Celebrating NAACP Legacy While Advocating for Systemic Change

The National Black Caucus of the Green Party of the United States

https://www.blackcaucusgreens.org

For Immediate Release:

Monday February 12, 2024

Contact information:

Darryl! LC Moch, Co-Chair, NBC, [email protected] 678-592-8949

Philena Farley, Co-Chair, NBC, [email protected] 614-859-9147

Celebrating NAACP Legacy While Advocating for Systemic Change

On NAACP's Founders Day, the National Black Caucus (NBC) commemorates the historic accomplishments of the NAACP in advocating for civil rights and social justice for Black communities in the United States. We recognize and appreciate the tireless efforts of past and present NAACP leaders who have paved the way for progress.

However, we also recognize that the NAACP's current political approach does not align with the needs of our communities, particularly regarding economic and environmental justice. We are concerned about the NAACP's focus on partisan voter mobilization, particularly when many Democratic-run districts, where Black communities reside, continue to face environmental racism and the lack of significant economic equity.

NBC Co-Chair Philena Farley questions the NAACP's motives by stating, "While they rightly call for voting rights protections, their pushback against potential reforms like ranked-choice voting is very hypocritical. Historically, ranked-choice voting has increased minority participation and voter turnout."

Law professor Steven John Mulroy, in a 2021 RealClear Politics article, explains how ranked-choice voting positively impacts minority candidates. Mulroy states, "We saw such skepticism in the run-up to the recent New York City Democratic primary election for city offices (which, in deep blue New York, is a decisive election round). Black candidate Eric Adams, the eventual mayoral primary winner, made the “depressed turnout” argument . City Council incumbents from the black, Latino and Asian Caucus unsuccessfully sued to block RCV’s implementation and tried to legislate a delay . Both the New York NAACP (before the election) and the Rev. Al Sharpton’s National Action Network (after the election) expressed opposition."

NBC Co-Chair Darryl! Moch highlights the environmental disparities faced by Black communities. In his words, "Black communities bear the brunt of pollution and climate change, yet the NAACP's 'Get Out to Vote' campaign for the Democrats, often aligned with fossil fuels, raises questions about their commitment to environmental justice."

The late Bruce Dixon, co-founder of the Black Agenda Report and previous co-chair of the Georgia Green Party, criticized the national leadership of the NAACP in 2009, pointing out the contrast between local chapters and corporate control. Dixon stated, "With the Freedom Movement over and the struggle against Jim Crow past, the NAACP's national leadership lost its way in the eighties and nineties... and by the dawn of the twenty-first century, corporate America was very much in charge at the national NAACP in the persons of black corporate execs." Dixon passed away on June 28, 2019, surrounded by his family in Atlanta, Georgia.

The case of Colia Clark exemplifies the disconnect between the NAACP's stated values and their political strategies. Despite her long history of activism, including work as a field secretary alongside renowned figures like Medgar Evers, Clark's candidacies for the Green Party were not endorsed by the organization. Clark, who ran for the United States Senate in New York in 2010 and 2012, passed away on November 4, 2022, in New York.

The NBC challenges the NAACP to transcend corporate-controlled party politics and embrace a broader vision of progress. We firmly believe that true representation requires supporting Black candidates who align with principles of environmental and social justice, free from corruption imposed by a select few. Together, we can build a more inclusive movement for change, empowering Black communities to lead the way towards a more just and sustainable future.

More Information:

NAACP Founders Day

NAACP head Dukes slams ranked choice voting, urges overhaul of Elections board

Ranked-Choice Voting Increased Minority Candidates' Chances

NAACP - Environmental & Climate Justice

Salute' Bruce Dixon

Colia Clark 1940 – 2022

Black Agenda Report - The Two NAACPs and a Century of Struggle

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