Background
In the spring of 2003, the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational
Fund (LDF) launched a year-long initiative to raise awareness
about the unfinished business and unfulfilled promise of the
landmark Brown v. Board of Education decision. The
initiative highlighted the noble promise of the Brown decision
during its 50th anniversary year, shed light on why that promise
has yet to be fulfilled, and called on Americans to act to ensure
that the principles of Brown were fully implemented. LDF sought
Douglas Gould and Co.’s assistance in developing messages
for the campaign and creating strategies to reach journalists,
policymakers and the general public.
Approach
Douglas Gould and Co. conducted a media outreach campaign to
publicize a press conference, which kicked off the LDF campaign,
"Red, White, Blue and Brown: Why Brown v. Board of Education
Matters to All Americans," in May 2003 at the National
Press Club in Washington.
In addition to conducting ongoing media outreach on behalf
of the LDF spokespeople and directors, Douglas Gould and Co. produced print and radio public service ads publicizing
the campaign and a gala awards ceremony honoring the anniversary
of the Brown decision, which took place in May 2004. We recruited
celebrities—including Cicely Tyson, Phylicia Rashad,
Ossie Davis, Ruby Dee and Savion Glover—as well as handled
set design, music and visuals for the event. We also produced
a documentary video of the event for LDF’s archives.
Results
The kick-off press conference in 2003 garnered coverage in
the Boston Globe, the Washington Post, the
Alameda Times Star, the Courier-Journal,
States News Service, Washington Hispanic,
La Nacion, Hispanic Link News Service, EFE
News Service (the largest Spanish news service in the
world and the fourth largest wire service in the world), and
on WACA-AM and National Public Radio's "Tavis Smiley
Show.” As a result of this outreach effort, LDF demonstrated
to a wide audience from diverse communities across the country
that the promise of Brown has not yet been fulfilled. Media
outreach for LDF led to editorial board meetings with both
the Kansas City Star and Orlando Sentinel,
and print ads have appeared in such publications as Time,
Entertainment Weekly, Essence and Black
Enterprise.
For more information on "Red, White, Blue and Brown:
Why Brown v. Board of Education Matters to All Americans,"
visit www.brownmatters.org.
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The unfulfilled
promise of Brown v. Board of Education
