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A project of Common Dreams

For Immediate Release
Contact: Phone: (202) 463-2940,Email:,washingtonbureau@naacpnet.org

Statement of NAACP Leaders on the Passing of Noted Historian And Spingarn Medalist John Hope Franklin

WASHINGTON

NAACP Chairman Julian Bond and NAACP President and CEO Benjamin Todd
Jealous released the following statement on the passing of noted
historian and activist John Hope Franklin:

America has lost a real treasure with the death of John Hope Franklin.
He was a pioneer in democratizing American history, giving black
Americans a proper place in the development of the United States. His
magnificent work,
From Slavery to Freedom,
insures people of color will not be forgotten when the American story
is told. He was more than America's most prominent historian - his
civic activism set a high standard for academics, marching in Selma,
serving on numerous commissions and advising presidents. He is
irreplaceable and will be much missed.

John Hope Franklin was the 1995 recipient of the NAACP Spingarn Medal,
the Association's highest honor, given for distinguished merit and
achievement among Americans of African descent.

Founded Feb. 12. 1909, the NAACP is the nation's oldest, largest and most widely recognized grassroots-based civil rights organization. Its more than half-million members and supporters throughout the United States and the world are the premier advocates for civil rights in their communities, conducting voter mobilization and monitoring equal opportunity in the public and private sectors.