Attorney General Eric Holder was the special guest speaker on the opening day of the Rev. Al Sharpton’s National Action Network Conference in New York City. After a few words from Sharpton to the audience at the Sheraton in Midtown Manhattan, Holder spoke to the attendees about social responsibility and emphasized the work that NAN has done in the community and throughout the country in the name of justice.
“For more than 20 years, this group has brought together passionate men and women,” Holder stated. “You’re striving to ensure that every eligible American has access to the ballot box and a voice and a process of self-government.
“You’re seeking safer streets and stronger neighborhoods for our children and our families. And you’re encouraging young people to get on the right path so that they can contribute to this country, provide for themselves and build a brighter future that they need and deserve. They are American citizens.”
Holder also shared his belief that the administration of President Barack Obama is committed to working with organizations like NAN to continue to fight for every citizen’s rights.
“The National Action Network stands today as a driving force in our ongoing struggle to ensure that every community and every person has opportunities, as Dr. [Martin Luther] King once said, to ‘define their citizenship to the fullest of its meaning,'” said Holder. “This is the mission and a moral imperative that we share. Since the day that I became attorney general of the United States of America in 2009, I have been proud to stand alongside you in supporting efforts to advance the cause of justice that has always been at the center of this administration’s work.”
