On Tuesday, February 21, Citizens for Judicial Fairness and Reverend Al Sharpton will host a Black History Month dinner at the Wilmington Police Athletic League alongside local activists, elected officials, and concerned Delawareans to discuss racial justice and judicial equity in the state of Delaware.
The keynote speaker for the event will be Rev. Al Sharpton, a civil rights activist and founder of the National Action Network. Sharpton will speak about the importance of diversity and equity in the judiciary, and the ongoing struggle for civil rights in America. He will also press Gov. John Carney to fill the two vacancies on Delaware’s Supreme Court with justices of color.
Sharpton, an MSNBC cable TV host, has close ties with Citizens, which has been pressing for Black members of Chancery Court.
Additional speakers at the event will include police reform activist and founder of the Jeremy McDole Police Reform campaign Keandra McDole, and Wilmington City Council member Shané Darby.
Event partners include 302 Guns Down, a grassroots organization committed to ending gun violence in Delaware through community engagement and education, Black Mothers in Power, a grassroots organization of Black mothers who are dedicated to addressing issues impacting Black families in Delaware, and Jeremy McDole Police Reform, a community-led organization that advocates for police reform and accountability in memory of Jeremy McDole, a Black man who was fatally shot by Wilmington police in 2015.
Citizens was formed out of the controversial Chancery Court-brokered sale of New York City translation services company TransPerfect, when the 50-50 partners and former fiancees could not agree on a buyout. The organization took issue with fees paid a custodian and other actions of Chancery Court
It has since moved on to press for more people of colorin the state’s judiciary.