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111-632: Barry Clayton Black (born November 1, 1948) is the 62nd chaplain of the United States Senate . He began serving as Senate chaplain on June 27, 2003, becoming the first African American and first Seventh-day Adventist to hold the office. Black served for over 27 years in the United States Navy Chaplain Corps , rising to the rank of rear admiral (upper half) and ending his career as the Chief of Chaplains of

222-787: A C-SPAN "public affairs on the web" response to the question of constitutional challenges noted that: In 1983, the Supreme Court upheld the practice of having an official chaplain as deeply ingrained in the history and tradition of this country. They stated the ultimate authority for the position lies in the Constitution which states that the House and Senate may each choose their officers, with no restrictions on what kind of officers may be chosen. Using that authority, both chambers have chosen to continue to elect an officer to act as Chaplain. In addition to court cases, controversy regarding

333-570: A Doctorate of Ministry and a Ph.D. in psychology . In 2004, he also received an honorary Doctorate of Divinity degree from La Sierra University . Black's autobiography, From the Hood to the Hill , was published in 2006. He has explained its title as follows: One of the reasons why I call my book From the Hood to the Hill is because we grew up in the hood. We grew up in the toxic pathology of an inner city ghetto . There were prostitutes on

444-878: A rear admiral , he received the Navy Distinguished Service Medal , the Legion of Merit Medal , the Defense Meritorious Service Medal twice, the Meritorious Service Medal twice, the Navy Commendation Medal twice, the Marine Corps Commendation Medal , and numerous unit awards, campaign, and service medals. On June 27, 2003, Black was chosen as the 62nd chaplain of the United States Senate. He began

555-686: A forerunner to the NAACP. On May 30, 1909, the Niagara Movement conference took place at New York City's Henry Street Settlement House; they created an organization of more than 40, identifying as the National Negro Committee . Among other founding members were Lillian Wald , a nurse who had founded the Henry Street Settlement where the conference took place. Du Bois played a key role in organizing

666-420: A great honor." Black is a native of Baltimore, Maryland . His mother was a domestic and his father was a long-distance truck driver "and something of a nomad". He is one of eight children. He is married to Brenda Black, née Pearsall, of St. Petersburg, Florida . They have three sons: Barry II, Brendan, and Bradford. Black is a Seventh-day Adventist and vegetarian . He has said, "that is not something that

777-455: A lawyer and clergyman, was elected his successor. In the 1990s, the NAACP ran into debt. The dismissal of two leading officials further added to the picture of an organization in deep crisis. After such, Rupert Richardson began her term as president of the NAACP in 1992. In 1993, the NAACP's Board of Directors narrowly selected Reverend Benjamin Chavis over Reverend Jesse Jackson to fill

888-555: A long time, and the longer I live, the more convincing proofs I see of this truth: that God Governs in the affairs of men. And if a sparrow cannot fall to the ground without his notice, is it probable that an empire can rise without his aid? We have been assured, Sir, in the sacred writings, that ‘except the Lord build the House they labour in vain that build it.’ I firmly believe this; and I also believe that without his concurring aid we shall succeed in this political building no better, than

999-466: A major get-out-the-vote offensive in the 2000 U.S. presidential elections . 10.5 million African Americans cast their ballots in the election; this was one million more than four years before. The NAACP's effort was credited by observers as playing a significant role in Democrat Al Gore 's winning several states where the election was close, such as Pennsylvania and Michigan. During

1110-483: A new constitution in 1890. Through 1908, Southern legislatures, dominated by white Southern Democrats , ratified new constitutions and laws creating barriers to voter registration and more complex election rules. In practice, this and the Lily-white movement caused the exclusion of most blacks and many poor whites from the political system in southern states. Black voter registration and turnout dropped markedly in

1221-593: A number of court cases. According to "House and Senate Chaplains: An Overview," an official 2011 CRS report created by the Congressional Research Service for "Members and Committees of Congress": The constitutionality of legislative chaplains was upheld in 1983 by the Supreme Court ( Marsh v. Chambers , 463 U.S. 783, related to chaplains in the Nebraska Legislature) on the grounds of precedent and tradition. The Court cited

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1332-509: A prayer or coordinating the delivery of the prayer by guest chaplains recommended by members of the Senate. The chaplain's prayer is referred to as "one of the Senate's most enduring traditions" in the official Senate pamphlet "Traditions of the U.S. Senate." The Senate chaplain is also responsible for "hosting" guest chaplains on the day they deliver prayers. According to the U.S. Senate website, these guest chaplains have represented "many of

1443-444: A result, several cities refused to allow the film to open. The NAACP began to lead lawsuits targeting disfranchisement and racial segregation early in its history. It played a significant part in the challenge of Guinn v. United States (1915) to Oklahoma 's discriminatory grandfather clause , which effectively disenfranchised most black citizens while exempting many whites from certain voter registration requirements. It persuaded

1554-490: A subject of study and debate over the centuries. Opponents have argued that it violates the separation of church-and-state and proponents have argued, among other factors, that the same early legislators who wrote the United States Constitution and its Bill of Rights , from which the position of "non-establishment" and church and state separation is derived, were the same ones who approved and appointed

1665-469: A time with limited resources and internal conflict and disbanded in 1910. Seven of the members of the Niagara Movement joined the Board of Directors of the NAACP, founded in 1909. Although both organizations shared membership and overlapped for a time, the Niagara Movement was a separate organization. Historically, it is considered to have had a more radical platform than the NAACP. The Niagara Movement

1776-423: A vacancy occurs, the Senate chooses a new chaplain through a vote on the adoption of a resolution. According to a 2011 Congressional Research Service congressional report, "The three most recent Senate candidates for chaplain have been nominated by a bipartisan search committee that examined possible applicants. This method has not always been Senate practice and may differ from any future nomination." Ultimately, it

1887-529: A volunteer liaison in each Senate office. While the annual salary for the first Senate chaplains was $ 500, the salary is now set as a Level IV position in the Executive Schedule, which is $ 155,500.00 in 2011. The total annual budget for the office, including salaries and expenses, is $ 415,000 as of 2011. Guest chaplains have been selected to deliver occasional prayers to open Senate sessions "for many decades." In 1948 Wilmina Rowland Smith became

1998-475: A woman president, except on a temporary basis, and there have been calls to name one. Lorraine C. Miller served as interim president after Benjamin Jealous stepped down. Maya Wiley was rumored to be in line for the position in 2013, but Cornell William Brooks was selected. Departments within the NAACP govern areas of action. Local chapters are supported by the "Branch and Field Services" department and

2109-529: A year while concurrently serving in non-congressional positions. Also, early Senate and House chaplains, although elected separately by their respected chambers, shared Congressional responsibilities by alternating service in the House and Senate on a weekly basis, also conducting Sunday worship for the Washington, D.C. community in the House Chamber on an alternating basis. Clergymen have served in

2220-615: Is a test of fellowship in my church. I'm a vegetarian because I grew up that way and I believe it's a rather healthy lifestyle." Divisions Chaplain of the United States Senate Chaplains are elected as individuals and not as representatives of any religious community, body, or organization. As of 2017, all Senate chaplains have belonged to various denominations of Christianity , though there are no restrictions against members of any religion or faith group. Guest chaplains, recommended by senators to deliver

2331-399: Is the "leadership" of the Senate that can decide on what names can be put forth as nominations. The report also notes that "The post of chaplain to the Senate has generally not been subject to party considerations." The question of the constitutionality of the position of the Senate chaplain (as well as that of the House chaplain, and at times, that of military chaplains as well), has been

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2442-472: Is to advance health care for minorities through public policy initiatives and education. As of 2007 , the NAACP had approximately 425,000 paying and non-paying members. The NAACP's non-current records are housed at the Library of Congress , which has served as the organization's official repository since 1964. The records held there comprise approximately five million items spanning the NAACP's history from

2553-575: The Capitol Prayer Room , located near the Capitol Rotunda . Dedicated in 1955, there are no worship services held in the room, nor is it normally open to the public. Instead, as described by Sam Rayburn during the room's dedication, it is a place for members "who want to be alone with their God." The Senate chaplain has a staff that includes a Chief-of-Staff, Director of Communications, and Executive Assistant, and works with

2664-714: The Dyer Anti-Lynching Bill . In alliance with the American Federation of Labor , the NAACP led the successful fight to prevent the nomination of John Johnston Parker to the Supreme Court, based on his support for denying the vote to blacks and his anti-labor rulings. It organized legal support for the Scottsboro Boys . The NAACP lost most of the internecine battles with the Communist Party and International Labor Defense over

2775-668: The Supreme Court of the United States to rule in Buchanan v. Warley in 1917 that state and local governments cannot officially segregate African Americans into separate residential districts. The Court's opinion reflected the jurisprudence of property rights and freedom of contract as embodied in the earlier precedent it established in Lochner v. New York . It also played a role in desegregating recreational activities via

2886-745: The Voting Rights Act of 1965 , which provided for protection of the franchise, with a role for federal oversight and administrators in places where voter turnout was historically low. Under its anti-desegregation director J. Edgar Hoover , the FBI 's COINTELPRO program targeted civil rights groups, including the NAACP, for infiltration, disruption and discreditation. Kivie Kaplan became NAACP President in 1966. After his death in 1975, scientist W. Montague Cobb took over until 1982. Roy Wilkins retired as executive director in 1977, and Benjamin Hooks ,

2997-418: The gold standard , and anti-imperialism . Storey consistently and aggressively championed civil rights , not only for blacks but also for Native Americans and immigrants (he opposed immigration restrictions). Du Bois continued to play a pivotal leadership role in the organization, serving as editor of the association's magazine, The Crisis , which had a circulation of more than 30,000. The Crisis

3108-568: The " separate but equal " doctrine announced by the Supreme Court's decision in Plessy v. Ferguson . The NAACP's Baltimore chapter, under president Lillie Mae Carroll Jackson , challenged segregation in Maryland state professional schools by supporting the 1935 Murray v. Pearson case argued by Marshall. Houston's victory in Missouri ex rel. Gaines v. Canada (1938) led to the formation of

3219-553: The "Youth and College" department. The "Legal" department focuses on court cases of broad application to minorities, such as systematic discrimination in employment, government, or education. The Washington, D.C. , bureau is responsible for lobbying the U.S. government, and the Education Department works to improve public education at the local, state, and federal levels. The goal of the Health Division

3330-530: The "inaugural prayer breakfast" and the benediction at the "inaugural luncheon" for President Barack Obama . In a January 2011 post on "On Watch in Washington," the chaplain of the Senate as well as the chaplain of the United States House of Representatives were included as part of "Obama's Spiritual Cabinet." Along with the House chaplain, the Senate chaplain is responsible for overseeing

3441-462: The 2000 presidential election, Lee Alcorn , president of the Dallas NAACP branch, criticized Al Gore's selection of Senator Joe Lieberman for his vice-presidential candidate because Lieberman was Jewish. On a gospel talk radio show on station KHVN , Alcorn stated, "If we get a Jew person, then what I'm wondering is, I mean, what is this movement for, you know? Does it have anything to do with

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3552-660: The Builders of Babel . . . I therefore beg leave to move— that henceforth prayers imploring the assistance of Heaven, and its blessings on our deliberations, be held in this Assembly every morning before we proceed to business, and that one or more of the Clergy of this City be requested to officiate in that Service.” Shortly after the Senate first convened in April 1789 in New York City, one of its "first orders of business"

3663-569: The Capitol and its grounds for twelve months. The current chaplain, the 62nd chaplain of the United States Senate, Barry C. Black, is the first African-American and the first Seventh-day Adventist to serve in the position. He previously served as Chief of Chaplains of the United States Navy , holding the rank of Rear Admiral . Although some news reports note that Black is the "first military chaplain" to serve as Senate Chaplain,

3774-639: The Civil Rights Movement by pressing for civil rights legislation. The March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom took place on August 28, 1963. That fall, President John F. Kennedy sent a civil rights bill to Congress before he was assassinated. President Lyndon B. Johnson worked hard to persuade Congress to pass a civil rights bill aimed at ending racial discrimination in employment, education and public accommodations, and succeeded in gaining passage in July 1964. He followed that with passage of

3885-865: The Civil Rights Movement while it was barred from Alabama. New organizations such as the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC, in 1957) and the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC, in 1960) rose up with different approaches to activism. Rather than relying on litigation and legislation, these newer groups employed direct action and mass mobilization to advance the rights of African Americans. Roy Wilkins , NAACP's executive director, clashed repeatedly with Martin Luther King ;Jr. and other civil rights leaders over questions of strategy and leadership within

3996-780: The Episcopalians served two terms; three of the Methodists served twice and one thrice; and one each of the Presbyterians and Baptists served twice. NAACP The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People ( NAACP ) is an American civil rights organization formed in 1909 as an interracial endeavor to advance justice for African Americans by a group including W. E. B. Du Bois , Mary White Ovington , Moorfield Storey , Ida B. Wells , Lillian Wald , and Henry Moskowitz . Over

4107-508: The House chaplaincy, the next year. On appeal, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia dismissed the complaint "for want of a substantial constitutional question." Subsequently, on March 25, 2004, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, citing Marsh v. Chambers , dismissed a suit that challenged the congressional practice of paid chaplains as well as the practice of opening legislative sessions with prayer. In 2000,

4218-692: The Legal Defense Fund in 1939. The campaign for desegregation culminated in a unanimous 1954 Supreme Court decision in Brown v. Board of Education that held state-sponsored segregation of public elementary schools was unconstitutional . Bolstered by that victory, the NAACP pushed for full desegregation throughout the South. NAACP activists were excited about the judicial strategy. Starting on December 5, 1955, NAACP activists, including Edgar Nixon , its local president, and Rosa Parks , who had served as

4329-465: The Legislative branches. Could a Catholic clergyman ever hope to be appointed a Chaplain? To say that his religious principles are obnoxious or that his sect is small, is to lift the evil at once and exhibit in its naked deformity the doctrine that religious truth is to be tested by numbers, or that the major sects have a right to govern the minor. The constitutionality question has been examined in

4440-566: The NAACP and recruited for its board such Jewish leaders as Jacob Schiff , Jacob Billikopf , and Rabbi Stephen Wise ." In its early years, the NAACP was based in New York City . It concentrated on litigation in efforts to overturn disenfranchisement of blacks, which had been established in every southern state by 1908, excluding most from the political system, and the Jim Crow statutes that legalized racial segregation . In 1913,

4551-540: The NAACP had been infiltrated by Communists. To distance themselves from these accusations, the NAACP purged suspected Communists from its membership, according to the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee 's website. The board of directors of the NAACP created the Legal Defense Fund in 1939 specifically for tax purposes. It functioned as the NAACP legal department. Intimidated by the Department of

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4662-533: The NAACP organized opposition to President Woodrow Wilson 's introduction of racial segregation into federal government policy, workplaces, and hiring. African-American women's clubs were among the organizations that protested Wilson's changes, but the administration did not alter its assuagement of Southern cabinet members and the Southern bloc in Congress. By 1914, the group had 6,000 members and 50 branches. It

4773-412: The NAACP's membership from 9,000 to almost 90,000. In 1920, Johnson was elected head of the organization. Over the next ten years, the NAACP escalated its lobbying and litigation efforts, becoming internationally known for its advocacy of equal rights and equal protection for the "American Negro". The NAACP devoted much of its energy during the interwar years to fight the lynching of blacks throughout

4884-471: The Rev. Edward L. R. Elson , the 59th chaplain of the United States Senate, served as an Army chaplain during World War II. The website for the U.S. Senate includes the following list of past and present Senate chaplains: The U.S. Senate website focusing on the history of Senate chaplains includes the following information on the religious backgrounds of past and current Senate chaplains: Of these, three of

4995-485: The Senate chaplain's "historic tradition of being nonpolitical, nonpartisan, nonsectarian." Black said that he had received a "very generic invitation" to speak, and felt that the information about the event had been "incomplete." In 1984, Dr. Paul Kurtz , "a professor of philosophy and advocate of secular humanism," sued the government in a case that reached the United States Supreme Court for

5106-455: The Senate in prayer, and as of 2014 was the highest religious official to do so. Unlike the chaplain of the United States House of Representatives , who must be elected to a two-year term at "the beginning of each Congress," the Senate chaplain (like other Senate officers) does not have to be reelected. Both the House and Senate chaplains are elected as individuals, "not as representatives of any religious body or denominational entity." When

5217-429: The Senate were suspended, with local clergy invited to serve on a voluntary basis, instead. However, as a result of "the difficulty in obtaining volunteer chaplains" and the opportunity for volunteer chaplains to get to know "their flock," Congress returned to the practice of selecting official chaplains for both the House and the Senate. There have also been occasions when actions or decisions of individuals serving in

5328-742: The South as a result of such legislation. Men who had been voting for thirty years in the South were told they did not "qualify" to register. White-dominated legislatures also passed segregation and Jim Crow laws. Because hotels in the US were segregated, the men convened in Canada at the Erie Beach Hotel on the Canadian side of the Niagara River in Fort Erie, Ontario . As a result,

5439-646: The South were unable to elect representatives of their choice to office. The NAACP regularly displayed a black flag stating "A Man Was Lynched Yesterday" from the window of its offices in New York to mark each lynching. It organized the first of the two 1935 New York anti-lynching exhibitions in support of the Costigan-Wagner Bill , having previously widely published an account of the Lynching of Henry Lowry , as An American Lynching , in support of

5550-618: The Supreme Court ruled against the white primary. Although states had to retract legislation related to the white primaries, the legislatures soon came up with new methods to severely limit the franchise for blacks. During the Second Red Scare the NAACP was often linked to Communism by right-wing politicians. The House Un-American Activities Committee , the United States Senate Subcommittee on Internal Security , and security agencies sought to prove to

5661-661: The Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service, the Legal and Educational Defense Fund, Inc., became a separate legal entity in 1957, although it was clear that it was to operate in accordance with NAACP policy. After 1961 serious disputes emerged between the two organizations, creating considerable confusion in the eyes and minds of the public. By the 1940s, the federal courts were amenable to lawsuits regarding constitutional rights, against which Congressional action

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5772-484: The U.S. In the decades around the turn of the century, the rate of lynchings of blacks, particularly men, was at an all-time high. Mary White Ovington , journalist William English Walling and Henry Moskowitz met in New York City in January 1909 to work on organizing for black civil rights. They sent out solicitations for support to more than 60 prominent Americans, and set a meeting date for February 12, 1909. This

5883-979: The United States Navy . He retired from the Navy on August 15, 2003. Commissioned as a Navy chaplain in 1976, Black's first duty station was the Fleet Religious Support Activity in Norfolk, Virginia . Subsequent assignments included Naval Support Activity, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania ; U.S. Naval Academy , Annapolis, Maryland ; First Marine Aircraft Wing , Okinawa, Japan ; Naval Training Center, San Diego, California ; USS  Belleau Wood  (LHA-3) , Long Beach, California ; Naval Chaplains School Advanced Course, Newport, Rhode Island ; Marine Aircraft Group Thirty-One, Beaufort, South Carolina ; assistant staff chaplain, chief of naval education and training , Pensacola, Florida ; and fleet chaplain, U.S. Atlantic Fleet , Norfolk, Virginia . As

5994-439: The United States by working for legislation, lobbying, and educating the public. The organization sent its field secretary Walter F. White to Phillips County , Arkansas, in October 1919, to investigate the Elaine Race Riot . Roving white vigilantes killed more than 200 black tenant farmers and federal troops after a deputy sheriff's attack on a union meeting of sharecroppers left one white man dead. White published his report on

6105-423: The appointment of such a chaplain against the (then) smaller denominations such as Catholics and Jews." Williams pointed out "that although Catholics have for some time comprised the largest single religious affiliation in both the Senate and the population as a whole, there has been only one Roman Catholic Senate chaplain since 1793, and not a single rabbi." He noted "Only eight denominations have been represented in

6216-405: The armed services, hospitals or prisons that chaplains serving them would be Constitutional, "But, I don't know anybody less isolated than members of Congress." In following eras the courts would rule on the constitutionality of the chaplaincy. The chaplain of the United States Senate became a full-time position in the middle of the 20th century. According to a Senate Historical Office review of

6327-416: The arts and media, Theatre Awards are for achievements in theatre and stage, and Spingarn Medals are for outstanding achievements of any kind. Its headquarters are in Baltimore , Maryland . The NAACP is headquartered in Baltimore , with additional regional offices in New York , Michigan , Georgia , Maryland, Texas , Colorado , and California . Each regional office is responsible for coordinating

6438-426: The chaplain's position included a number of petitions to abolish both the Senate and House chaplains that were submitted as early as the 1850s, for reasons including claims that the positions represented a violation of the separation of church and state and that the choice of chaplains had become too politicized. From 1855-1861, the election of chaplains for the House and from 1857-1859, the election of chaplains for

6549-434: The chaplains. President James Madison was an example of a leader who ultimately came to think that the positions of Senate and House chaplains could not be constitutionally supported, although whether he always held this view (and to what extent he believed it at various times during his life) is a subject of debate. However it is clear from his "Detached Memoranda" writings during his retirement that he had come to believe

6660-571: The chapter's Secretary, helped organize a bus boycott in Montgomery , Alabama. This was designed to protest segregation on the city's buses, two-thirds of whose riders were black. The boycott lasted 381 days. In 1956 the South Carolina legislature created an anti-NAACP oath, and teachers who refused to take the oath lost their positions. After twenty-one Black teachers at the Elloree Training School refused to comply, White school officials dismissed them. Their dismissal led to Bryan v. Austin in 1957, which became an important civil rights case. In Alabama,

6771-436: The control of those cases and the legal strategy to be pursued in that case. The organization also brought litigation to challenge the " white primary " system in the South. Southern state Democratic parties had created white-only primaries as another way of barring blacks from the political process. Since the Democrats dominated southern states, the primaries were the only competitive contests. In 1944 in Smith v. Allwright ,

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6882-447: The corner, there were drug pushers, there was domestic violence that you could see sitting on the steps – of your home. So, it was a very challenging situation. And my mother, who for a significant portion of my life was on public assistance , would often have difficulty paying the rent and ensuring that her children matriculated at Christian schools because my seven siblings and I all matriculated at Christian schools from grade 1 all

6993-399: The efforts of state conferences in that region. Local, youth, and college chapters organize activities for individual members. In the U.S., the NAACP is administered by a 64-member board led by a chairperson. The board elects one person as the president and one as the chief executive officer for the organization. Julian Bond , civil rights movement activist and former Georgia State Senator,

7104-467: The entire nation. The establishment of the chaplainship to Congress is a palpable violation of equal rights, as well as of Constitutional principles: The tenets of the chaplains elected [by the majority] shut the door of worship agst the members whose creeds & consciences forbid a participation in that of the majority. To say nothing of other sects, this is the case with that of Roman Catholics & Quakers who have always had members in one or both of

7215-465: The event and presided over the proceedings. Also in attendance was Ida B. Wells-Barnett , an African-American journalist and anti- lynching crusader. Wells-Barnett addressed the conference on the history of lynching in the United States and called for action to publicize and prosecute such crimes. The members chose the new organization's name to be the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and elected its first officers: The NAACP

7326-449: The first female guest chaplain to deliver the opening prayer, in 1992 Warith Deen Mohammed was the first Muslim, in 2007 Rajan Zed was the first Hindu , and in 2014 Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama was the first Buddhist . Senators are limited regarding the number of recommendations they can make regarding guest chaplains (in the House of Representatives, members are limited to one recommendation per Congress), and although there

7437-406: The fourth day of the shutdown, he also prayed, of the senators, "Remove from them that stubborn pride which imagines itself to be above and beyond criticism. Forgive them the blunders they have committed." On day nine, prompted by news of the delay of death benefits for military families, Black prayed, "It's time for our lawmakers to say 'Enough is enough'", and asked that God "cover our shame with

7548-491: The group came to be known as the Niagara Movement . A year later, three non-African-Americans joined the group: journalist William English Walling , a wealthy socialist; and social workers Mary White Ovington and Henry Moskowitz . Moskowitz, who was Jewish, was then also Associate Leader of the New York Society for Ethical Culture . They met in 1906 at Storer College , Harpers Ferry, West Virginia , and in 1907 in Boston, Massachusetts . The fledgling group struggled for

7659-408: The historic Bob-Lo Excursion Co. v. Michigan after plaintiff Sarah Elizabeth Ray was wrongfully discriminated against when attempting to board a ferry. In 1916, chairman Joel Spingarn invited James Weldon Johnson to serve as field secretary. Johnson was a former U.S. consul to Venezuela and a noted African-American scholar and columnist. Within four years, Johnson was instrumental in increasing

7770-453: The hospital, represents the Senate in appearances before church groups across the nation, and is host to visiting religious figures who come to the Capitol. On occasion, chaplains of the Senate have led groups of saffron-robed Tibetan monks on tours of the building." The chaplain also provides pastoral care for the senators, their staffs, and their families, and provides or oversees religious programs such as Bible study, reflection groups, and

7881-467: The hypocrisy of attempting to sound reasonable while being unreasonable." During his prayer on October 4, the day after officers from the U.S. Capitol Police shot and killed a woman who had used her car in an attempt to breach federal grounds, Black noted that the officers were not being paid because of the shutdown. Like other government workers, he too was unpaid during the shutdown, saying, "I'm being remunerated from above. And that's pretty special." On

7992-497: The job on July 7, 2003. During the 16-day United States federal government shutdown of 2013 , Black's invocations began to garner widespread national attention. On October 1, the first day of the shutdown, he prayed for divine guidance to "strengthen our weakness, replacing cynicism with faith and cowardice with courage". On October 3, he prayed, "Save us from the madness. We acknowledge our transgressions, our shortcomings, our smugness, our selfishness and our pride... Deliver us from

8103-407: The late 20th century by considering issues such as police misconduct , the status of black foreign refugees and questions of economic development. Its name, retained in accordance with tradition, uses the once common term colored people , referring to those with some African ancestry. The NAACP bestows annual awards on African Americans in three categories: Image Awards are for achievements in

8214-466: The law. The larger conference resulted in a more diverse organization, where the leadership was predominantly white. Moorfield Storey , a white attorney from a Boston abolitionist family, served as the president of the NAACP from its founding to 1915. At its founding, the NAACP had one African American on its executive board, Du Bois. Storey was a long-time classical liberal and Grover Cleveland Democrat who advocated laissez-faire free markets,

8325-521: The military, the criminal justice system, employment, housing). The Pan-American Exposition of 1901 in Buffalo, New York , featured many American innovations and achievements, but also included a disparaging caricature of slave life in the South as well as a depiction of life in Africa, called "Old Plantation" and "Darkest Africa", respectively. A local African-American woman, Mary Talbert of Ohio ,

8436-581: The movement. The NAACP continued to use the Supreme Court's decision in Brown to press for desegregation of schools and public facilities throughout the country. Daisy Bates , president of its Arkansas state chapter, spearheaded the campaign by the Little Rock Nine to integrate the public schools in Little Rock , Arkansas. By the mid-1960s, the NAACP had regained some of its prominence in

8547-461: The national representatives, to be performed by Ministers of religion, elected by a majority of them; and these are to be paid out of the national taxes. Does not this involve the principle of a national establishment, applicable to a provision for a religious worship for the Constituent as well as of the representative Body, approved by the majority, and conducted by Ministers of religion paid by

8658-642: The office." In light of this, Williams put forward Senate Resolution 90 which "resulted in the Senate's decision to appoint a new chaplain annually, rather than let the incumbent serve for life." The appointment would also "rotate among the nation's three major religious groups." When asked by reporters about the question of Constitutionality raised by his citing Madison he replied "If this were tested, I would say that it could go either way. It could be declared unconstitutional. Any taxpayer could question this, but no one ever has." He held that in places where people were isolated by acts of government, such as people in

8769-549: The official position of Senate Chaplain for all years since the office was created except for the brief period of 1857-1859. In 1914, the Senate began adding the chaplain's prayer to the Congressional Record. In 1970 New Jersey Senator Harrison A. Williams "reminded his colleagues of James Madison's strong objection when the post was created in 1793", and "noted the modern fulfillment of another of Madison's warnings, that there would inevitably be discrimination in

8880-596: The organization's funds. In 1996, Congressman Kweisi Mfume , a Democratic Congressman from Maryland and former head of the Congressional Black Caucus , was named the organization's president. Three years later strained finances forced the organization to drastically cut its staff, from 250 in 1992 to 50. In the second half of the 1990s, the organization restored its finances, permitting the NAACP National Voter Fund to launch

8991-479: The position have created controversy. For example, in 2007 Senate Chaplain Barry C. Black canceled his scheduled appearance at the "Evangelical conference" "Reclaiming America for Christ." According to news reports, "Black reconsidered his appearance after " Americans United for Separation of Church and State " objected. Black announced he had reconsidered his participation because it would not be appropriate considering

9102-417: The position of executive director. A controversial figure, Chavis was ousted eighteen months later by the same board. They accused him of using NAACP funds for an out-of-court settlement in a sexual harassment lawsuit. Following the dismissal of Chavis, Myrlie Evers-Williams narrowly defeated NAACP chairperson William Gibson for president in 1995, after Gibson was accused of overspending and mismanagement of

9213-413: The positions could not be justified: Is the appointment of Chaplains to the two Houses of Congress consistent with the Constitution, and with the pure principle of religious freedom? In strictness the answer on both points must be in the negative. The Constitution of the U.S. forbids everything like an establishment of a national religion. The law appointing Chaplains establishes a religious worship for

9324-618: The practice going back to the Continental Congress in 1774 and noted that the custom "is deeply embedded in the history and tradition of this country" from colonial times and the founding of the republic. Further, the Court held that the use of prayer "has become part of the fabric of our society," coexisting with "the principles of disestablishment and religious freedom." This decision was cited in Murray v. Buchanan , which challenged

9435-577: The prayer delivered by Rajan Zed , the first Hindu guest chaplain was briefly interrupted by protestors described by news reports as members of the Christian Right . Activists had organized supporters to lobby Congress to stop the delivery of the prayer and failing that action to interrupt the prayer itself. The protestors were removed by the United States Capitol Police , charged with disrupting Congress, and barred from

9546-435: The previously named whites Henry Moskowitz , Mary White Ovington , William English Walling (the wealthy Socialist son of a former slave-holding family), Florence Kelley , a social reformer and friend of Du Bois; Oswald Garrison Villard , and Charles Edward Russell , a renowned muckraker and close friend of Walling. Russell helped plan the NAACP and had served as acting chairman of the National Negro Committee (1909),

9657-462: The records concerning guest chaplains, it was in 1965 that James Kirkland became the first African-American to open the Senate with prayer. In 1971 Wilmina Rowland became the first woman to do so. Wallace Mohammed was the first Muslim to do so in 1992, and Rajan Zed was the first Hindu to say the opening prayer for the Senate in 2007. Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama became the first Buddhist to lead

9768-419: The right to offer comments in place of the prayer that would normally be delivered by the Senate chaplain or guest chaplain. The Court denied his suit on the grounds that no individual has the "right" to address Congress, and that the delivery of the prayer, coordinated by the Senate chaplain, was governed by policies that dealt with "prayers" (not "remarks") which Kurtz did not seem prepared to offer. In 2007,

9879-610: The riot in the Chicago Daily News . The NAACP organized the appeals for twelve black men sentenced to death a month later based on the fact that testimony used in their convictions was obtained by beatings and electric shocks. It gained a groundbreaking Supreme Court decision in Moore v. Dempsey 261 U.S. 86 (1923) that significantly expanded the Federal courts' oversight of the states' criminal justice systems in

9990-399: The robe of Your righteousness". On day 11, Black prayed to "give our lawmakers the wisdom to distinguish between truth and error... Give them a hatred of all hypocrisy, deceit and shame as they seek to replace them with gentleness, patience and truth." The U.S. House of Representatives , which has its own chaplain, also invited Black to deliver an invocation in their chamber. In 1995, Black

10101-495: The session's opening prayer in place of the Senate chaplain, have represented "all the world's major religious faiths." The current chaplain is Barry C. Black , a retired Navy Rear Admiral and former Chief of Navy Chaplains . He is the first Seventh-day Adventist and the first African-American to hold the position. The chaplain of the United States Senate is chosen to "perform ceremonial, symbolic, and pastoral duties." These responsibilities include opening Senate sessions with

10212-521: The show's "Weekend Update" segment that aired on October 12, 2013, SNL cast member Kenan Thompson prayed, "Lord, bless and forgive these braying jackasses." Thompson's Black prayed, "May they find themselves in a restroom stall devoid of toilet paper." When approached for a reaction, Black responded that, while he had not seen it, he was a fan of the show and did not object to the parody. "It's all in good humor", he said. "If you're doing something constructive enough that you're part of their cartoons, that's

10323-449: The state responded by effectively barring the NAACP from operating within its borders because of its refusal to divulge a list of its members. The NAACP feared members could be fired or face violent retaliation for their activities. Although the Supreme Court eventually overturned the state's action in NAACP v. Alabama , 357 U.S. 449 (1958), the NAACP lost its leadership role in

10434-463: The time of its founding until 2003. In 2011, the NAACP teamed with the digital repository ProQuest to digitize and host online the earlier portion of its archives, through 1972 – nearly two million pages of documents, from the national, legal, and branch offices throughout the country, which offer first-hand insight into the organization's work related to such crucial issues as lynching, school desegregation, and discrimination in all its aspects (in

10545-436: The way through graduate school . So, to pull this off, many times she couldn't pay the rent, and when you don't pay the rent, you will be evicted. And so, three times in my life, I came home from my nice Christian school to find our furniture out on the street. As a result of the attention his invocations received during the federal government shutdown, Black was parodied on NBC 's Saturday Night Live . Playing Black during

10656-599: The weekly Senate Prayer Breakfast. The chaplain also often presides over religious ceremonies such as funerals and memorial services for current or past members and participates, offering delivering the invocation or benediction, at many official U.S. ceremonies, including White House events. For example, Chaplain Barry Black delivered the keynote address at the National Prayer Breakfast held February 2, 2017 before President Trump and previously at

10767-424: The world's major religious faiths," and their participation is a sign that the Senate is sensitive to the "increasing religious diversity of the nation." According to Robert C. Byrd in his book The Senate: 1789-1989 , "The Duties that chaplains perform...are not all written down, but they are numerous and have evolved over the centuries." His description continues: "The Chaplain visits senators when they go to

10878-482: The years to come. White investigated eight race riots and 41 lynchings for the NAACP and directed its study Thirty Years of Lynching in the United States . The NAACP also worked for more than a decade seeking federal anti-lynching legislation, but the Solid South of white Democrats voted as a bloc against it or used the filibuster in the Senate to block passage. Because of disenfranchisement, African Americans in

10989-422: The years, leaders of the organization have included Thurgood Marshall and Roy Wilkins . Its mission in the 21st century is "to ensure the political, educational, social, and economic equality of rights of all persons and to eliminate race-based discrimination". NAACP initiatives include political lobbying, publicity efforts, and litigation strategies developed by its legal team. The group enlarged its mission in

11100-587: Was appalled by the exhibit, as a similar one in Paris highlighted black achievements. She informed W. E. B. Du Bois of the situation, and a coalition began to form. In 1905, a group of thirty-two prominent African-American leaders met to discuss the challenges facing African Americans and possible strategies and solutions. They were particularly concerned by the Southern states ' disenfranchisement of blacks starting with Mississippi 's passage of

11211-700: Was awarded the Becket's 2019 Canterbury Medal for his defense of religious liberty for people of all faiths. Black is an alumnus of Oakwood University , Andrews University , North Carolina Central University , Eastern Baptist Seminary (now known as Palmer Theological Seminary ), Salve Regina University , and the United States International University (now known as Alliant International University ). In addition to earning three Master of Arts degrees in divinity , counseling , and management , Black holds two earned doctorates :

11322-521: Was chairman until replaced in February 2010 by healthcare administrator Roslyn Brock . For decades in the first half of the 20th century, the organization was effectively led by its executive secretary, who acted as chief operating officer. James Weldon Johnson and Walter F. White , who served in that role successively from 1920 to 1958, were much more widely known as NAACP leaders than were presidents during those years. The organization has never had

11433-949: Was chosen from 127 nominees for the NAACP Renowned Service Award for his contributions to equal opportunity and civil rights . In 2002, he received the Benjamin Elijah Mays Distinguished Leadership Award from the Morehouse School of Religion . In 2004, the Old Dominion University chapter of the NAACP conferred on him the Image Award , "Reaffirming the Dream - Realizing the Vision" , for military excellence. On May 23, 2019, Black

11544-471: Was formed exclusively by African Americans. Four European Americans were among the founders of the NAACP, they included Mary White Ovington , Henry Moskowitz , William English Walling and Oswald Garrison Villard . The Race Riot of 1908 in Springfield, Illinois , the state capital and Abraham Lincoln 's hometown, was a catalyst showing the urgent need for an effective civil rights organization in

11655-448: Was incorporated a year later in 1911. The association's charter expressed its mission: To promote equality of rights and eradicate caste or race prejudice among citizens of the United States; to advance the interest of colored citizens; to secure for them impartial suffrage; and to increase their opportunities for securing justice in the courts, education for their children, employment according to their ability, and complete equality before

11766-544: Was influential in winning the right of African Americans to serve as military officers in World War ;I . Six hundred African-American officers were commissioned and 700,000 men registered for the draft. The following year, the NAACP organized a nationwide protest, with marches in numerous cities, against D. W. Griffith 's silent movie The Birth of a Nation , a film that glamorized the Ku Klux Klan . As

11877-470: Was intended to coincide with the 100th anniversary of the birth of President Abraham Lincoln , who emancipated enslaved African Americans. While the first large meeting did not occur until three months later, the February date is often cited as the organization's founding date. The NAACP was founded on February 12, 1909, by a larger group including African Americans W. E. B. Du Bois , Ida B. Wells , Archibald Grimké , Mary Church Terrell , and

11988-483: Was originally no limit to the number of times per month a guest chaplain could deliver the prayer in the place of the Senate chaplain, that number is now limited to two. The inclusion of a prayer before the opening of each session of both the House and the Senate, traces its origins back to the days of the Continental Congress, and the official recommendation of Benjamin Franklin , June 28, 1787: “I have lived, Sir,

12099-779: Was to convene a committee to recommend a chaplain, selecting the Right Reverend Samuel Provoost , Episcopal Bishop of New York. When the Senate moved to Philadelphia the next year, the Right Reverend William White , that city's Episcopal bishop was selected. In 1800, when the Senate relocated to Washington, D.C., clergymen from various Christian denominations ("mainline Protestant denominations--usually Episcopalians or Presbyterians") continued to be selected, delivering prayers and presiding at funerals and memorial services. During this early period, chaplains "typically served" for less than

12210-571: Was used both for news reporting and for publishing African-American poetry and literature. During the organization's campaigns against lynching, Du Bois encouraged the writing and performance of plays and other expressive literature about this issue. The Jewish community contributed greatly to the NAACP's founding and continued financing. Jewish historian Howard Sachar 's book A History of Jews in America notes "In 1914, Professor Emeritus Joel Spingarn of Columbia University became chairman of

12321-472: Was virtually impossible. With the rise of private corporate litigators such as the NAACP to bear the expense, civil suits became the pattern in modern civil rights litigation, and the public face of the Civil Rights Movement . The NAACP's Legal department, headed by Charles Hamilton Houston and Thurgood Marshall , undertook a campaign spanning several decades to bring about the reversal of

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