After Tuesday’s election of Donald J. Trump as President-Elect, NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. President and Director Counsel Sherrilyn Ifill issued this statement from Washington, D.C.:
“We are all carrying the weight of the moment in which we find ourselves. Tuesday’s election has laid bare bitter truths about our country. Now we must come to grips with the reality of ongoing racism and divisiveness that still plagues us as a nation.
“The grave challenges we expect during the coming years – police violence, voter suppression, education inequity or economic inequality – are already here with us today. We do not live four years to four years.
“In those times when the majority of this country turned to Jim Crow, turned to Massive Resistance, turned even to violence, LDF remained steadfast in our commitment to a freer, more equal society. We remain steadfast today. Just as we have not given up before, we will not give up the fight now – not when our work takes on even greater significance. We walk in the tradition of the great leaders and ordinary people who weathered storms and remained undaunted.
“We cannot allow discrimination to silence the most vulnerable in our communities. We must and will stand up for the principles and equality and justice that power our collective dream of a better America.”
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Founded in 1940, the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. (LDF) is the nation’s first civil and human rights law organization and has been completely separate from the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) since 1957—although LDF was originally founded by the NAACP and shares its commitment to equal rights. LDF’s Thurgood Marshall Institute is a multi-disciplinary and collaborative hub within LDF that launches targeted campaigns and undertakes innovative research to shape the civil rights narrative. In media attributions, please refer to us as the NAACP Legal Defense Fund or LDF.