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Feb. 12, 2022

In February 12, 1909, the NAACP was founded.

In February 12, 1909, the NAACP was founded.

In February 12, 1909, the NAACP was founded. The NAACP is a civil rights organization created as an interracial endeavor to fight for injustice against African Americans. The NAACP is the largest and one of most widely recognized civil rights organizations in the United States.

In 1908 in Springfield, Illinois, two Black men were being held in a Springfield jail for alleged rape and murder. When a mob discovered the sheriff had transferred the men to a jail in another city, the white mob turned their anger to Springfield’s Black residential district. 

After the race riot in Springfield, there was a push for an effective civil rights organization in the U.S. This led to Mary White Ovington, Oswald Garrison Villard, William English Walling and Dr. Henry Moscowitz issuing a call for a meeting to on racial justice. 

They sent out solicitations for support to more than 60 prominent Americans including several African Americans. They set a meeting date for February 12, 1909, The 100th anniversary of President Abraham Lincoln's birthday.

The NAACP was later incorporated in 1911, Their mission:  "to ensure the political, educational, social, and economic equality of rights of all persons and to eliminate race-based discrimination".