Jacksonville NAACP and member earn national recognition

The Jacksonville Branch NAACP and one of its members achieved national recognition during the 117th NAACP National Convention in Chicago. The organization received the prestigious Dr. Ross Thalheimer Award, the national NAACP's highest program award for branches, for its "Ask a Lawyer" program. Also

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What is the story about?

The Jacksonville Branch NAACP and one of its members achieved national recognition during the 117th NAACP National Convention in Chicago.

The organization received the prestigious Dr. Ross Thalheimer Award, the national NAACP's highest program award for branches, for its "Ask a Lawyer" program. Also, Jacksonville branch member Joseph Maceo George was honored with the Benjamin L. Hooks “Keeper of the Flame” Award that honors "exceptional grassroots leadership and celebrates individuals who advance civil rights and equity in the labor movement."

"Receiving these awards provide a powerful testament to the dedication, resilience and hard work ofour members, volunteers and partners in Jacksonville," Isaiah Rumlin, president of the local branch, said.

"This moment underscores our branch’s historic legacy and ongoing fight for systemic change, voting rights, economic equity and educational justice."

Isaiah Rumlin, left, president of the Jacksonville Branch NAACP, displays the award the organization received at the recent national NAACP conference, as member Joseph Maceo George holds the individual award he received.

The Thalheimer award is named after a Johns Hopkins University instructor in philosophy and a University of Washington instructor in philosophy and sociology, while the Hooks award honors the former national NAACP executive director and civil rights champion.

The free Ask a Lawyer program, led by the Jacksonville branch’s Legal Redress Committee, is a clinic "designed to bridge the structural equity gap in access to professional legal feedback," according to the branch.

The clinic, open every third Saturday, "addresses immediate community needs such as housing instability, unlawful financial exploitation and civil rights violations," the branch said.

George, the Hooks award recipient, "exemplified his commitment to the voice of the labor movement for many years," according to the branch. He is a former president of National Association of Letter Carriers, Branch 53 in Jacksonville.

Beth Reese Cravey has been a reporter for The Florida Times-Union for 45 years, currently specializing in nonprofits and health. She can be reached at bcravey@jacksonville.com.

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Jacksonville NAACP and member earn national recognition