Maybe AB Owes The NAACP An Apology... Maybe Not.

Maybe I should lay off the NAACP after all. I've repeatedly bashed this old guard outfit without even bothering to see what they're claiming to be about nowadays. Turns out even their own mission statement says they're by nature a reactive organization.

Our Mission: Ensure the political, educational, social, and economic equality of rights of all persons and to eliminate racial hatred and racial discrimination.

I had to navigate their very cryptically organized website, complete with lots of dead and recursive (pages that link to themselves) links, but there it was.

That said, maybe I should give them a pass. Despite whatever they might have done back in the days, they're pretty adamantly stating that their job is not to raise your child, but if he gets busted breaking in someone's house, don't hesitate to give them a ring. I'll have to file that one away in the mental Rolodex.

If you're an NAACP member (and I don't mean 20 years ago, I mean now) and would like to defend the merits of this venerable organization, you know what to do and where to do it.

Also found on their website: a rather cryptic petition to boycott Target.

For the third year in a row, Target has refused to participate in the NAACP’s annual survey on the state of diversity in corporate America, making them the largest retailer to refuse to answer questions about their company’s diversity practices.

Last week, thousands of NAACP supporters like you helped send a clear message to Target that economic opportunity for African Americans must be a priority.

Now, as we enter the holiday shopping season, we need you to help us turn up the heat on Target. We need 100,000 people to sign the petition telling Target to Answer the Question.

Seriously, WTH!??!

Where are black folks s'posed to throw away three months pay on meaningless crap that won't matter three months from now shop for Christmas? KMart? No thanks. Been there, done that. Not going back.

This looks like another shakedown. I'm sure Target will eventually come out in support of this survey, and subsequently announce they're establishing a new scholarship or internship program or some such nonsense to get the NAACP off their back. I guess this is good in the grand scheme of things, but there's probably easier ways of pulling this off.

Mary White Ovington is crying inside.

NAACP Mission Statement