Naacp of North Carolina

'Our Work Is Far From Done'

"Just because an African American, Barack Obama, might be elected president doesn't mean the fight for racial equality is over," the president of the NC NAACP told a gathering of the Surry County branch recently. Continue reading...

NC Legislative Black Caucus Protests Continued Persecution of James Johnson

Spurred by the NC NAACP, the North Carolina Legislative Black Caucus has passed a resolution protesting the continued prosecution of James Johnson, a young man who identified the killer of a Wilson girl. More.

NC Senate Politics Kills Racial Justice Act for 2008; Battle Will Continue in 2009

This press release comes from the offices of By Rep. Larry Womble – NC House District 71 and Rep. Earline Parmon – NC House District 72

For two years, state legislators, lobbyists and numerous organizations have fought tirelessly to diminish racial disparities in capital sentencing through a bill known as the North Carolina Racial Justice Act.  While the bill passed the North Carolina House in May 2007 primarily down party lines, the bill sat dormant in the North Carolina Senate as senators placed politics over ensuring that the shade of a person’s skin does not influence a sentence of death over life. 

Obama, McCain Address National NAACP Convention

Both Democratic and Republican presidential candidates, Barack Obama and John McCain, addressed the NAACP national convention. For video clips, click on the link below.

Rev. Barber Elected to National Board

Rev. Dr. William J. Barber II, president of the NC NAACP, has won election to the national board of the NAACP. In a three-person contest for the Region 5 board seat, with 329 voting delegates, Rev. Barber received 177 votes over two other candidates.

Rev. Barber's Statement on the Death of Jesse Helms

Click.

NC NAACP Joins National Day of Action Against Mortgage Discrimination

The NC State Conference of the NAACP marked the NAACP's National Day of Action against mortgage discrimination with a press conference at the Durham Courthouse. The Day of Action was marked by events across the country, including New York, Seattle, Baltimore, San Antonio, Wilmington, Del. and others. Media coverage: Black Voices.

Related: Financial empowerment videos are now online in our economics section.

NAACP Wants SBI to Look at Shootings: Push for a new law covering shootings by police comes after witnesses' description differed from officers' in Charlotte man's death

Charlotte Observer: Charlotte's latest police-involved shooting has state NAACP leaders pushing for a law that would require the SBI to investigate all such shootings across the state.

The agency intends to take its message to Raleigh this month, after Aaron Winchester was shot twice in the back May 20 by a Charlotte-Mecklenburg police officer, said the Rev. William Barber, North Carolina's NAACP president. He met with community leaders and ministers in Charlotte on Thursday to discuss the shooting that happened after Officer David Jester questioned Winchester about a domestic dispute and an ensuing car crash.

Continue reading... 

Video Probes Significance of 1898 Wilmington Riots

The Wilmington riots of 1898, essentially a coup that overthrew a legitimate government and burned the properties of African Americans, without offering them redress or compensation, still has relevance today. UNC-TV's Black Issues Forum explored the legacy of 1898, the prospects of reparations, and includes excerpts from the state convention of the NAACP meeting in Wilmington. "We're here because you can't get your present right if you don't properly deal with your past," observed the Rev. Dr. William Barber II. Watch it now.

Previous:

• Brief Video: Historian John Hope Franklin Discusses Significance of the 1898 Riots

Stop the Epidemic of Police Shootings of African Americans!

Joint Statement On Charlotte Police Shootings

Rev. Dr. William J. Barber, II.  State NAACP President

Frank A. Humphrey, Branch Administrator

Rosemary Gladden, Branch President

Amina J. Turner, State Executive Director, NAACP

Prompted by the death of a 21-year old African American at the hands of a Charlotte police officer in broad daylight in late May, which is merely the latest in a string of six shootings of citizens by Charlotte police in the first five months of 2008, African American leaders in Charlotte and the media have raised troubling questions.

 

The North Carolina State NAACP in concert with the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Branch at the urging of Rev. Dr. Ricky Wood, on behalf of a coalition of Charlotte Ministers, will study the epidemic (16 people killed by Charlotte police in the last 10 years with 6 shootings in just the first 5 months of 2008) of police shootings and come up with some ways to stop it. We will be calling the Mayor of Charlotte and the Attorney General of North Carolina to let them know of our interest, and, with our local Branch, will be convening a meeting to make further plans.

Seeking An End to Racial Injustice, Lobbying the State Legislature

Spurred by the recent release of three black men from death row, a group of NAACP members, elected officials and released inmates are urging lawmakers to pass the North Carolina Racial Justice Act, which allows for reviews of racial bias in death penalty cases. If defendants can show their convictions or sentences were based on race, they can have their death sentences overturned. Advocates say the bill is desperately needed to ensure innocent people are not sent to death. "You can overturn a wrongful conviction, but you can't unpack a wrong grave," said the Rev. William Barber,  president of the state NAACP. Read full AP article.

• House Bill 1291: Racial Justice Act

In a speech at NC People of Color Justice and Unity Legislative Day in Raleigh, Rev. Barber gave a speech asking "When Will We Say Enough to Racial Injustice and Prosecutorial Misconduct?" Read the whole speech.

Spurred by the recent release of three black men from death row, a group of NAACP members, elected officials and released inmates are urging lawmakers to pass the North Carolina Racial Justice Act, which allows for reviews of racial bias in death penalty cases. If defendants can show their convictions or sentences were based on race, they can have their death sentences overturned. Advocates say the bill is desperately needed to ensure innocent people are not sent to death. "You can overturn a wrongful conviction, but you can't unpack a wrong grave," said the Rev. William Barber,  president of the state NAACP. Read full AP article.

• House Bill 1291: Racial Justice Act

In a speech at NC People of Color Justice and Unity Legislative Day in Raleigh, Rev. Barber gave a speech asking "When Will We Say Enough to Racial Injustice and Prosecutorial Misconduct?" Read the whole speech.

Voter Suppression Complaint Filed Against Women's Voices; U.S. Department of Justice Alerted

The North Carolina NAACP has filed a formal complaint of possible voter suppression against Women's Voices Women Vote, a D.C. nonprofit that was behind deceptive robo-calls to state residents in advance of the May 6 primary.

"When you mess with the right to vote, you're messing with everything that is fundamental in our democracy," said NC NAACP President William Barber II.

(Photo: NC NAACP Legal Redress Chair Al McSurely, Rev. Barber, and Bob Hall of Democracy North Carolina)

Media Coverage:

• NAACP Lodges Call Complaint: Group Wants Investigation of Automated Phone Campaign (News and Observer)
• Was Clinton Campaign Targeting Black Voters With Deceptive Calls (Art Levine, Huffington Post)
• Institute for Southern Studies blog (includes copies of the complaint)

Know Your Voting Rights...And Let Your Voice Be Heard!

You have the right to register and vote at an Early Voting site in your county, but only during the Early Voting period
·    If you are 17 but will be 18 on November 4, you can vote in the May Primary
·    If you are an ex-felon and have finished all parts of your sentence (including probation), you can register to vote like any other citizen.
·    If you register as Unaffiliated (Independent), you can vote in either the Democratic or Republican primary.  Tell the poll worker which party's ballot you want.
·    You have the right to bring someone to assist you when you vote or to ask for help from an elections official.
·    If your name is not on the rolls or you have a problem at the polls, ask for a provisional ballot and ask how to learn if your ballot counted.

If NC GOP Airs Race-Baiting Ad, NC NAACP Will Consider Direct Action; Rev. Barber's Letter to NC Republican Chairman

Rev. William Barber, President of the NC NAACP, called for the removal of a race-baiting political ad by the NC Republican Party. If the NC GOP ignores the pleas of Senator John McCain and the national Republican Party and runs the ad, the NC NAACP will consider direct action.

The State NAACP leadership is consulting with National NAACP leadership about the nature of a direct action campaign. Rev. William Barber said:  “We must put a stop to this kind of media-driven election distortion that is an obvious attempt to divide the state and the nation. Through the use of sound-bites taken out of context, the snippet messages play on false fears.  These subliminal racial innuendoes are today’s equivalent of the divisive tactics of 1898 that led to the destruction of the Black-White fusion government in Wilmington.  We will not permit this to happen again. We shall move forward in 2008.”

See the full statement and links to media coverage on Rev. Barber's blog. Below you will find Rev. Barber's letter to NC Republican Chairman Linda Daves.

Announcing Voter Empowerment, Protection, Registration, Education, and Participation Plan

Related News Coverage: NCCU Students Rally for Voting (News17.com, with video) 

On the 40th Anniversary of the assassination of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., the NC NAACP State Conference announced a statewide Voter Registration, Education, Mobilization and Protection initiative kick-off.  Following the culmination of the successful second annual Historic Thousands on Jones Street, HK on J 2: the People’s General Assembly, this effort springboards one of the most important foundations of the civil rights movement.