In this Issue:
- 2018 President's Message
- Justice High School Fundraiser - January 6
- Membership Committee Annual Planning Meeting - January 7
- Criminal Justice Committee Meeting Reminder
- General Membership Meeting - January 13
- Annual Membership Dues
- VA State NAACP Advocacy Day - January 16
- Youth Council Meeting - January 20
- An Insiders View of NMAAHC - January 20
- NAACP Youth Tour NMAAHC - February 4
- Black History Month Program - February 24
- Thank You for Supporting the New Year's Eve Gala
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Fellow Members,
The new year marks a moment of renewed energy, renewed optimism, and a renewed sense of commitment. In 2017, we renewed our commitment to reconnecting with the community. In so doing, we hosted over a dozen community outreach events, such as the gubernatorial forum featuring Governor-elect Ralph Northam, Tom Perriello, and Lieutenant Governor-elect Justin Fairfax, among others. We also hosted a forum for the candidates running for School Board. In addition, we hosted several panel discussions featuring local community leaders on a wide range of topics such as criminal justice, teacher discrimination, and immigration. We also threw some fun-with-a-purpose events such as the Blue and Gold basketball game with Fairfax County Police Department officers playing opposite youth from across the county, a fish fry fundraiser, a Father’s Day brunch, and a New Year’s Eve gala - all of which were firsts for the branch. In addition, we had some notable achievements as result of our advocacy efforts, most significantly the changing of the name of J.E.B. Stuart High School to Justice High School, and the publishing of the branch’s first ever Criminal Justice Report card which graded local elected officials against our Criminal Justice Advocacy Agenda. We also started our Youth Council and our Young Adult Committee to help foster the next generation of leaders.
Needless to say, however, much work remains. Though Fairfax County is a great place to live and work, more needs to be done to address the disparity in how African Americans and Latinos are treated in the schools, criminal justice system, and job and housing markets, and Fairfax NAACP is up to the challenge. We will continue to hold our public leaders accountable by building on last year’s efforts, and expanding on those efforts when and where necessary.
This year also marks 100 years of the NAACP being in Fairfax County, when combined with the establishment of the Falls Church Branch NAACP. Even though the Fairfax branch received a separate charter during the 1944 restructuring, the link to its predecessor is undeniable and therefore demands recognition. To commemorate, we will host a Black History Program in February, and a speaker series throughout the year reflecting on the history of the civil rights efforts here in the county and Northern Virginia. Each program will have a different theme, starting with Women’s Role in the Civil Rights Movement in March, then The Struggle for Equal Education, African American Politicians in Fairfax, and The Role of the Black Church.
While 2017 was a remarkable year for the branch, 2018 promises to be even better. This year, we renew our commitment to strengthening our relationship with the black church, black fraternities and sororities, and other similar institutions that have historically served as centers of gravity for the civil rights movement. We recommit to working harder to improve the lives of
African Americans and other underrepresented minorities in Fairfax County and across the Commonwealth. We renew our commitment to being the leading civil rights organization in the area. Most importantly, in 2018, we renew our commitment to you.
That said, we humbly ask that you also recommit to supporting the branch. Advocacy is not a spectator sport, and we can only go as far as your support propels us. Take a moment to review the
missions of each of our committees
to see which one you might be most interested in lending a hand on - even if it’s just a few hours per month. Or
make a donation
today. Your generous donations go towards things like room reservations, equipment rental, Freedom of Information Requests, youth activities, scholarships, booking guests, and much more. Thank you for supporting the NAACP, and may your 2018 be prosperous.
Sincerely,
Kofi Annan
President, Fairfax County NAACP
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Justice High School Fundraiser
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You are invited to the kickoff for the fundraising campaign for JUSTICE HIGH SCHOOL, this Saturday, January 6, 2018, 2-4 PM!
Alison and Shane Oleson will host this fundraiser at their beautiful lakefront home in Lake Barcroft; the address is
6314 Crosswoods Circle, Falls Church, VA 22044
. Stuart alumnus and Oscar winning producer, Bruce Cohen, several elected officials, and other name change advocates and supporters will be there too.
R.S.V.P. to Sean Perryman at education@fairfaxnaacp.org.
As you know, on October 26, 2017 the Fairfax County School Board voted to change the name of J.E.B. Stuart High School to Justice High School. After more than two years of advocacy and community input, the School Board agreed that there was a compelling need to change the name of J.E.B. Stuart High School to one that better reflects Fairfax County values of diversity and inclusion. This new name will honor Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall; civil right leader Barbara Rose Johns; and local WW II hero COL. Louis G. Mendez, Jr.
Members of the community have committed to raise private support to help pay for costs associated with the name change, and to show our support for the meaning behind the change -- justice and equity. While inflated initial cost estimates for renaming the school have come down substantially, the revised estimate is approximately $400,000.
Please join us January 6! The organizers would love to be able to track donations from this event, so please plan to donate on January 6. Fairfax County Public Schools has set up an electronic donation portal; laptops and forms will be available at the fundraiser, and checks made out to FCPS will also be accepted. If you cannot be there in person, please consider donating from home at:
https://www.fcps.edu/ justice
.
Suggested donation levels:
$50 -- Friend
$100 -- Supporter
$200 -- Donor
$250 -- Major Donor
$500 -- Principal Donor
Thank you on behalf of the Justice High School Fundraiser Host Committee Members,
Bruce Cohen, Debbie Ratliff, George Waters, Jill and Tim Beres, Stephen Spitz, Jody and Jake McKitrick, Alison and Shane Oleson, Deborah Danker, David Hardison, Rodney Green, Kristin Cabral, and Jessica Swanson.
Justice for All!
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Membership Committee
Annual Planning Meeting
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The Membership Committee's annual planning meeting will convene
Sunday, January 7, 2018, at 1:30 PM at BoneFish Grill, located at 5920 Kingstowne Center, Alexandria, VA 22315
.
We will meet and break bread as we plan for an awesome 2018! We welcome chapter members who are interested in becoming members of the committee as well as other members who just want to learn more about who we are and what we do.
Hope to see you there!
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Criminal Justice Committee
Meeting Reminder
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The Criminal Justice Committee meets the third Tuesday of every month at 7 PM. Once per quarter, there will be an in-person meeting and the remainder will be via conference call.
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General Membership Meeting
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Join us for our monthly meeting on Saturday, January 13 from 10 AM-Noon at the Kings Park Library (in Supervisor Cook's meeting room), located at 9000 Burke Lake Road, Burke, VA.
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NAACP Membership Dues -
An Annual Obligation
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This is just a friendly reminder to those who pay annual membership dues to belong to the NAACP. We rely on those dues payments to help us meet our financial obligations, both at the local, state, and national level. Your contributions and engagement are important to us. Please take a moment to check your membership card and see if it’s time to update your dues contribution.
Payment is simple. The following link will bring you to our
Fairfax County NAACP
web site, where you can update your membership information and then pay via PayPal. Please also consider making a donation when you remit your dues payment.
We very much appreciate your ongoing support and look forward to working with you in the coming year.
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Virginia State Conference NAACP Lobby Day
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If interested in reserving a charter bus to attend Lobby Day,
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Tickets are also available for the
on January 11, in Richmond,
organized by the Area 4 NAACP.
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An Insider's View of the NMAAHC
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An Insider’s View of the National Museum of African American History and Culture
Dr. Johari Rashad
Saturday, January 20, 1 PM
Kings Park Library Meeting Room
The Fairfax City and Springfield-Annandale branches of AAUW, along with the Fairfax County Public Library, will sponsor a presentation on January 20 focused on the newest national museum on the Mall, The National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC).
The meeting will feature docent and museum and history expert, Dr. Johari Rashad, and is open to the public. Dr. Rashad will discuss the purpose of the museum, its design, the training of docents, the process of raising money and collecting artifacts, the museum’s impact on visitors, its ongoing value and purpose, and her memorable experiences as docent. Our speaker earned her Ph.D. from Howard University in Organizational Communications and has spent her career working in career development and employee training. Dr. Rashad’s presentation will present a unique experience for those of us living in the DC area: we who have visited NMAAHC will be able to place our experiences in context. And those who have yet to secure tickets to the museum will have added incentive to do so.
You are encouraged to bring friends and neighbors to take advantage of this unique opportunity. For those interested in joining AAUW, a discount will be available to new and lapsed AAUW members.
Inclement weather: If the Kings Park Library (KPL) is closed (703-978-5600) or if FCPS closes schools, the meeting is canceled. If the KPL is open and FCPS schools (activities) open late, the program will be held.
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The Youth Council will meet Saturday, January 20, at 10 AM, at First Baptist Church of Vienna, 450 Orchard Street NW, Vienna, VA 22180.
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Black History Month Celebration
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We Came, We Celebrated,
We Ushered in 2018
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Thank you for supporting our inaugural
New Year's Eve Gala!
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Have you joined the movement?
Supporting Fairfax County NAACP makes a direct and positive impact in our community.
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Membership in the NAACP is just $30 a year
.
With so many issues facing our children and our community, we need your support. Your donations support our branch's advocacy, community programs, and operations. Our members spend countless hours fighting injustices. We could do so much more with your assistance. Therefore, we strongly encourage you to join along with donating to our branch.
Please Join and Donate TODAY!
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Fairfax NAACP Officers and Committee Chairs
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Officers:
President
Kofi Annan
First Vice President
Karen Campblin
Second Vice President
Evelyn Spain
Third Vice President
Dr. Iris Hunter
Treasurer
Michelle Leete
Secretary
Michael O’Brien
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Committee Chairs:
Armed Services and Veterans Affairs
Niki Zimmerman
Communications, Press, and Publicity
Mary Supley Foxworth
Community Involvement
Evelyn Spain
Criminal Justice
Kofi Annan
Economic Development
Niki Zimmerman
Education
Sean Perryman
Freedom Fund (Fundraising)
Michelle Leete and Evelyn Spain
Health
Linda Shealey Cook
Legal Redress
Dr. Lawrence Bussey
Membership
Dr. Iris Hunter
Political Action
Young Adult
Christina Cherry
Youth Council
Shareem Annan
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Because Freedom isn't Free
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