NAACP Board of Directors Myrlie Evers-Williams
A native of Vicksburg, Mississippi, Myrlie Evers-Williams (b. 1933) met Medgar Evers while attending Alcorn A & M College. They married in 1951 and together ran the NAACP state office. After his assassination, she became vice president of an advertising agency and director of consumer affairs for Atlantic Richfield. In 1988 she became the first black woman to serve as commissioner for the public works in Los Angeles. In 1995 she ran against and defeated NAACP chairman William Gibson, after he was accused of financial mismanagement. Evers-Williams served as NAACP chairman until 1998, restoring the NAACP’s finances and reputation.
A native of Vicksburg, Mississippi, Myrlie Evers-Williams (b. 1933) met Medgar Evers while attending Alcorn A & M College. They married in 1951 and together ran the NAACP state office. After his assassination, she became vice president of an advertising agency and director of consumer affairs for Atlantic Richfield. In 1988 she became the first black woman to serve as commissioner for the public works in Los Angeles. In 1995 she ran against and defeated NAACP chairman William Gibson, after he was accused of financial mismanagement. Evers-Williams served as NAACP chairman until 1998, restoring the NAACP’s finances and reputation.