AN
UNDERGRADUATE NEWS
The Third Annual North Carolina Divine Nine Legislative Day was held on May 16th in Raleigh, NC. Approximately 900 attendees convened on Halifax Mall in the NC Government Complex for the larg- est attendance in its young history. Past Province Polemarch Carlos D. Watson was one of the architects in creating this event four years ago. It has grown and caught the attention of the Divine Nine across the nation. As a result, other states are planning similar events in their capital cities. This year was the first year that all of The Divine Nine national leadership was in attendance. Also, this year was unique because it was held in proximity of the NC Public Schools Day of Advocacy also known as “The March for Students.” This march had over 25,000 participants and coverage from the national media. Although these events briefly overlapped, the NC Divine Nine Legislative Day was not to be overshadowed. The day before the VIPs made stops at the campuses of Shaw University and Saint Augustine’s
University. They ended the day by being hosted by Governor Roy Cooper at the Governor’s Mansion. The Legislative Day was more than bringing the Divine Nine together in front of guests from the NC Government. There needed to be attention given to many topics that affect our interests. As Province Polemarch Michael Brown stated, “Just now is the time that we must come together for our voices to be heard.” The topics of interest ranged from voting to education. The day started with breakfast and introductions by Antonio F. Knox, 40 th Grand Basileus of Omega Psi Phi Fra- ternity, Incorporated—this year’s Official Host for the event. The next four hours of the event included various guest from NC Government and the Divine Nine. Guests from State Government included members of NC Black Caucus, Repre- sentative Tim Moore who is the current “Speaker of the House” for the NC House of Representatives, and 6th Dis- trict Representative Melvin Mitchell. The
Governor of North Carolina, the Honor- able Roy Cooper, spoke on education and voter rights. Many of the speakers had a common message of coming together as a team to address issues that affect our state. The Divine Nine speakers included Garner Road Community Center CEO Johnson of Delta Sigma Theta Soror- ity Inc. who was a first hand witness to the effect on our youth. Our 33 rd Grand Polemarch Thomas L. Battles Jr addressed the crowd along with some of the other Divine Nine leadership. The day conclud- ed with an open lunch discussion. The success of this event will hope- fully continue to build and see advance- ments in each of the topics that we seek to be addressed. We do know that we have the foundation to help support these efforts. As Brother Vaden Whitaker, The Middle Eastern Province Political Action Chairman said, “The Divine nine needs to start using our strength in numbers and resources to influence outcomes of local elections.”
By Quentin Mitchell, Province Reporter
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