This is in response to several letters and the Your Turn column comment regarding the Secret Witness billboard campaign called "Just one Call" [Voices, June 1].

One of the billboards discussed has a photo of a Pacific Islander and one has the photo of a black man's face behind bars (both were involved in local, sensational and cruel murders), and the intention is to encourage people to call Secret Witness with information about crimes. Many people in the community do not recognize the faces and just see a brown or a black man behind bars; they get the wrong message.

I recognize the men in the photos because I read the paper regularly and have lived in this community my entire life. A lot of people are not familiar with the images, and the photos detract from the purpose of the billboard: to get people to call Secret Witness with important information to help solve crimes.

If the billboard had large bold letters spelling out "Murderers, Rapists, Kidnappers" behind bars, I believe everyone would understand the purpose of the billboards.

One thing is clear about Secret Witness and Don Richter, its founder: They mean well and want to make our community safer. The photos used on the billboards are misunderstood by thousands of residents in the community who don't focus on calling Secret Witness, but instead feel offended and embarrassed.

I hope Mr. Richter and the board will reconsider and cover the photos with an image that does not hurt so many people and clearly delivers the message, "We must have the courage to take a risk and report very bad people."

The current billboards with these photos confuse people who do not recognize the images and the effect detracts from the real message.

The NAACP would like to work with Secret Witness in an advisory capacity to help provide a diverse perspective that enhances any organization. I do not feel a photo of James Biela on a billboard will do anything but hurt his mother, son and other family who have suffered enough from the shame of his despicable behavior.

The Reno-Sparks National Association for the Advancement of Colored People supports the work of Secret Witness and hopes its board and founder recognize that the "advancement of people of color to the point of equality" means being open to input from diverse parts of our community and understand those, including myself, who have been hurt by this well-intentioned effort.

Lonnie Feemster is president of the Reno Sparks NAACP.

I wrote the original letter to the editor and I appreciate the clarification, Mr. Richter.

I have been blasted left and right for writing the letter and honestly I would write it again.

I drive by the billboard seven days a week, and there is no 'name association' with the depiction. No one else that I asked (many, many Reno natives) were able to identify Middleton either.

Thank you for taking the time, I agree that Middleton is a true menace.

PrincessChampJen / 6-1-2010 12:15:27 p.m. PDT

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                
Contact: Lonnie Feemster, President
Phone:  (775) 329-2992

NAACP Reno-Sparks Branch Spearheads Local Public Awareness Campaign Recognizing Monday, May 31, 2010 as World No Tobacco Day

RENO – On Monday, May 31, 2010, World No Tobacco Day will be observed throughout the world. This global event is sponsored by the World Health Organization (WHO) as a worldwide public health campaign to raise awareness about the harmful and negative impact tobacco use and exposure has on smokers and those who are exposed to secondhand smoke. WHO has selected "Gender and tobacco with an emphasis on marketing to women" as the theme for this year’s event to encourage smokers and those who use other tobacco products to quit for at least a day.    

NAACP Reno-Sparks Branch President Lonnie Feemster said, “We are in full support of this global effort and will reach out to branch members, community partners and the community-at-large to educate them about the harmful, negative lifelong impact smoking has on those who smoke and/or use other tobacco products, their loved ones and the environment. We must work to inform family, friends and others about the importance of eliminating tobacco use particularly in communities that suffer disproportionately from tobacco related diseases.”

The U.S. Surgeon General has said that smoking remains the single most preventable cause of premature death in the United States. Use of and exposure to tobacco smoke is a primary risk factor for most chronic diseases, e.g., cancer, chronic lower respiratory disease (AKA, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or COPD), and stroke. Tobacco use is responsible for 21% of all coronary heart disease deaths; 30% of all cancer deaths; and 90% of deaths from COPD!  
Nationwide, African Americans and other people of color suffer disproportionately from tobacco-related illnesses such as asthma, diabetes, heart disease, and lung cancer. 

World No Tobacco Day (WNTD) is also a great time for smokers to prove to themselves that they can quit for a day; therefore, we are encouraging members and community partners who smoke to quit for a day in the hope they may decide to quit for good. This day also serves to reinforce to those who don’t smoke, to stay tobacco-free.

As a leading advocate in promoting health equity, the NAACP has established national health goals for its local branch units to address health disparities impacting people of color throughout the U.S. as well as in the State of Nevada. The NAACP Reno-Sparks branch is committed to educating and mobilizing our member-base and community partners towards eliminating health disparities to improve the health outcomes and the quality of life for all people of color, with emphasis on African Americans. 

To learn more about WNTD go to: http://www.who.int/tobacco/wntd/2010/en/index.html.  To find out what’s being done to combat tobacco use and exposure in Washoe County, Nevada, go to GetHealthyWashoe.com or contact Erin Dixon, Chronic Disease Program Coordinator, at the Washoe County Health District at (775) 328-2442.
 
For additional information regarding tobacco use and cancer, the toll-free telephone number for the American Cancer Society is 1-800-ACS-2345 or visit Cancer.org. The phone number to the Nevada Tobacco Users Helpline is 1-800-QUIT-NOW (1-800-784-8669). 

For information about other activities planned by the branch's health committee, contact Janet Serial, Health Committee Chair, or phone (775) 762-5203. 
                                                                                                                         
Founded in 1909, the NAACP is the nation’s oldest and largest civil rights organization.

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Reno-Sparks NAACP Announces Keynote Speaker and Award Winners

Annual Freedom Fund Awards Banquet May 22, 2010

Reno-Sparks, Nev., USA — Award-winning journalist Bob Butler will deliver the keynote address at the Reno-Sparks NAACP's 65th Annual Freedom Fund Awards Banquet on Saturday, May 22, 2010, at the Peppermill Resort-Spa-Casino in Reno. Reception begins at 6:00 p.m., dinner at 7:00 p.m.

Butler is a reporter at KCBS radio in San Francisco, a multimedia investigative reporter and owns an independent multimedia company. He is vice-president and national equal employment opportunity (EEO) chair on the board of the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists/AFL-CIO (AFTRA), helping improve job security and working conditions for broadcast journalists. His father lives in Reno.

Butler has won numerous awards for his reporting. He was part of the KCBS news team which won a George Foster Peabody Award for coverage of the 1989 earthquake. He has spent 10 years advocating for more diversity in the nation's radio and television newsrooms. Butler has spent a year-and-a-half as director of diversity for CBS Corporation, directing an apprenticeship program that trained the next generation of television newsroom managers. As the AFTRA national EEO chair, he is encouraging the Federal Communications Commission to stop further media consolidation to make it easier for minorities to own broadcast stations.

Service to young people is the common attribute among this year's Freedom Fund Award winners.

Honorees include Hug High School varsity basketball head coach Charles Walker, who has worked as a Hug High coach for 11 years and served as the site coordinator the Truckee Meadows Boys and Girls Club's Teen Center at Hug High; Pathfinders Christian Ministry which outreaches to homeless and disadvantaged youth; and Greater Light Christian Center church for its broadly based programs of public service.

The Freedom Fund Awards Banquet is the local organization's principal annual fundraiser. Table sponsorships start at $1,000 for corporations and are $600 for non-profit organizations. Individual tickets are $60 in advance or $65 at the door. For more information or tickets please call banquet Chair Lucille Adin at (775) 356-3563 or Dolores Feemster at (775) 323-3677.

The NAACP is the nation's leading civil rights organization and has been a champion in the civil rights movement over the past 100 years. The Reno-Sparks Branch was chartered in 1945.

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NOTES FROM KEYNOTE SPEAKER BOB BUTLER'S ADDRESS: Northern Nevada's population comprised of 22 percent minorities is not reflected on local media websites.

"A website doesn't tell you who's calling the shots," stated distinguished journalist Bob Butler in his keynote address to more than 230 attendees at the Reno-Sparks NAACP Freedom Fund Awards Banquet on May 22.

Butler, vice-president and national equal employment opportunity chair on the board of the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists/AFL-CIO, noted that of the major television networks, GE-owned NBC has the best record on diversity and Disney-owned ABC has the worst.

Of 61 network-owned TV stations, the average employment of "people of color" was one per station, Butler said.

IN MEMORIAM

Former president and lifetime member of the NAACP, Rev. Jesse D. Scott passed away on May 10, 2010, in Las Vegas, Nev. He was 90 years old. On behalf of Las Vegas NAACP Branch President Frank Hawkins, Jr. and Las Vegas Branch 1111, we ask that you keep Rev. Scott’s family in your prayers.

Visitation
Second Baptist Church
500 Madison Ave.
Las Vegas, NV 89106
Friday, May 21, 2010
5:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.

Services
Second Baptist Church
500 Madison Ave.
Las Vegas, NV 89106
Saturday, May 22, 2010
11:00 a.m.

Interment
Palms Mortuary
1325 N Main St.
Las Vegas, NV 89101

Reno-Sparks NAACP joins the Arizona NAACP State Conference to speak out against Arizona’s New Immigration Law

Reno/Sparks, Nev., USA (5-1-2010) – Reno-Sparks NAACP President Lonnie Feemster issued a statement and is a scheduled speaker at a rally in Pickett Park in Reno on Saturday morning, May 1, to speak out against SB1070.

This new law in Arizona gives local law enforcement the right to arrest anyone they suspect is in the country illegally. Gov. Jan Brewer signed SB1070 into Arizona law on Friday, April 23.

“The law is an outrage and we are going to continue to do whatever we can to support the citizens of Arizona who are impacted by its unfairness. The law opens the door and empowers local law enforcement to legally use racial profiling to target entire communities,” stated President Feemster.

NAACP policy calls the new law “a violation of the respect for human rights that is the moral standard of our nation and it threatens the safety of us all; both immigrants and citizens will be fearful of reporting crimes to police.  The law unwisely redirects the role of the Federal Immigration and Naturalization Department to local police officers diverting local resources from fighting crime to investigating undocumented people who might be in this country.”

President Feemster adds that “this law rolls the clock back on civil rights protections in this country. The passage of SB1070 is an embarrassment to the equal protection clause in the U.S. Constitution, and is a stain on the United States' reputation of fairness and justice. “

From the national NAACP office in Baltimore, Maryland, Chairman Roslyn M. Brock sent a statement to branches across the country stating “the NAACP has fought for more than 100 years to ensure that basic rights and freedoms would be equally extended to all.  It is disheartening to see the state of Arizona enact a law that tramples on the civil rights of Hispanic persons, and one that cannot be enforced without resorting to racial and ethnic profiling. We intend to use the full weight of our 2,200 branches and units to ensure that this law is repealed and does not happen in other states across this nation.”

Reno-Sparks Branch President Feemster stated “the NAACP’s position on this issue is clear.  The new law effectively legalizes the incendiary practice of racial profiling and will adversely affect communities of color across Arizona. Moreover, it sets a dangerous precedent for other states to follow suit and pass similar discriminatory measures.”

Founded in 1909, the NAACP is the nation's oldest and largest civil rights organization. Its members throughout the United States and the world are the premier advocates for civil rights in their communities, conducting voter mobilization and monitoring equal opportunity in the public and private sectors.

Nevada NAACP branches rely on Senator Reid’s voting record

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 10, 2010

In a statement, both the Las Vegas and Reno branches of the NAACP have each received calls of apology from Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., regarding his comments assessing President Obama’s candidacy. We believe his apology should be accepted for the words he used. One need only look at Sen. Reid’s proven record of leadership on civil rights and social justice to know where his heart truly lies. Throughout his career in public service, his voting record has earned the NAACP Washington DC Bureau’s highest ratings on the issues of critical importance to the African American community. 

The NAACP is a non-partisan organization and does not endorse candidates. We look forward to continue working with Sen. Reid on the important issues such as equality, economic opportunity, education and ensuring quality, affordable health care for all Americans.

NAACP Reno Sparks Branch #1112 is led by Lonnie L. Feemster  and NAACP Las Vegas Branch #1111 is led by Frank Hawkins, Jr. 

President Feemster may be reached at (775) 322-2992. President Hawkins may be reached at (702) 638-1300.

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