San Diego NAACP has diverse community links

Whoever said "talk is cheap" has never been to San Diego. With a population of 1.2 million, almost half of which is non-white, dialogue among San Diego residents of different ethnicities has never been more important For the San Diego NAACP, talk is one of its most effective tools.

"The branch wants to be in on the conversation, to give our input," explains Petrina Burnham, who became president of the San Diego branch in January 2001. So far, the branch has been a vocal force in several inter-ethnic issues in the city.

The San Diego branch, together with local chapters of the National Urban League and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), led the drive two years ago urging the San Diego Police Department to begin monitoring traffic stops. "The community is very much concerned about this issue of `driving while Black,"' Burnham acknowledges. Police began collecting demographic statistics in January 2000.

Sgt. Robert Lewis credits the branch's role as liaison between police and community for the department's initiation of the data collection project. "Having the NAACP involved brings concerns to our attention we wouldn't otherwise know about," he says. "This partnership is extremely important."

San Diego Police Chief David Bejarano agrees: "The NAACP and the Urban League expressed concern [about racial profiling]. Based on their input, we made the decision to collect data to better assess the situation. It was a first step. We will continue to work with the community to make sure people are stopped on the basis of law."

The San Diego NAACP also has responded to what the San Diego Housing Commission has called "the severity of the housing crisis" in the city. According to the commission, the median price for new single-family homes is $334,250; at this rate, only 24 percent of the city's population is able to purchase homes. Burnham adds that many of the remaining 76 percent are "people of color [who] can't afford to buy homes."

The branch presented possible remedies for the housing crisis at a homebuyers' workshop on Nov. 17. Representatives from the Urban League's housing program and Wells Fargo Bank were on hand to describe homebuying assistance programs. Many attendees discovered, as Burnham put it, that "even with credit problems, something was available for them."

The San Diego NAACP has hosted several other community forums. On Oct. 29, an employment law seminar drew representatives from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the California Fair Employment and Housing Department, and Leap Wireless to discuss resources for victims of employment discrimination. In preparation for March 2002 primary elections, the branch plans to coordinate a series of meetings in January and February that will focus on the political education and candidate forums.

The San Diego branch also is reaching out to youth and cultivating the next generation of leaders within its own ranks. The branch's W.E.B. Du Bois Leadership Institute for Young Black Scholars engages 25 youngsters aged 10-13 in field trips, meetings with local politicians and other community activities.

As the San Diego NAACP carries on in its efforts to seek solutions to community problems, Burnham notes that strengthening NAACP bonds with other ethnic organizations will be key. "It's important in California, because the population is really diverse," she says. "We're mindful of that, and we're trying to create relationships."

Developing links to other ethnic groups is one more way in which the San Diego NAACP reaches out to community members of all colors, ages and political levels to keep watch and keep talking.

- Frankie J. Petrosino

Copyright Crisis Publishing Company, Incorporated Nov/Dec 2001
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