Battle Creek’s NAACP is “ALL IN” for the annual Freedom Fund dinner

Editor's note: This story is part of Southwest Michigan Second Wave's On the Ground Battle Creek series.
 
BATTLE CREEK, MI — Protecting the nation’s Democracy begins locally and this message will resonate during the 89th annual Freedom Fund Dinner on Friday (October 25) hosted by the NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People) Battle Creek Branch.
 
“This year, we are laser-focused on democracy and on individuals and those associated with the event this year who are motivated to get out, let their voices be heard, and vote,” says Lynn Ward Gray, President of the NAACP Battle Creek Chapter Branch. “If they haven’t already voted, we’re making sure that they know all of the ways they’ll be able to vote.”
 
The event titled “ALL IN” is being held at the city’s new DoubleTree by Hilton which officially opened on October 18 with a ribbon-cutting ceremony. The NAACP festivities begin with a reception at 5:30 p.m. followed by the dinner and program at 6 p.m.
 
The program features keynote speaker Portia Roberson, CEO and President of Focus: Hope, a racial and social justice nonprofit organization with approximately thirty-five million dollars in revenue and about 200 employees.
 
“Her background totally fits our messaging,” Gray says of Roberson. “She is involved in economic development and those who are marginalized and left out. She’s worked in the Obama White House and in Civil and Human Rights and letting people know that their vote is wrapped up in all of that.”
 
Partner organizations including the A. Philip Randolph Institute Battle Creek Chapter and the League of Women Voters will have informational tables at the event that will key in on the importance of voting and the process. In addition to these tables, Freedom Fund guests will have the opportunity to purchase items during a Black Business Expo pop-up beginning at 5 p.m.
 
The owners of some of these businesses are among this year’s Battle Creek NAACP Image Awards. Those being recognized are as follows:
 
Business Award: Superior Beauty Supply and Barber Salon, Sherria & Maurice Heath
 
Businessperson of the Year Award: Tiffany Blackman, Bread & Basket Marketplace
 
Rosa Parks Award: Jacqueline “Jackie” Patrick-James, Student Empowerment Program Director and Board Treasurer with R.I.S.E.
 
Freedom Fighter Award: Carey J. Whitfield, Immediate Past President of Battle Creek’s NAACP.
 
Veterans Award: Joseph “Joe” Blythe
 
Presidents Award: Roberta H. Cribbs, Posthumously, Past Battle Creek NAACP President
 
Joe BlytheEveryone involved in this year’s Freedom Fund event, from participants to vendors to community organizations, is supporting the “ALL IN” theme which mirrors what’s happening within the NAACP and its different chapter organizations.
 
“We are pushing all our chips in and we are going to be very visible,” Gray says. “There are so many political issues we can weigh in on and what we support. We are nonpartisan. We’re not supporting any party or particular person. 

"We focus on policies that are supported or not supported and we put it out there and look at what policies are present and are making a difference to help or hurt the communities we serve. There is certainly a residual effect when policies are not in line with the well-being of people and their lives.”
 
Roberta CribbsA former Battle Creek City Commissioner and mayoral candidate, Gray says getting the word out about issues impacting them, the voting process, and who was seeking election was a challenge in the city’s Black and Brown communities. Among the issues are not understanding who’s running and what they stand for, not understanding where to seek out information, and how to be proactive in their own research.
 
The nation’s Black population didn’t have the same easy path to voting that non-Black citizens have had.
 
“We’re still making it a practice to vote where others have had it for generations,” Gray says.
 
The Voting Rights Act of 1870 – the 15th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution — gave African American men the right to vote. It wasn’t until the passage of the 1965 Voting Rights Act that all African Americans were granted the full right to vote, but the fight to give Black women the right to vote began in the 1800s alongside the women’s suffrage movement.
 
Tiffany BlackmanWhat many citizens had the luxury of taking for granted was not afforded to the nation’s African Americans which is why Gray says the provision of resources and instructions about the voting process continue to be necessary.
 
“Thinking that everybody knows what to do and does it every time is a false narrative. There will always be a need for the NAACP and its focus on Get Out the Vote,” she says.
 
These efforts are becoming even more critical with the explosion of Artificial Intelligence and its use by so many, says Gray.
 
“Artificial Intelligence has multiplied the opportunities to spread misinformation and disinformation,” Gray says. “As a candidate, you’re trying to combat these elements which is a challenge and still be there for the individuals who may be spreading this incorrect information because you represent them. People need to know that you care. 

"They need to see you and know that you’re reaching out to them. It gets their attention and motivates them to be involved in the political process.”
 
Education is a big part of what the local NAACP is about, but the organization also focuses on events like the Heritage Quiz Bowl and legal redress committee activities and collaborations. The Freedom Fund Dinner is its yearly fundraiser to support the chapter’s operating costs and the activities and services it provides.
 
Discrimination in its many forms faced by the city’s Black residents and disability issues top the list of the local chapter’s legal redress work.
 
“We help and engage where we can and we try our best to take on cases we can handle from a mediation standpoint,” Gray says. Other resources are identified locally through NAACP partner organizations for the cases that can’t be dealt with through mediation.
 
Carey Whitfield“We have certainly not reached equity and equality in our society and communities across the country,” she says. “People need hope and a place that can hear and see them and I hope the NCAA is that place for them. 

"We know the work we do as a branch is making a difference and having the community support us each year at this annual fundraiser is appreciated and so very important as we focus our efforts not only on national NAACP initiatives but what impacts us right here in Battle Creek.”