2 minute read
SYNERGY - Evelyn Foxx
Story By: STAFF WRITER
Many people of color can personally attest to the discrimination and unfounded hatred that can come just by the nature of their existence. Evelyn Foxx has shared these experiences, and even has a familial history of racial persecution that has inspired her to build herself up and lead a structure that fights for equality.
Advertisement
Raised in Liberty County, Georgia, an aptly named jurisdiction, Foxx grew up in a community that nurtured her into a leader.
“Mary Baggs, my 1st grade teacher, saw leadership qualities in me that I didn’t see. Her insight awoke a hidden passion in me. I am forever grateful for her encouragement.”
This teacher brought her to her very first NAACP meeting when Foxx was just 10 years old. She has since been involved in the organization for 60 years. She began as the president of her local branch, and upon moving to Gainesville 30 years ago, she immediately became a member of the Alachua County branch. She was the Vice President of the Alachua County NAACP for 10 years and in 2009, she was elected President, a position she has held since.
“Serving the people of the community to assure that everyone receives equal treatment is profoundly important to me. Equal treatment implies equity, and that’s the goal to which we in the NAACP dedicate ourselves. When we can help someone who has been unjustly treated, we feel sincerely grateful for the opportunity. I stand firm on the mission of the NAACP, which is to eradicate discrimination, injustice, and ensure justice for all people.”
Foxx has had firsthand experience with racism that has affirmed her decision to work in social justice.
“If the fight for justice is brought to you, you must do your best. Be very brave. We have to work with the authorities and persevere. The color of one’s skin gives no one the right to harass or threaten. The more we fight for justice, the fewer the atrocities.”
This is why Foxx works as hard as she does to achieve equity and justice for all people of color. She intimately understands the reasons for the extrajudicial protections that the NAACP provides, and she toils diligently to deliver these services.
“When I am in the community, advocating issues that affect people, those are some of my proudest moments. In the past I received many awards. I am grateful. These were great honors, though, it always seemed unfair that I was recognized when so many others helped me. Whatever is seen as my success in NAACP is owed to the organization’s generous and hard-working members with whom I’ve had the privilege to serve.”
As you can see, she is also humble. She knows that victories take an army, not just a commander. And her entire life, this has been her refrain: to help others, a calling she believes is divinely ordained.
“I want everyone to remember me as a community servant. Dr. Martin Luther King said, ‘Everybody can be great, because anybody can serve.’ That has been my principle guideline in life.”
-Evelyn Foxx
