Description of the Role and Importance of the NAACP - Research Paper Example

of the Role and Importance of the NAACP BY YOU YOUR SCHOOL HERE HERE of the role and importance of the NAACP Introduction The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, or NAACP, provides considerable social benefit through a variety of advocacy, charity, and social programs. The organization has contributed to many changes in advancing the interests of African-Americans and a variety of other black citizens at the international level. The Association works directly with global governmental leadership, supports and sponsors a variety of youth-based social programs, and develops a number of public relations campaigns designed to sway the social consciousness to favor adopting new values relating to the African-American or international black interests. This paper describes the NAACP influence in the development of new legislation, some of its social programs, defines its sponsorship role in various advocacy efforts, and also its influence in changing youth and labor laws that benefit not only black citizens, but general society as well. History of the NAACP A riot which occurred in 1908 in Springfield, Illinois, the hometown of former President Abraham Lincoln, sparked social outcry about the ongoing victimization and violence against blacks. After these events, two notable white liberals that were direct descendents of individuals involved in the abolitionist movement, Oswald Garrison Villard and Mary White Ovington, coordinated a meeting to discuss this violence and prejudice in order to discuss matters of improving racial justice (africanaonline.com, 2009). There were sixty people in attendance to this meeting call and, interestingly, only seven of these individuals were actually African-American (africanaonline.com). From these discussions, the NAACP was founded with a mission to secure African-American rights by securing their liberties protected by the 13th – 15th amendments of the U.S. Constitution. These amendments guaranteed slavery’s abolition and equal protection under American law. Shortly thereafter, the NAACP selected its headquarters to be based in New York and began organizing new members and coordinating research projects that are still ongoing today in favor of securing African-American needs. The NAACP has been an advocacy group working closely with public figures such as Martin Luther King, Jr. and has been integral in many social change policies and legislative improvements to advance this social groups’ needs, careers, and status position in American society. The efforts of the NAACP have paved the way for equal opportunity and other important black liberation movements. The association describes itself this way: “For nearly one hundred years, it has been the talent and tenacity of NAACP members that has saved lives and changed many negative aspects of American society” (naacp.com, 2009, p.1). The role of the NAACP The group, today, fights to ensure that African-American voices are not ignored and acts as a champion for improving fair dealings with black citizens domestically and internationally. The role of the NAACP is to improve the socio-economic status of disadvantaged black citizens and challenge governments to impose new legislation that improves African-American position in society. The group aims, as an advocacy and public administration group, to gain social support for its many causes, many of which are not solely devoted to the colored agenda, to promote concepts such as workplace diversity, social unity, and racial tolerance. The NAACP is important as it stands as a cultural-based administrative group that uses non-violent protest when it perceives that a disadvantaged African-American group is receiving unfair treatment in direct proportion to the rest of global society. It stands for concepts such as integrity and attempts to model these behaviors through carefully developed protests and social program development dealing with issues of racial friendship and social harmony. The organization brings attention to many different issues facing the disadvantaged and then uses its resources and influences to promote widespread change and adjust the social norm to better include African-American needs and values. An example of their non-violence standpoint and views on integrity through social persuasion can be offered by a quote from a notable leader of the association: “Our first victory in this country was ending lynch-mob justice. (Though) we never succeeded in passing law, we simply shamed the country into consensus” (Cose, 2009, p.9). This is often how the NAACP operates, by using media outlets and different information publications produced by the association to draw significant attention to their efforts or when situations arise in society where the African-American agenda is being tarnished or when victimization against this group occurs. Through rallying and various speech presentations, in conjunction with publicized media efforts, the NAACP makes itself known to many governmental and citizenry groups through ongoing pressure and group coordination that has somewhat of an in-your-face philosophy so as to promote change in the social order against disadvantaged groups. It is through these efforts that pressure is placed on Congressional constituent groups to ensure that the African-American needs are represented sufficiently in law-making and to drive a general change of mass social group opinion about black citizens. Unlike other organizations that often rely on exerting similar social and governmental pressures by writing documents to Congressional leaders, the NAACP is much more involved at the interpersonal level and the association promotes its staff to have the same interaction with the majority of their most important issues. The association believes that “investing in stoking outrage in the country taps into the social sense of injustice and then focuses this energy on developing better policy solutions” (Ewers, 2008, p.16). Recent Developments of the NAACP The NAACP launched a public awareness campaign known as the Madison Avenue Project, dealing with discrimination in the marketing and advertising industry. The NAACP reinforces that there is a significant under-representation of African-Americans in this industry that causes problems with diversity in media and product advertisements. Offers one associate of Mehri & Skalet (an advertising firm), “If ad agencies were more inclusive, they could take advantage of a broad ranging diversity in talent and greater creativity” (Holmes, 2010, p.108). The NAACP uses their influence to draw professional attention to their groups’ limited exposure in product advertising and as employees of this highly-profitable industry. Efforts such as these help to promote products designed to benefit African-American needs, giving black consumers more options available to benefit their personal lifestyles. It also secures more executive or high-paying positions in a rewarding industry by promoting the importance of equal opportunities in advertising. At the governmental level, the NAACP has been a major supporter of approving the new national health care bill designed to extend coverage to the 32 million people (not all African-American) without health insurance and remove the imbalance in professional health care that afflicts a wide variety of ethnic minority groups (naacp.org, 2009). NAACP support for this bill, which was just recently enacted into law by President Obama, helped to change legislators’ minds about the health care needs of the African-American citizen to ensure that the new law was passed and included provisions that would secure the health and well-being of the association’s constituency. The NAACP was also integral in fighting for the compensatory rights of the current employed by urging government to approve ongoing extensions of unemployment benefits to those in need. Statistics indicate that jobless African-Americans make up the largest percentage of all Americans currently without adequate employment. In January of 2010, this figure had the African-American jobless rate at 16.5 percent, compared to the average of 9.7 percent nationwide (naacp.org, 2009). By promoting its representatives and supporters to continue to exert pressure on governmental leadership, they act as a driving force to ensure that larger problems in the economy do not develop from individuals in desperate need of further unemployment assistance. In relation to helping youths become more active in advocacy for NAACP values, the association recently partnered with AT&T, YouTube, Best Buy, Apple Inc., and other professional partners, to sponsor the What’s Your Issue? – Film Your Issue Initiative and Competition to help youths between the ages of 14 and 24 to develop unique solutions to different high-importance issues. This contest involved categories ranging from national security to human rights, offering them an opportunity to have their voices heard by submitting videos with their concerns and recommendations about their chosen issue. Sponsorship of activities such as this give the organization more exposure with other business and non-profit organizations and also give young people a chance to put a variety of issues that affect them at the economic or social level on their consciousness. Therefore, the NAACP should be considered as a group that inspires the next generation to be more proactive and interactive with a variety of national issues as a model of leadership as they mature into adulthood, career or even government. Another important role of the NAACP is to call national attention to the efforts of previous civil rights activists and humanitarians that achieved great strides in advancing the needs of a better, more diversified society. The NAACP sponsored the development of a memorial garden with a plaque in dedication of Dorothy Parker, a well-known African-American writer, humorist and civil rights sponsor (naacp.org, 2009). The association recognizes that such memorials serve the aesthetic needs of general society by adding to civil engineering concepts that improve the landscape and help remind people of pioneers in advancing human rights. Their dedication to these efforts have lasting benefit on future generations and help important figures to leave their permanent mark on society so that others might reflect on their contributions and, in turn, perhaps come to understand themselves and what created the culture they currently live within. Conclusion The NAACP has been a pioneering organization that has helped to inspire generations of African-Americans and other ethnic groups to work toward creating a better tomorrow. The key findings of research show the NAACP to be one of the most influential groups in the United States that has considerable following in other countries as well. Recent developments in Haiti led to the creation of a support fund designed to help on-the-ground workers with their relief efforts. This shows the large-scale support that the NAACP has in creating not only a better America, but a better social environment for all disadvantaged citizens at the global level. This organization contributes to the field of public administration as the research uncovered a very diverse and active association of professionals and policy experts that never give up their ongoing fight to improve the social order and change age-old prejudices into a better focus on diversity and social unity. The efforts of the NAACP could be benchmarked by other struggling organizations that find limited success in achieving their goals by modeling some of the same media-focused and somewhat confrontational philosophies that have brought so much positive gain to American society. Any practicing professional in the field of Public Administration could take inspiration from the NAACP and, perhaps, even consult with their knowledge leaders to help identify how to fill in gaps with policy creation. The organization’s proven track record for success speaks volumes for public administrators as an excellent tool for success in gaining social support. References Africanaonline.com. (2009). “National Association for the Advancement of Colored People”. Retrieved April 1, 2010 from http://www.africanaonline.com/orga_naacp.htm Cose, Ellis. (2009). “A New Mission for the NAACP; The youngest president in association history leads at a time when many question the body’s very necessity”, Newsweek, 153(9). Ewers, Justin. (2008). “Leading the New Fight for Civil Rights”, U.S. News and World Report, Washington. 145(7), p.16. Holmes, Tamara E. (2010). “The Boomerang Effect”, Black Enterprise, New York. 40(7), pp.108-110. Naacp.org. (2009). “2010 What’s Your Issue? – Film Your Issue Competition”. Retrieved April 1, 2010 from http://www.naacp.org/youth/college/index.htm Naacp.org. (2009). “Dorothy Parker”. Retrieved March 31, 2010 from http://www.naacp.org/about/history/dparker/index.htm Naacp.org. (2009). “About the NAACP”. Retrieved April 1, 2010 from http://www.naacp.org/about/index.htm Naacp.org. (2009). “NAACP-Supported Bill Reforming our Nation’s Health Care System Passes the US House of Representatives, 219-212”. Retrieved April 2, 2010 from http://www.naacp.org/get-involved/activism/alerts/111thaa-2010-03-22/index.htm Naacp.org. (2009). “NAACP Supports Efforts to Extend Unemployment Benefits for Out-of-Work Americans”. Retrieved April 1, 2010 from http://www.naacp.org/get-involved/activism/alerts/111thaa-2010-02-23/index.htm Read More