[Durham INC] Durham Announces Human Relations Award Winners

[Blalock, Amy]

CITY OF DURHAM

Office of Public Affairs

101 City Hall Plaza

Durham, NC 27701

 

 

News Release

 

News Media Contact:

Amy Blalock

Sr. Public Affairs Specialist

(919) 560-4123 x 11253

(919) 475-7735 (cell)

Amy.Blalock at DurhamNC.gov 

http://Facebook.com/CityofDurhamNC 

http://Twitter.com/CityofDurhamNC    

 

For Immediate Release: February 22, 2013

 

 

Durham Announces Human Relations Award Winners

 

DURHAM, N.C. - Last night, the City of Durham Human Relations Commission
honored four residents who have distinguished themselves by contributing
their time and talents to promoting good human relations in Durham.

 

In honor of February as Human Relations Month, the City's Human
Relations Commission and the Human Relations Division of the City's
Neighborhood Improvement Department hosted the 2013 Human Relations
Award Ceremony at the Hayti Heritage Center, located at 804 Old
Fayetteville Street, Durham.

 

Professor Irving L. Joyner with the North Carolina Central University
School of Law served as the keynote speaker for the ceremony. The four
honorees were:

*         Mary Joyner was honored with the Carlie B. Sessoms Award,
which is the highest and most coveted award to an individual or
organization that has made a major impact on improving human relations.
This award commemorates contributions of the late Carlie B. Sessoms, a
Durham native who served as chair of the Human Relations Commission and
played a major role in improving human relations locally and nationally.
Joyner was recognized for her founding of the QUEENS (Quality, Unity,
Excellence, Esteemed, Noble-Minded, Successful) Program. The program was
created for young females ages 9-15 and focuses on appreciation and
awareness of the physical and emotional self.

 

*         Rev. Phillip Jackson, director of New Beginnings Outreach
Community Development Corporation, was honored with the Housing Award,
which recognizes outstanding efforts in promoting fair housing with
emphasis on the economic, social and/or political impact in the
community that has encouraged diversity and housing opportunities for
all. Jackson's organization addresses issues of poverty and criminal
recidivism and stresses the need for community development in areas
plagued with high crime and poverty.

 

*         North Carolina General Assembly Representative Henry M.
"Mickey" Michaux, Jr. was honored with the Human Rights Award, which is
presented to a local, state, or federal lawmaker who has successful
supported or promoted human rights causes and issues. Rep. Michaux was
recognized for his decades-long work for civil rights in Durham and as
the longest serving African American and Democrat in the North Carolina
General Assembly.  

 

*         Maya Bryant, a student at Durham School of the Arts, was
honored with the Human Rights Youth Award, which is presented to an
individual under the age of 18 for demonstrating an understanding of,
and commitment to, human relations in Durham. Bryant was recognized for
innovatively using theater to create a project for high school and
middle school youth who were adversely affected by peer pressure.

 

For more information about the ceremony or this year's award winners,
contact Delilah Donaldson, human relations manager for the City's
Neighborhood Improvement Services Department, at (919) 560-4107, ext.
34277 or by email at Delilah.Donaldson at DurhamNC.gov. 

 

About the Human Relations Division in the City of Durham Neighborhood
Improvement Services Department

The Neighborhood Improvement Services Department works to preserve and
improve quality of life conditions for Durham residents, and to
encourage active participation in neighborhood redevelopment and public
policy and decision making dialogue. The department is responsible for
enforcement of quality of life ordinances and state statutes including
the City's Minimum Housing Code; Nonresidential Code; Weedy Lot,
Abandoned and Junk Vehicle ordinances; and the State of North Carolina's
Unsafe Building Statute. The department's Human Relations Division
strives to improve race and human relations in the City by working to
eliminate housing discrimination and by prioritizing community outreach
and educational activities to meet the needs of Durham's residents. The
Human Relations Division also provides oversight to the City of Durham
Human Relations Commission, which is comprised of 15 Durham residents
who meet monthly to work on activities designed to improve human
relations and promote harmony throughout Durham. Guided by the City's
Strategic Plan, the department helps ensure that Durham has thriving,
livable neighborhoods by providing the highest quality of services to
engage and educate the community, eradicate blight, ensure safer
neighborhoods, and enhance neighborhood revitalization. For more
information, visit http://DurhamNC.gov/ich/cb/nis/Pages/Home.aspx
<http://DurhamNC.gov/ich/cb/nis/Pages/Home.aspx> . 

 

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