Oklahoma City University’s National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is hosting their Legacy Celebration on January 11th. This event will honor Clara Luper, the mother of the Oklahoma Civil Rights Movement, and Bailey Perkins Wright, alumna and founder of the Oklahoma City University NAACP chapter. From 1958 through 1964, Clara Luper was a leader and mentor of the NAACP community, fighting against segregation. Following in her footsteps, Bailey Perkins Wright created the NAACP chapter here at Oklahoma City University in 2011 to continue that same mission. After several years of inactivity, junior Kel Pinkston reinstated the organization in the fall of 2023 with high hopes for an exceptional year.
The Legacy Celebration will be NAACP’s first major event open to the community. Many members of the chapter, campus and broader community will be present, including Senator George Young. Currently, Senator Young serves in the 48th district of the Oklahoma Senate, representing diversity in today’s government and leading by example for aspiring student activists.
One such student activist is Anjali Radha, NAACP’s Publicity Chair. Radha states “I knew [NAACP] was a place of love and unity, which drew me to be an executive member of this organization.” Radha has previous experience with advocacy for a variety of causes but states NAACP as one of her main focuses. She remarks “This whole organization means love, it means truth, and it means power. It made me realize how powerful my voice is and how it is ultimately my superpower.”
Despite this chapter’s dormancy for over a decade, NAACP is back in full swing with spring initiatives and additional events underway. The Legacy Celebration will not only commemorate past leaders but also celebrate the reemergence of OCU’s NAACP chapter.
Editor’s Note: Kel Pinkston is the News Editor for OCU Student Publications. He was not involved in the editing of this story.
Leave a Reply