FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, May 25, 2023

Contact: Kiana M. Sears, President | info@evnaacp.org | (480) 442-1222

LYNCHING EFFIGY AT QUEEN CREEK HIGH SCHOOL
NAACP EAST VALLEY BRANCH (1008-B) RESPONSE

May 25, 2023

QUEEN CREEK, ARIZONA (May 25, 2023) – Nearly 60 years after Ruby Bridges was greeted with a Black baby doll in a coffin on her walk to school,1 someone placed a Black baby doll hanging from a noose in a student bathroom at Queen Creek High School. On May 22, 2023, school personnel reported the hate crime to school administration who “quickly identified the students involved and took disciplinary action.”2 The Queen Creek Police Department stated they are “submitting referrals for two juveniles to the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office for interference/disruption of an educational institution.”2

The NAACP East Valley Branch condemns all acts of racism and works to eradicate racism in all forms. We will be following up with local officials and monitoring the outcome of this act of domestic terrorism targeting our children.

If you think you have experienced discrimination and would like to file a complaint with the NAACP East Valley branch, please visit our website at www.evnaacp.org and click “Learn More” under Legal Redress.

(1) Ruby Bridges story: https://www.womenshistory.org/education-resources/biographies/ruby-bridges  

(2) Fox 10 Phoenix Staff: https://www.fox10phoenix.com/news/black-childrens-doll-wrapped-in-rope-discovered-in-queen-creek-high-school-restroom-students-disciplined

Freedom Fighters, we work to disrupt inequality, dismantle racism, and accelerate change in key areas including criminal justice, health care, education, climate, and the economy. Join us at www.evnaacp.org.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, February 21, 2023

Contact: Kiana M. Sears, President of East Valley Branch | info@evnaacp.org | (480) 442-1222
Contact: Bishop Anthony Holt, President of West Valley Branch | president@wvnaacp.org 

SUPPORT THE FIRST AMENDMENT
NO on ARIZONA SB1698 and SB1030
February 21, 2023

MARICOPA COUNTY, ARIZONA (February 21, 2023) – In honor of Black History Month, a locally-owned business held a drag story hour featuring the following children’s books:

“A Song for the Unsung: Bayard Rustin, the Man Behind the 1963 March on Washington” by Carole Boston Weatherford and Rob Sanders;

“Love Grows Everywhere” by Barry Timms and Tisha Lee; and,

“I Am Enough” by Grace Byers.

The Community responded overwhelmingly with love and gratitude. Unfortunately, a handful of hateful extremists responded with a violent threat. Thankfully, no one was physically injured.

The NAACP East Valley and West Valley branches will be following the progress of law enforcement’s investigation into this hate crime, and the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office prosecution of the domestic terrorists.

This incident is a poignant reminder that anti-democratic, anti-LGBTQIA+ legislation is moving through the Arizona Legislature. We encourage the community to urge their elected officials to vote NO on Arizona SB1698 and SB1030. The text and status of the bills are available at www.apps.azleg.gov/BillStatus. Contact information for state senators and representatives is available at www.azleg.gov/memberroster.

Freedom Fighters, we work to disrupt inequality, dismantle racism, and accelerate change in key areas including criminal justice, health care, education, climate, and the economy. Join us at www.evnaacp.org.

SENT BY ACTIVATE 48

December 5, 2022

RE: Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation, and Reentry

Dear Governor-Elect Hobbs & Esteemed Transition Team,

As organizations with long histories of working on criminal justice policies and reforms, our groups represent a range of perspectives on how to improve Arizona’s justice system. We all want Arizona to be a safe place, where families and businesses can feel welcome and at home. And we are united by a desire and commitment to see more just and equitable outcomes for the people of our state via our criminal justice system.

Unfortunately, under your predecessor’s administration we watched Arizona fall behind on creating safer prisons. For too long Arizona has been one of the nation’s leaders in incarceration levels, harsh sentencing laws, and high recidivism rates. Our criminal legal system disproportionately and adversely impacts black and brown Arizonans and women, particularly when compared to our peers in other states. And runaway public spending, fiscal mismanagement, understaffing, and an emphasis on punishment over rehabilitation and safety have plagued the Department of Corrections.

We celebrate your commitment to reducing and eliminating racial disparities in the criminal justice system and are pleased to see this identified as one of your priorities in your Equity & Justice Plan. We are committed to working alongside you to advocate for a system that puts people over profits and supports rehabilitation, reintegration, alternatives to incarceration, and the general public good.

As incoming Governor and representatives of her office, we’d like to respectfully make the following recommendations:

1. We recommend a forensic audit of the Department of Corrections, and a thorough evaluation of the agency’s fiscal management. Our state spends more than $1.3 billion annually on the Department of Corrections – more than a tenth of our annual budget. Within this agency, private contracts channel millions in taxpayer dollars to corporate actors responsible for much of the work of the agency. Difficult transitions in leadership, successful legal challenges against the department, and allegations of mismanagement have damaged public trust in the institution. Under your leadership we see an opportunity to evaluate the financial standing of the agency. This will advance transparency and trust, while equipping incoming leaders with the information they need to be successful.

2. We recommend that you engage in a comprehensive national search for a new director for the Department of Corrections. As part of this process, we suggest appointing an interim director to replace Director David Schinn. As advocates many of our organizations are concerned about fast-tracking the process of appointing a new Director. This role is critically important to bringing meaningful improvements to the Department of Corrections. Identifying the right leader to bring transparency to the agency, work effectively with staff, respond to your priorities, and engage community stakeholders will take significant time and energy. As organizations working in this arena, we would like to offer our support in serving in an advisory role to identify key criteria needed in a new leader for the department, and inform recruitment for the role. We would also respectfully recommend that directly impacted and formerly incarcerated individuals be part of this process.

We congratulate you on your victory and appreciate the opportunity to engage in bringing new leadership to this issue and to our state. Thank you for your consideration.

Sincerely,

Patricia & Terry Borden, Directors, AZRSOL

President Kiana M. Sears, East Valley NAACP

Caroline Isaacs, Executive Director, Just Communities Arizona

Claire Tate, Vice President, The S.T.A.R.T. Project

American Civil Liberties Union

Dianne Post, Attorney, NAACP Arizona State Conference

Laura Dent, Coalition Director, Activate 48

Sue Braga, Advocate for Incarcerated Women

Arizona Attorneys for Criminal Justice

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Monday, November 14, 2022

Contact: Kiana M. Sears, President | info@evnaacp.org | (480) 442-1222

SUPPORT THE RUBY BRIDGES WALK TO SCHOOL DAY
November 14, 2022

MESA, ARIZONA (November 14, 2022) – We encourage the community to support the annual Ruby Bridges Walk to School Day on November 14, 2022.

Each year, schools across the nation hold the event to honor the heroism of six-year-old Ruby Bridges when she made history on November 14, 1960 by integrating William Frantz Elementary School in New Orleans. Sixty-two years later, Ruby is working tirelessly to ensure that children have every educational opportunity possible so that they can become the next generation to combat racism.

In recognition of Ruby Bridges’ vision, educational leaders in the East Valley share their support of this goal:

“Mesa Public Schools supports an educational environment that emphasizes being inclusive, ethical and resilient. The Governing Board and superintendent of Mesa Public Schools do hereby proclaim November 14 as Ruby Bridges Day. We encourage the community to join students and staff in observing this special day – by reflecting on the importance of finding common ground, seeking to understand the ideas of others, and seeing strength in difference.”

“The Arizona Alliance of Black School Educators (AzABSE) declares November 14th as Ruby Bridges Walk to School Day in honor of ending racism and promoting racial healing in Arizona. This initiative is critical for equitable education and will provide a blueprint for the new generation of leadership in our communities.”

Visit https://bit.ly/ruby-bridges-walk to learn how you can bring Ruby Bridges Walk to School Day to your school. Visit https://the-ruby-bridges-foundation.myshopify.com/ to donate to the Ruby Bridges Walk to School Day Foundation.

Freedom Fighters, we work to disrupt inequality, dismantle racism, and accelerate change in key areas including criminal justice, health care, education, climate, and the economy. Join us at www.evnaacp.org.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Sunday, October 23, 2022

Contact: Kiana M. Sears, President | info@evnaacp.org | (480) 442-1222

CALL TO ACTION:
CONDEMN BLACKFACE AND REDFACE AT THE BALLOT BOX
October 23, 2022

MESA, ARIZONA (October 23, 2022) – Multiple photographs appear to show Arizona House of Representatives candidate Mary Ann Mendoza (Legislative District 9) wearing Blackface and Redface. In two images, the woman wears minstrel-like makeup and an apron imprinted with the words “Aunt Jemima”.1

“Mammy’s most successful commercial expression was (and is) Aunt Jemima … During slavery, the mammy caricature was posited as proof that blacks — in this case, black women — were contented, even happy, as slaves.”2

In another photo, the woman is wearing what some interpret as a “Pocahontas” costume.1 Legislative District 9 includes Mesa and Tempe – the ancestral lands of the Akimel O’odham and Pee Posh.3 Wearing a marginalized people’s culture as a costume disqualifies the candidate from representing the constituents they are disrespecting.

Condemning dehumanizing, racialized imagery is a non-partisan issue. Blackface and Redface are always racist and never okay. Regardless of the party affiliation, we can not stand for such behavior, which is why the East Valley NAACP is calling for
Mary Ann Mendoza to confirm or deny that she is the person in any of the photographs; and, if she is, we call for her immediate withdrawal from the Arizona Legislative race.

Voters, we call on you to use the power of your votes to reject Blackface, Redface, and all forms of racism. Find your polling place and volunteer to be a poll protector by visiting naacp.org/vote. #TogetherPowerVote #VotingIsPower

(1) https://coppercourier.com/story/mary-ann-mendoza-blackface/

(2) https://www.ferris.edu/HTMLS/news/jimcrow/mammies/homepage.htm

(3) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u3m0VXXyPPM

Freedom Fighters, we work to disrupt inequality, dismantle racism, and accelerate change in key areas including criminal justice, health care, education, climate, and the economy. Join us at www.evnaacp.org.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Monday, September 26, 2022

Contact: Kiana M. Sears, East Valley NAACP President | (480) 442-1222 | info@evnaacp.org

ARIZONA JUDGE DRAGS WOMEN BACK TO CIVIL WAR ERA.
VOTE LIKE OUR LIVES DEPEND ON IT: BECAUSE THEY DO.

September 26, 2022

MESA, ARIZONA (September 26, 2022) – Another day in Arizona, another blatant attack on our democracy and women’s bodies. On Friday afternoon, Judge Kellie Johnson ruled to enforce a Civil War-era law criminalizing nearly all abortions. It “contains no exceptions for pregnancies arising from rape or incest”1. The courts’ failures to recognize women’s constitutional right “to abortion will spark a public health crisis for Black women defined by more maternal deaths, higher rates of poverty and greater inequality overall”2.

Elections matter. Who we elect this November to lead the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office has never been more important. We only have 17 days until early ballots are mailed, and everyone must get out and vote to stop this wave of fascistic and oppressive politics. We cannot allow a handful of partisan judges to drag us back to 1864. Arizona’s future remains dangerously uncertain, but each of you holds the sacred power to vote, and you must use it.

Voting is Power. Check your voter registration status, register to vote, find your polling place, and volunteer to protect democracy at the polls by visiting naacp.org/vote.

(1) https://www.azmirror.com/2022/09/23/virtually-all-abortions-are-now-criminalized-in-arizona-after-a-judge-reinstated-an-1864-ban
(2) https://www.latimes.com/opinion/story/2022-06-24/black-women-abortion-roe-v-wade-maternal-mortality

Freedom Fighters, we work to disrupt inequality, dismantle racism, and accelerate change in key areas including criminal justice, health care, education, climate, and the economy. Join us at www.evnaacp.org. 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, March 23, 2022

Contact: Charles Fanniel, Arizona State Conference President | 602-919-7371
P. O. Box 20605, Phoenix, AZ 85036

ARIZONA NAACP CALLS FOR SUPPORT OF ARIZONA HB2309:
PROTECT CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS AND PARENTAL RIGHTS 

March 23, 2022

PHOENIX, ARIZONA (March 23, 2022) – Currently in Arizona, children can be detained and interrogated by law enforcement without notifying the child’s parent or legal guardian. Also, children can be detained and interrogated without being read Miranda rights: “You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be held against you in the court of law. You have the right to an attorney. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be provided for you.”1

Eighty-six percent (86%) of Arizona House Representatives voted in support of HB23092 which would require law enforcement to “make a good faith effort to notify a juvenile’s parent, guardian, or custodian as soon as is practicable, unless doing so would pose a risk to the juvenile.”3 It would also require law enforcement “to advise a detained juvenile of the juvenile’s Miranda rights prior to questioning.”3

The NAACP fully supports “the Fourth Amendment which prohibits unreasonable searches and seizures and is the foundation for the protections included in our Miranda Rights.”1 

This Thursday, March 24th at 9:00 AM, the Arizona Senate Judiciary Committee will consider HB2309. We urge every resident to contact their state senators and demand they stand up for the fundamental principles of democracy, justice, and parental rights by voting YES on HB2309. Find your state senators’ names and contact information here: https://www.azleg.gov/findmylegislator/.

1. https://naacp.org/resources/criminal-justice-fact-sheet
2. https://apps.azleg.gov/BillStatus/BillOverview?id=76807
3. https://www.azleg.gov/legtext/55leg/2R/adopted/H.2309FloorJERMAINE.pdf 

Freedom Fighters, we work to disrupt inequality, dismantle racism, and accelerate change in key areas including criminal justice, health care, education, climate, and the economy. Join us at https://naacp.org/.

SHARED
Tuesday, March 15, 2022

East Valley NAACP – Arizona Contact: Kiana M. Sears, East Valley NAACP President | (480) 442-1222 | info@evnaacp.org

TWENTY-SIX NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATIONS AND INDIVIDUALS CALL FOR OPPOSITION OF
NEW JIM CROW BILLS 

March 15, 2022

This year, the Arizona Department of Corrections has requested $1.5 billion to manage the state prison system for one year, despite our state’s prison population being at its lowest levels since 2006. And yet, Arizona has the fifth-highest incarceration rate in the United States.

Arizona’s failing prison system doles out lengthy punishments with very limited opportunities for rehabilitation, and many of the bills under consideration will move our state backwards and continue to increase our prison population. We urge Arizona lawmakers to create a safe and just Arizona for all by voting against bills that waste our tax dollars and bloat our prison systems without reducing crime. Instead, we can pursue an agenda committed to promoting public safety by reducing harms to our communities, providing treatment for persons suffering from mental illness and substance abuse disorder, and ensuring access to affordable housing.

While there have been several reform-minded measures considered in the past few years, including this session, which could have aided in removing redundancy and allocated resources toward programs that reduce recidivism, the bills that remain active today are those that serve to increase penalties and extend prison sentences. It is for this reason that we are sounding the alarm.

Bills that would increase mandatory minimums or propose the creation of new offenses that are duplicative of other parts of the criminal code must be rejected. It is surprising to see Arizona politicians doubling down on what we know now is a failed approach. Studies have shown for some time now that mandatory minimum sentences do not reduce crime, are not cost effective, and exacerbate racial disparities. Yet, the following bills increase criminal penalties, and thereby the burden on taxpayers and our prison system by adding excessive, additional and/or unnecessary offenses to the criminal code:

SB 1001: Expands the already very broad crime of theft by extortion which has a mandatory sentence of 1.5 – 3 years in prison.

SB 1251: Expands the definition of armed robbery, which carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 7-21 years (depending on the person’s record).

SB 1311/HB 2635:  Makes any assault against a healthcare worker a felony with a mandatory minimum of 3 months in prison regardless of whether the worker was injured.

SB 1379: Makes transporting undocumented persons up to a Class 4 felony punishable by 1.5 – 3 years in prison if the person transporting them knows they are here unlawfully.

SB 1445: Expands the smuggling statute to create mandatory minimums of up to 10-24 years for refugees bringing their children to Arizona.

SB 1633: Criminalizes investigations conducted for a legitimate purpose by defining them as criminal harassment punishable by up to six months in jail.

HB 2021: Imposes a 10-29 year sentence for a new “homicide” offense that does not require any intent to kill.

HB 2251: Creates a mandatory minimum of 3-7 years in prison (depending on the person’s record) for a newly-created assault that is already covered by existing law.

HB 2319: Criminalizes First-Amendment-protected activity, recording law enforcement, as a petty or misdemeanor offense even when there is no interference with police.

HB 2322: Vaguely and broadly expands the crime of “hazing,” which could result in a class 1 misdemeanor and up to 6 months in jail.

HB 2324: Creates a new misdemeanor, punishable by up to six months in jail, for having a minor in a building where someone is preparing for an animal fight.

HB 2343: Creates the new crime of interfering with a crime scene, punishable by up to four months in jail, which is broad enough to violate the First Amendment.

HB 2355: Increases the mandatory minimum sentence to 25 years to life for anyone tried as an adult and convicted of the second-degree murder of a minor less than 15 years old (which includes reckless conduct in addition to an intentional killing).

HB 2696: Increases the mandatory sentence to 39-111 years for anyone tried as an adult and convicted of a dangerous crime against children in the first degree (which includes a serious fight between high school students).

We urge lawmakers to move away from this piecemeal approach to modifying criminal laws and look at system-wide solutions, including identifying innovative and effective policies that do not rely on systems of punishment but instead support communities and actually work to reduce crime. We request lawmakers to vote “No” on any bill expanding our criminal code and mandatory minimum sentencing, which perpetuates ineffective “tough-on-crime” politics that only fill prisons.

Instead, lawmakers should embrace “smart-on-crime” policies that improve public safety and to invest in mental health care, substance abuse counseling, and other support that help reduce crime, prevent recidivism and offer a far greater return on investment than prison ever will. 

Signed,

Arizona Faith Network 

Arizona Justice Alliance

African American Christian Clergy Coalition

Just Communities Arizona

Justice Java

Arizonans for Rational Sex Offense Laws

Sue Braga

ACLU of Arizona

Arizona Coalition to End Sexual and Domestic Violence

The S.T.A.R.T. Project

Central Arizona National Lawyers Guild 

Death Penalty Alternatives for Arizona

Law Enforcement Action Partnership

Arizona State Conference NAACP

Deborah North

League of Women Voters Arizona

Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Phoenix

East Valley – Arizona NAACP (1008-B)

National Council of Jewish Women Arizona

Jewish Community Relations Council of Southern Arizona

Arizona Attorneys for Criminal Justice

Sonoran Prevention Works

Charlene Schwickrath

Activate 48

William E. Morris Institute for Justice

Living United for Change in Arizona

Freedom Fighters, we work to disrupt inequality, dismantle racism, and accelerate change in key areas including criminal justice, health care, education, climate, and the economy. Join us at https://naacp.org/.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Monday, January 25, 2022

Contact: Kiana M. Sears, East Valley NAACP President | (480) 442-1222 | info@evnaacp.org

EAST VALLEY – ARIZONA NAACP (1008-B) CALLS FOR COMMUNITY ACTION TO SUPPORT ARIZONA HB-2033:
END JUVENILE COURT ADMINISTRATIVE FINES AND FEES IN ARIZONA

January 25, 2022

MESA, ARIZONA (January 25, 2022) – Because juvenile court administrative fines and fees cause disproportionate, undue, and long-lasting hardships for low-income families who already struggle financially, the East Valley-Arizona NAACP agrees with a wide range of groups and individuals who support HB-2033, which would end non-punitive administrative fines and fees in Arizona.

Data from research studies document that court administrative fees lead to cycles of poverty and incarceration with minimal revenue for the government. In some states, the cost of collecting administrative fees can actually exceed the revenue. For the poor, the debt can have long-term negative economic consequences–a form of injustice.

We call upon Arizona legislators to support HB-2033, because, as the bill’s sponsor, State Representative Walt Blackman (R-Snowflake), observes, “Doing this would go a long way to help young people in turning their lives around for the better.”

We call upon the community to honor the work of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., who worked tirelessly for justice, including economic justice, by contacting their state legislators to urge them to support HB-2033 and documenting their support in the Request to Speak system.

“There is nothing new about poverty. What is new, however, is that we now have the resources to get rid of it.” (Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.)

Freedom Fighters, we work to disrupt inequality, dismantle racism, and accelerate change in key areas including criminal justice, health care, education, climate, and the economy. Join us at evnaacp.org.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Monday, January 10, 2022

Contact: Kiana M. Sears, East Valley NAACP President | (480) 442-1222 | info@evnaacp.org

EAST VALLEY – ARIZONA NAACP (1008-B) CALLS FOR DAY OF ACTION
TO SUPPORT VOTING RIGHTS LEGISLATION AND END THE JIM CROW FILIBUSTER

January 10, 2022

MESA, ARIZONA (January 10, 2022) – Citing Arizona’s “draconian” voting rights legislation, the family of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. plans to rally supporters in Phoenix on January 15, the date of King’s birthday, “to restore the very voting rights protections my father and countless other civil rights leaders bled to secure,” Martin Luther King III stated, adding that they “will not accept empty promises in pursuit of my father’s dream for a more equal and just America” (Veronica Stracqualursi, CNN).

The NAACP considers voting rights to be the cornerstone of our work. “The East Valley NAACP is committed to protecting the right to vote. I take this commitment very seriously because my ancestors bled and died so that I could have access to vote. The right to vote ensures that election results represent the will of the people—all people” (Kiana M. Sears, President of the East Valley NAACP).

We call upon the community to honor Dr. Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. by continuing his work. Call Senator Kyrsten Sinema and Mark Kelly at 202-224-3121 and tell them,
“No Celebration without Legislation. Deliver on voting rights now. Support the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act of 2021 (H.R.4), the Freedom to Vote Act of 2021 (S.2747), and end the Jim Crow filibuster.”

“The vote is the most powerful instrument ever devised by human beings for breaking down injustice and destroying the terrible walls which imprison people because they are different from others” (Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.)

Freedom Fighters, we work to disrupt inequality, dismantle racism, and accelerate change in key areas including criminal justice, health care, education, climate, and the economy. Join us at evnaacp.org.