Gwendolyn Boyd stressed the theme of belonging and togetherness Saturday as the keynote speaker at the Rock Island County NAACP’s annual Freedom Fund Banquet and Image Awards held at Bally’s Quad Cities Casino & Hotel. More than 300 people attended the Rock Island County NAACP's annual Freedom Fund Banquet held Saturday at Bally's Quad Cities in Rock Island. Speaking before the banquet, Boyd, a mathematician and engineer who is a former president of Alabama State University, said diversity, equity and inclusion are under attack in the country.
“The NAACP has this on its agenda, among many other issues,” Boyd said. “But the NAACP must bring the fight to the forefront. The theme of tonight’s banquet is Belonging: Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, and it’s all about eliminating barriers so everyone feels they belong.
Bonnie Ballard, President of the Rock Island County NAACP, welcomes more than 300 people to the annual Freedom Fund Banquet held Saturday at Bally's Quad Cities in Rock Island. “That’s what built this nation whether people want to acknowledge that or not,” Boyd said. “Everyone brings something different to the table.
When people are allowed to bring their skills and talents to the table we have a better product. “It has to be teamwork, and that’s what its going to take for the continued growth and development of this nation,” she said. Boyd said the country had been moving forward for so many years and then suddenly “it took a negative t.
