
     of the country and in many nations in different parts of the 
     world.

[[Page E590]]

       As the NAACP itself has pointed out, ``from the ballot box 
     to the classroom the dedicated workers, organizers, and 
     leaders who forged this great organization and maintain its 
     status as a champion of social justice, fought long and hard 
     to ensure that the voices of African-Americans would be 
     heard.'' We couldn't have said it any better.
       If the Association's history was built on the blood, sweat 
     and tears of its members and supporters who believe in its 
     vision then it has earned its place in our minds and hearts.
       Gordon is coming to New York to hail the resuscitation of 
     the Brooklyn Branch, a development which comes a few years 
     before the centennial anniversary of the NAACP itself and 
     which sends a strong and positive signal to people around the 
     country that the organization is vigorous and its future is 
     secure.
       We extend our congratulations to Gordon and to the officers 
     and members of the Brooklyn branch that's led by Karen 
     Boykin-Towns.

                          ____________________