For 50 years, the Greenwood Voters League has served as a guardian of civil rights for African-Americans.
On Friday night, the Voters League will hold its 50th annual banquet at the Leflore County Civic Center.
The theme for this year’s event is: The Greenwood Voters League: A Champion for Human Rights.
The banquet will begin at 6 p.m. with a wine and cheese reception. The banquet will begin at 7 p.m.
The keynote speaker will be the Rev. Reginald M. Buckley.
Buckley, a Jackson native, serves as the dean of Christian Education for the General Missionary Baptist State Convention of Mississippi and as the chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Mississippi Baptist Seminary and Bible College.
State Sen. David Jordan, D-Greenwood, has served as president of the Voters League since its founding.
“I’ve been with them all along. I was right out of graduate school,” he said.
The Voters League was started by the Rev. J.D. Collins, owner of a shoe shop; Edward Cochran, a hotel owner; Lewis Golden, a barber; W.J. Bishop the first black appointed to the Greenwood School Board; and Sammie Chestnut.
Jordan said taking the reins of the fledgling organization was a bit of an undertaking.
“I didn’t know what I was doing. I was just a young school teacher in graduate school,” he said.
Still, he said, his elders embraced him.
Jordan recalled that one of the first projects undertaken by the Voters League was challenging the city’s mayor/commissioner form of government.
In 1985, following a nine-year court battle, the city’s government was replaced by the mayor/council form, which gave African-Americans in the city political power for the first time.
Jordan also serves on the City Council, representing Ward 6.
It was in part with the help of Voters League that the majority- black 2nd Congressional District was formed, Jordan said.
“We sued the county over the voting machines” regarding a lack of training of poll workers. Another lawsuit challenged the exclusion of Mississippi Valley State University students from voting locally, he said.
There have been a number of notable figures that have appeared before the Voters League over the years, including Gov. Bill Waller; Dr. R.H. Harris, the first African-American to serve on the state College Board; and former Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, when she was the first lady of Arkansas.
“The fact that the Voters League is 50 years old is a testament to its importance and validates its role in our community. I am confident that it is poised to serve future generations and positioned to address the challenges before us — Sen. Jordan would have it no other way,” said Troy Brown of Itta Bena, who has sometimes clashed with Jordan.
“Even when I have differed with the Voters League in opinion and perception, I have never been denied an opportunity to debate the issues and voice my concerns. I am a better person because those opportunities existed and because the organization understands and appreciates that opposition is a breeding ground for growth and sensitivities to issues. This is what makes the organization relevant — yesterday, today and tomorrow,” Brown said in a prepared statement.
“I am proud to call Sen. Jordan, ‘friend,’ and proud to celebrate the work of the Voters League in Greenwood and Leflore County,” he said.
Jordan said the Men of Zion will provide music for the evening’s festivities.
The banquet will also honor Greenwood attorney Alix Sanders.
A community service award will be presented to former school board Barbara Gray, who has worked tirelessly with young African-American women, Jordan said.
Also, Millie Stansberry, an original league board member, will be honored.
A $500 David Jordan Scholarship will be awarded to a Valley student majoring in science.
Jordan said the banquet is a tribute the struggle for civil rights.
The Voters League “has brought this community closer together,” he said.
• Contact Bob Darden at 581-7239 or bdarden@gwcommonwealth.com.
