TBE#31 -National Urban League Conference Unveils Centennial Empowerment Plan

To Be Equal#31
August 5, 2009
National Urban League Conference Unveils Centennial Empowerment Plan
 
 
Marc H. Morial                                                 
President and CEO
National Urban League
 
 
The National Urban League's 2009 conference in Chicago last week was an outstanding success. More than 5,000 attendees flocked to "the city of broad shoulders," to add their voices and show their support for the Urban League movement now in its 99th year.   In the next few weeks in this space, I will review some of the many conference highlights.   Today, I want to summarize the State of the Urban League Address which I delivered on the evening of July 29th before an overflow audience at Chicago's historic Apostolic Church of God.  
First of all, I was proud to report that the state of the National Urban League is strong.   Against the dark storm clouds and hurricane force winds of the economic recession, our more than 100 affiliates served over 2 million people last year – a 50% increase over the previous year and a quadrupling of service to children and young people.   This is significant for two reasons.   First, it shows that despite the progress we have made in the movement for equal opportunity, there are still many unmet needs across the land and the National Urban League is rising to meet those needs.   And second, as the Urban League prepares for our centennial celebration in 2010, our growing strength puts us in the best position to take our empowerment agenda to the next level.   
What does that mean?   It means that while the civil rights struggle is not over, we must now lead beyond the narrow confines of civil rights for African Americans to speak for every American – Black, White, Latino, Asian, Native American – who shares our vision of equality and justice for all. It means we must combine personal responsibility with public policies that ensure that the American Dream is possible for everyone who is willing to work hard and play by the rules.   And it means that before we can take the first step on our path to power, we must have a roadmap, a vision and a plan.
In my speech I laid out The National Urban League's four-point Centennial Empowerment Plan for the year 2025.
First, by the year 2025, we want to make sure that every American child is ready for college, ready for work and ready for life.  
Second, we call on the nation to ensure that every American has access to a decent job with a living wage.  
Third, we must ensure that every American is free from barriers to safe, decent, affordable and energy efficient housing…at fair terms.  
Fourth, we must make sure that every American has access to quality and affordable health care solutions.
Finally, our path to power is a path of shared responsibility.   Government alone or individuals alone can't get the job done.   We must work together.   The National Urban League is changing to meet this new reality.   And empowerment is our most important product.  
I want to again thank Chicago Urban League president Cheryle Jackson and the city of Chicago for helping make this year's conference the best ever.  
To view the entire speech and other conference highlights, log on to www.nul.og.
 
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31TBE 8/5/09 ▪ 120 Wall Street ▪ New York , NY 10005 ▪ (212) 558-5300 ▪ WWW.NUL.ORG

 

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