Ms. Deana Wright - Mistress of Ceremonies
Rev. David Hart, III, Pastor of Sherman Avenue United Methodist Church
Delivered the evening's Invocation and the Benediction 
Greg Jones, NAACP Dane County Branch President and NAACP Wisconsin State Conference Vice President
Min. Wendell Harris, President NAACP Wisconsin State Conference and NAACP National Board of Directors Member
Dr. Vivian Larkin, NAACP ACT-SO Committee Co-Chair
William Franks, Jr. - NAACP Dane County Labor & Industry Chair
Valeria Davis-Humphrey - Introducing keynote speaker, John Nichols
2022 Keynote Speaker, John Nichols
Gwen Jones, 2022 Freedom Fund Committee Chair, Thanking the 2022 Freedom Fund Committee, Sponsors and Supporters
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NAACP of Dane County Branch 36AB
2022 Freedom Fund Dinner Highlights After a three year hiatus, the Dane County National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP Branch 36 B) convened its Annual Fund Raiser, “The Freedom Fund Dinner” in person. The NAACP is the oldest Civil Rights Organization in the Country, the NAACP’s Mission is to ensure the political, social and economic equality of all persons and to eliminate race based discrimination. The theme for each Freedom Fund Dinner originates at the National Level. This years theme was “Unity Is Power”. The Branch’s Freedom Fund Committee began meeting in July. The Committee, with input from the Membership and Executive Committee, determines the plan and execution for each Freedom Fund Dinner. Our Branch uses this event as the only fundraiser for the year. Consequently, our annual budget for funding all of the Branch’s actives comes from the Dinner. This year’s Committee consisted of our Chair, Gwen Jones, Valese Adams, Theola Carter, Valeria Davis - Humphrey, Rebekah Jones, Jewelline Wiggins, President, Greg Jones and yours truly. Deana Wright presided as our Mistress of Ceremonies. State Conference of Branches President and National Board Member, Wendell J. Harris, brought us greetings. Theola Carter, a perennial Freedom Fund Committee Member, led the audience in singing the Black National Anthem (Lift Every Voice and Sing). In keeping with this year’s theme our Keynote Speaker, Internationally and Nationally acclaimed author and journalist, John Nichols, addressed a gathering of more than 260 attendees at the Concourse Hotel. John reminded us of the significance of our theme throughout the course of his remarks. Valeria (Val) Davis-Humphrey, herself a legendary Wisconsin Journalist and a Freedom Fund Committee Member, introduced John Nichols, our Keynote Speaker. A preview of Nichols remarks and observations, were presented in an Op Ed piece he published in the October 26, 2022 Cap Times entitled “The NAACP’s advocacy for democracy is needed now more than ever”. Nichols states, “This mess that we’re in is serious. (Referring to the Traitorous, Seditious attempt to overthrow the results of the Presidential Election as we witnessed on January 6th). But that doesn’t mean there’s no way out of it.-- Founded in 1909 at a point when most Blacks Americans were denied the franchise, the NAACP made advocacy for democracy central to its mission from day one.W.E.B Du Bois, the scholar and activist who served as the founding editor of thee NAACP Journal, The Crisis, famously declared, “The question which you and I have to settle is this: can we envision and do we want a democracy where the rights of all citizens are equal?” Nichols reminds us that the Willie Horton style ads, originally conceived the the Presidential Campaign of Bush Senior versus Dukakis in 1998, resurrected itself in the Wisconsin Senatorial Campaign of Lt. Governor Mandela Barnes (the first Black candidate nominated by a major party for the U.S. Senate) versus Ron Johnson, serves as a reminder that we have a long way to go when it comes to creating an honest political discourse. He concludes by stating, “Thankfully, the NAACP keeps the faith, continuing its bold advocacy for voting rights, fair elections and and a democracy where the rights of all citizens are equal. A highlight of John Nichols presence was his willingness and enthusiasm in speaking with aspiring journalists from the Simpson Street Free Press immediately before the Dinner. Our Afro-Academic, Cultural, Technological and Scientific Olympics (ACT-SO) Chair, Frances Huntley-Cooper, Chair and her Committee once again allowed our young people to demonstrate high levels of accomplishment. Students who had earned Silver Medals at the County and National Level Competitions were recognized and congratulated. Of particular significance to this publication, some of thee work of our Labor and Industry Committee, which I Chair was highlighted. Notably, our mantra has been, as our National President and C.E.O. Derrick Johnson has stated, “the fights for labor rights and civil rights are once and the same. From the Civil War to the Civil Rights Movement, the struggle for equality is inseparable from the fight for worker dignity.” I thanked and publicly recognized our Committee and extended recognition to the Service Employees International Union (SEIU Healthcare) who were in attendance. I also acknowledged the support of my Statewide Union Federation, AFT-W which sponsored a Table for the Dinner. Because of the support of the Statewide Federation, eight (8) of our retired Local Officers, Stewards and Activists were able to participate in the event. Finally, we would like to thank our governmental corporate, institutional and community sponsors, advertisers and media supporters. Our Freedom Fund Dinner would not have been possible without the assistance and support of these entities. We are eternally grateful for the support Dane County organizations have given us. --William Franks, Jr. Chair NAACP Dane County Labor & Industry Committee |
ABOUT THIS EVENT
After a two-year Covid-19 hiatus, the NAACP Dane County branch annual fundraiser is back!
We are back because we know that together we can defeat:
We invite you to join us on October 29th at the dinner and we hope that you accept our invitation to become an NAACP member. With your support, we can make racial equity in Dane County a reality for all citizens.
Included in the price of each ticket is a one-year NAACP Dane County membership (or renewal).
We are back because we know that together we can defeat:
- those who shamelessly commit racist attacks against people of color,
- the political and environmental attacks against our communities, and
- the judicial attacks against women, their bodies, and their right to choose!
- We are back because we believe that UNITY IS POWER!
We invite you to join us on October 29th at the dinner and we hope that you accept our invitation to become an NAACP member. With your support, we can make racial equity in Dane County a reality for all citizens.
Included in the price of each ticket is a one-year NAACP Dane County membership (or renewal).
