Get the NAACP Back on Track

The board of the National Assn. for the Advancement of Colored People can regain fiscal stability and broad respect if it elects Myrlie Evers-Williams as chairwoman. A vote is scheduled for Saturday.

Evers-Williams’ ascension to this prestigious position would signal a return to its roots for the NAACP. Her first husband, Medgar Evers, a field organizer for the civil rights group, was murdered in Jackson, Miss., in 1963. Two all-white juries failed to convict Byron De La Beckwith in the shooting. But Evers’ widow persevered, and in 1994 a jury at last convicted the white separatist.

Evers-Williams would bring more than persistence and a legendary name to the table. Until recently a longtime resident of Los Angeles, she demonstrated her leadership abilities as a founder of the National Women’s Political Organization, Arco’s consumer affairs director, a member of the L.A. Board of Public Works and a force in numerous civic organizations. She’s a fighter, and that’s what the NAACP needs.

In addition to facing huge battles on the civil rights front--everything from affirmative action to federal protections against job discrimination are under attack--Evers-Williams would face a huge challenge within the NAACP itself. To be blunt, the beleaguered organization has lost much of its clout.

Benjamin F. Chavis Jr., ousted as executive director, tarnished the NAACP by embracing black separatist Louis Farrakhan and through his questionable settlement of a sexual harassment suit in which he was the accused. The current chair, Dr. William Gibson, a South Carolina dentist, is accused of spending lavishly on travel, entertainment and other things. The organization is reported to be $4 million in debt.

Confidence must be restored in the NAACP. Naming Evers-Williams would be a good start.