Civil Rights Leaders From 3 States Host Anchorage Workshop and Convention

Civil rights leaders from Alaska, Oregon and Washington gathered in Anchorage in September 2024 for the NAACP Alaska Oregon Washington State Area Conference annual convention, a weekend of workshops and keynotes on the University of Alaska Anchorage campus focused on the fight ahead.

Training for the Fight Ahead

The convention opened with a reception Friday night. On Saturday, members moved through a series of workshops on how the organization is structured and how to train the next wave of members and leaders. Conference President Sheley Secrest told Alaska’s News Source the goal was to prepare for what comes next, with a heavy focus on getting volunteers out across every neighborhood to turn out the Black vote ahead of the 2024 presidential election.

Passing the Torch to the Next Generation

A theme that ran through the day was succession: training young people to carry the civil rights movement forward, while opening the door to people who are not yet members. Cheryl Cox Williams, President of the NAACP Anchorage Branch, spoke about the energy young leaders bring and how they can take on today’s challenges. In one of her presentations she described how the Anchorage branch engages Black Alaskans on health, voting, education, economics, public safety and the future of the next generation.

We train on what do we need to do for the fight ahead? (Sheley Secrest, to Alaska’s News Source)

Alaska’s News Source covered the convention. You can read its report and watch its video coverage at alaskasnewssource.com.

Additional Resources

• Alaska’s News Source: Civil rights leaders from 3 states in Anchorage
• University of Alaska Anchorage
• NAACP national