Jesse Jackson honored with wing at Pullman Porters Museum

The year 2020 marks a milestone in the life of the National A. Philip Randolph Pullman Porter Museum. The museum will celebrate three important milestones this year. "Our 25th anniversary, the announcement of the addition of the Reverend Jesse Jackson Sr. Civil Rights Wing and the 83rd anniversary of the signing of the first collective bargaining agreement between an African American labor union (the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters) and a major U. S. Corporation, the Pullman Company and is worth honoring and remembering," said Dr. Lyn Hughes, Museum founder. 

To commemorate this milestone, the NAPRPP Museum will host the A. Philip Randolph Gentle Warrior Award Gala fund-raiser celebration. Fox News Emmy award winner Tia Ewing and WVON's Cliff Kelley -- two of Chicago's favorite media personalities -- will emcee the event. The celebration will be held Saturday, February 22, from 5 to 9:30 PM at the historic Parkway Ballroom, 4455 S. King Drive. Entertainment will be provided by award-winning Jazz singer Joan Collaso and Larry Hanks Trio.

The Gentle Warrior Award event will honor Father Michael Pfleger (Pastor of Saint Sabina Church), Greggory Kelley (President of SEIU Health Care Illinois), Fritz Kaegi (Cook County Assessor), Cook County State's Attorney Kim Foxx, Naomi Davis (Founder of Blacks and Green) and Jason Campbell (Founder, Chief Branding Strategist at Brand B Sports). 

The prestigious awards are given to honor individuals who are so steadfast in his or her convictions, they are willing to "push gently, yet forcefully, against the boundaries of conventionality with a warrior spirit, in much the same manner A. Philip Randolph did throughout his career." It is also to recognize the rich contributions people of African descent have and are making to American history, but more specifically to highlight those whose work provides opportunity and moves us toward equality. 

A. Philip Randolph was the founder of the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters (BSCP), the first black labor in America chartered under the American Federation of Labor. They were the first to sign a collective bargaining agreement with a major US corporation, the Pullman Company. Randolph's historic work opened the door for African Americans in organized labor. Those transformative efforts forged by A. Philip Randolph are historically significant to this day.