Black Organizations Withdraw Conventions Following Board of Education Attack on Black History
In recent news, national renowned African American fraternity, Alpha Phi Alpha etc. recently announced they will not host their annual convention in Florida following the controversies surrounding the state’s Board of Education’s recent implications of African Americans benefiting from slavery at the hands of Governor Ron DeSantis.
The 116 year old fraternity organization announced the decision in late July in a press release at the 117th convention held in Dallas, Texas.
Writer Josh Nelson, in his 2023 article for The New York Post, “Black Fraternity Pulls Convention and Its ‘Projected $4.6M Impact’ Out of Florida Over ‘Harmful, Racist Policies’”, writes, “the Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity General President Dr. Willis, L. Lonzer, III announced on July 26th at a current convention on Thursday the relocation of the Fraternity’s 99th General Convention and 119th Anniversary Convention from Orlando, Florida, which was scheduled to take place in 2025.”
The convention was set to bring in a projected $4.6 million dollars for Florida according to a statement from Fraternity President Willis Lonzer III. In an 2023 article for CBS News, “Black Fraternity and Engineers Group Pull Conventions Out of Florida, Over State’s “Racist Policies”, Lonzer stated, “In this environment of manufactured division and attacks on the Black community, Alpha Phi Alpha refuses to direct a projected $4.6 million convention economic impact to a place hostile to the communities we serve… although we are moving our convention from Florida, Alpha Phi Alpha will continue to support the strong advocacy of Alpha Brothers and other advocates fighting against the continued assault on our communities in Florida by Governor Ron DeSantis.”
The fraternity is not the only historically Black organization that has made the decision to not host their annual convention in Florida. In response to DeSantis’s actions, the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE) has decided to move its originally scheduled 50th annual convention for 2024 to an unannounced location. In a statement to CBS News, Avery Laynem NSBE’s chairperson said, “We’re celebrating our 50th annual convention in 2024 and decided after much deliberation that the environment in Florida would not be conducive to an ideal membership experience nor an ideal setting for such a milestone event.”
With both organizations withdrawing their conventions, it is evident the state of Florida will face financial repercussions and more organizations may soon follow. According to Census data, Florida’s population is 17% Black/African American. It is home to well known Historically Black Colleges & Universities (HBCUs) Florida A&M University and Bethune-Cookman University. DeSantis’s actions will be felt throughout the state for years and decades to come.
