Black History Month

Feb 22, 2018 African-American Leadership Council communities

C&C’s newly formed African-American Leadership council came together for a two-day retreat, and some of our movement’s standout black advocates received recognition throughout the month.   

“We want to change the way the African-American community approaches the end of life,” says Compassion & Choices National Constituency Director Brandi Alexander, who hosted our African-American Leadership Council (AALC) in D.C. for two days of meetings with lawmakers and strategic planning. Created to educate disproportionately underserved black Americans on end-of-life issues, the Leadership Council aims to also develop recommendations for C&C to better engage with and empower them. Membership includes 10 accomplished advocates representing a range of backgrounds and perspectives.

Several members of the AALC were also featured in a series of profiles distributed organization wide that highlighted the outstanding contributions of black advocates toward furthering the end-of-life choice movement.

Alexander along with Donna Smith of our D.C. team participated in a number of other events throughout the month as well. They took part in activities with the National Black Nurses Association, including a lobbying day and dinner with dozens of nurses from around the country, and met with leadership at the African-American Mayors Association, which is interested in partnering with C&C around end-of-life planning and education. Alexander and Smith also attended supporter Rev. Paul Smith’s autobiography book signing in New York City as a part of Macy’s Black History Month series. C&C and the reverend’s work with the organization are highlighted in the book, which was acknowledged at the event.

Learn more about our African-American Leadership Council, including a list of the members, here.