Occasionally a leader emerges whose journey is about more than personal achievement, it becomes a symbol of progress, possibility, and purpose for an entire community. Such is the case with Cynthia Mitchell Heard, President and CEO of the Los Angeles Urban League (Los Angeles, CA.  

As the first woman to lead the organization in nearly a century of service, Heard is not simply making history; she is building upon it. Her leadership reflects a powerful truth: when preparation meets purpose, barriers become bridges and legacies are expanded for future generations. 

Tuesday (June 23) was a milestone day for the Indianapolis Urban League (Indianapolis, IN), which is the local chapter of a national organization that serves communities of color with basic needs, housing and food assistance, as well as scholarships for students.

The Indianapolis Urban League is celebrating 60 years of service, and held its annual Equal Opportunity Day Awards luncheon.

WISH-TV’s Gina Glaros and WRTV’s Derricke Dennis teamed up to emcee the event, which featured keynote speaker Stacey Abrams, a voting rights activist and politician from Georgia who talked voter supression, the threat of redistricting, and how Indiana state lawmakers recently voted against redrawing Indiana’s congressional maps.

Families across Essex County have an opportunity to keep their children engaged in learning this summer through a free STEAM camp hosted by the Urban League of Essex (Newark, NJ) County’s Tech House.

The six-week program, running from July 6 through August 14, is open to Essex County students ages 11, 12, and 13 and will be held Monday through Friday from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Designed to introduce students to valuable technology and career-focused skills, the camp will feature hands-on instruction in 3D printing, filmmaking, coding, and mathematics. 

Organizers say the program is intended to inspire creativity, strengthen problem-solving skills, and prepare young learners for future educational and career opportunities in science and technology.

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As our nation marks its 250th anniversary, the National Urban League invites you to participate in a social media storm on the Fourth of July to amplify the America 250: Guide for Defending Democracy, launched by the National Urban League's Demand Diversity Roundtable, and drive audiences to the new Demand Diversity Roundtable website, DemandDiversityNow.com. The website will go live on July 1 and serve as a hub for partners and community members to access resources, stay informed, and engage with our collective work.

Marc H. Morial 
President and CEO
National Urban League

ST. LOUIS, MO (June 22, 2025) — The National Urban League and the National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc. today announced a landmark partnership to strengthen civic engagement and expand voter mobilization efforts ahead of the 2026 election cycle.

Through a newly executed Memorandum of Understanding, the two organizations will collaborate to scale the Reclaim Your Vote campaign, a nonpartisan initiative focused on increasing voter participation, protecting voting rights, and empowering Black communities and other underserved populations.

As Alabama prepares for special elections later this summer and a general election this fall, civil rights leaders are urging voters not to let confusion over redistricting and election changes keep them from participating in the democratic process.

The Urban League of Alabama (Birmingham, AL) and the Metro Birmingham NAACP hosted a Juneteenth town hall Thursday evening titled “Collective Action: Our Voice, Our Vote, Our Future.” The event brought together community leaders, elected officials, faith leaders and residents for a nonpartisan discussion about voter mobilization, civic engagement and the issues shaping communities across the state.

Organizers said the timing of the event was intentional.

The same message just a week apart from the Tallahassee Urban League (Tallahassee, FL).

“To our young people, don’t give in to peer pressure. Just because your friends are going don’t mean that you need to go,” said Urban League President and CEO, Curtis Taylor.

Taylor stood in front of dozens of elected officials and law enforcement, once again asking for the community to work towards a reduction of gun violence.

Taylor stood in front of the same lectern a week earlier, asking parents to pay particular attention to where their kids were spending the wee hours of the night.

Several shootings have taken place at so-called ‘pop-up parties’ in Tallahassee the past few weeks.

Thursday (June 18th), the Urban League noted the last week had been quiet and thanked the Tallahassee Police Department, the Leon County Sheriff’s Office and others for their work to make that happen.

The three-day Juneteenth “Stronger Together” celebration, put on by The Akron Urban League (Akron, OH) Akron NAACP and Freedom BLOC, culminated Saturday afternoon (June 20th) in the parking lot of the Akron Urban League in Sherbondy Hill with a stage with live entertainment, vendors, food trucks and family activities.

Earlier in the week, the celebration included a food distribution on Wednesday, a conversation about solidarity economies on Friday and the 50th annual West Akron Parade on Saturday morning.

Juneteenth is a federal holiday celebrated on June 19. It marks June 19, 1865, when enslaved African Americans in Galveston, Texas, learned of their emancipation, more than two years after President Abraham Lincoln signed a proclamation giving enslaved people their freedom.

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