2019 WELCOME & VISION Welcome to the website of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) Des Moines Branch. As the oldest branch of the NAACP in Iowa, we are honored to uphold the traditions and responsibilities of the nation’s oldest grassroots civil rights organization. As a national organization, the NAACP is more than a half-million members and supporters throughout the United States and the world. We are seen as the premier advocates for civil rights and are charged with campaigning for equal opportunity and mobilizing voters to ensure our issues are at the forefront locally, statewide, and nationally. The NAACPs principal objective is to ensure political, educational, social and economic equality of minority citizens of the United States and to eliminate race and prejudice. In 2012, as a member of the National Board of Directors for the NAACP, I participated in creating a strategic plan for the NAACP that laid out our core focus areas as an organization; our Game Changers: Economic Sustainability Education Health Public Safety and Criminal Justice Voting Rights and Political Representation Expanding Youth and Young Adult Engagement These six Game Changers will be the basis of our work here in Des Moines as we seek to remove all barriers of racial discrimination through the democratic process. Iowa, and Des Moines in particular, has a rich history of progressiveness when it comes to many issues, however, our work is not complete. People of color in our city still face severe disparities which have been outlined in the One Economy report on the Status of African and African Americans in Polk County. The NAACP, in concert with many other organizations, will continue to fight for better education for our children, safer communities, ending the cradle to prison pipeline through prison reform, stopping racial profiling, healthcare reform and an end to racism and so much more. 12 to prison pipeline through prison reform, stopping racial profiling, healthcare reform and an end to racism and so much more. In my first term as President, it is my promise to all citizens of Des Moines and Polk County that I will fight for you. But this is work I cannot do alone. If you are an advocate for any of the causes mentioned above, I strongly encourage you to become a member of our branch and more importantly, I ask for you to join a committee and join in our fight for freedom. Membership is the lifeblood of this organization and with your support, we can eradicate hate and discrimination wherever it stands. Sincerely, Kameron Middlebrooks President NAACP Des Moines
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