Dubuque Branch NAACP

THE DUBUQUE BRANCH of the NAACP was chartered in 1989. Since 2014, meetings have been held on the 2nd Wednesday of each month at 5:30 p.m. at the Multicultural Family Center in the Ruby Sutton Building, so named in 2016. The first Dubuque NAACP Freedom Fund Banquet was held in November 1989 and an award was given to Ruby Sutton. This has become the annual Ruby Sutton Award, given to a person who has made special contributions to the work and ideals of the branch. The D.O.M.E. (Developing & demanding One’s Mental Excellence) Minority Student Athlete of the Year Award has been presented since 2015 to a student of color who has shown hard work not only in their respective sport(s) but in the classroom as well. The funds for this award comes from NAACP Endowed Scholarship for Minority Students at the Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque.

Over the years, Dubuque NAACP has been actively involved in community affairs. lts members have supported efforts promoting multicultural non-sexist education, established the Martin Luther King, Jr. tribute, supported the establishment of the Dubuque Council for Diversity and worked with the City of Dubuque and the Dubuque Human Rights Commission to establish the Dubuque Community Police Relations Committee / Dubuque Community City Relations Committee for handling cases of discrimination and harassment.