'They are worthy to carry it:' Lorain NAACP keynote reminds leaders to pass the baton to next generation

LORAIN — The Rev. Duane Anderson Sr. reminded members of the Lorain NAACP that they need to rise up in the face of oppression, but not be afraid to sit down and let the next generation take the lead. Anderson delivered the keynote speech for the group's 37th annual membership luncheon Saturday. In a time of division and war, no one can be an advocate by themselves, he told those gathered at Mount Zion Baptist Church. Advocacy, as a commitment to fostering change, takes unity, he said. While the NAACP is a civic organization, Anderson said, he could not deliver his speech without Scripture — first quoting the Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 12:12 in reminding the organization that the body has many members. "We have to understand in order for us to be united. We have to embrace our diversity," he said. Every individual gift should be viewed as a resource, each part integral to the body as a whole, he said. He asked who in attendance still had a pager or rotary phone — and while NAACP President Earl Head raised his hand for the latter, few responded "In order for us to move forward, the change that comes has to be operated, has to be fostered by those that are proficient in that change. And sometimes us oldheads … we gotta let it go," Anderson said. The next generation, and sometimes the technology it holds, is needed to move forward and foster change. "To rise up in advocacy, we need to understand the bigger picture. This involves seeing beyond our individual goals and recognizing the ultimate goals," he said. "We have to understand that we've got to get guidance to get where we're going … we cannot create our own direction when the head (of the body) is going in a different one." Guidance from God, he said, can navigate those challenges with wisdom and clarity, and allow leadership to sit down and figure out which direction to go. There will be detours at times, he acknowledged, but that does not mean they are not moving forward. "Write the vision down, make it plain," he said, adding that advocacy requires vision. "... So you have something to follow again." He reminded the group to uplift the marginalized and give a voice to the voiceless. "Advocacy requires us to stand with the oppressed and fight for their rights," he said. "We gotta fight if we're gonna do this thing called advocacy — if we're going to have our youth rise up, they're going to need to know that somebody's got their back. They've got to know that by seeking justice and correcting oppression we fulfill our role as members of this organization. This commitment involves both words and action." "In short," Anderson said, "the Edmund Pettus Bridge." The bridge, named for a Confederate general and leader in the Alabama Ku Klux Klan, was the site of Bloody Sunday beatings of civil rights marchers in Selma, Alabama, in March 1965. The Selma to Montgomery march for voting rights saw hundreds of civil rights protesters link arms and attempt to cross the bridge only to be beaten by state and local law enforcement. Anderson referenced the unity and solidarity shown those decades ago. In the early days of the NAACP, they understood the fight, he said. But the game has changed — no longer fighting in streets, but on Capitol Hill, in schools, and with predatory lenders, he said. "When we talk about rising up, talk about the next generation rising up, that means somebody's got to sit down," he said. "... It's time to turn it over, it's time to take a step down. … They've got the energy, they've got the intelligence, they know about these wireless stuff, they know some things that will carry us — pass the baton. They are worthy to carry it." Contact Carissa Woytach at (440) 329-7245 or cwoytach@chroniclet.com.