On Monday, in an open election of the Seattle/King County NAACP membership, Sadiqa Sakin was confirmed as the new President. Along with Sakin, Jacquie Jones-Walsh (2nd Vice President), Claude Burfect (3rd Vice President), and Jasmin Williams (Secretary) will also begin their newly elected leadership terms on January 1, 2019.
Founded in October 1913, just four years after the initial national organization was established, the Seattle/King County Chapter of the NAACP has maintained 115 years of service focusing largely on issues of equal rights, social justice, humane law enforcement, economic development, youth, and voter registration.
In taking on this leadership position of one of the nation’s oldest and most prominent civil rights organizations, Sakin has determined her initial areas of focus for the chapter’s advancement will be:
• Increasing economic viability and economic sustainability through community collaborations
• Equity in education
• Consistent and transparent community engagement
• Interfaith and intergenerational connection, dialogue and engagement
• Advocating for and with our historically marginalized populations
• Incorporation of a social justice lens in all of the work of the NAACP
“Leadership of this organization will be an incredible challenge as well as provide a unique opportunity to bring my vision, skills, and interest into an arena where action and change have always been a mainstay,” said Sakin following the election. “I am honored to take on this role and to have been afforded the opportunity to serve in such an important capacity for our Seattle community, our community of people who reside throughout Martin Luther King, Jr., County, and to join those making major impacts around the nation.”
“The struggle continues, and we must keep our eyes on every situation that could serve to cause further damage to our people and community,” added Sakin.
Prior to becoming President, Sakin served on the NAACP’s executive board as health chair. Her professional background covers more than ten years’ experience in the not-for-profit sector including Chief Executive Director of a Snohomish County non-profit which provided services that bridged the gap between government assistance and income disparities. For the last twelve years, Sakin has been fundraising, serving on boards, and volunteering with various community-based organizations such as the Snohomish County NAACP, Snohomish YMCA’s MAP program, VOA, Soroptimist International, and has worked with King County UNCF, Snohomish YMCA’s, United Way, YWCA, Dress for Success and Queen for a Day project, the Urban League, Urban Games, and the Northshore Boys and Girls Club.
Sakin grew up in various cities and attended various educational institutions due to her parents’ occupations. She attained her Associates in Nursing and Social Science at Hawaii Pacific University (HPU). After attaining her Bachelor’s in Human Services with an emphasis in public relations, grant writing, marketing, and sales from the University of Phoenix, in 2004, she pledged at the Hawaii Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.
Sakin is a mother of four, who loves to cook, dance and travel. In her spare time, she has been mentoring young women in health & wellness and education for the past eight years. She is currently the Director of Advancement & Operations for Ideal Connection Consultants (ICC), project manager for Umoja Festival 2018, sponsorship coordinator for Urban Games, treasurer for the Greater Seattle Youth Football & Cheer, social media and volunteer coordinator for the 55th Anniversary of the 1963 March on Washington Organizing Committee. She now adds President of the Seattle Chapter of the NAACP to her list of commitments.
As the first Black Muslim woman to take leadership role in the organization since its existence in Seattle King County, Sakin says that in order to help the organization prepare for the highest levels of success, she will focus on the following:
Operations:
• Provide clear and leadership that is based on respectful communication, clearly articulated expectations, and regular attention to accountability
• Ensure accuracy, transparency and best practice application in all of our reporting systems
• Maintain consistent communication with our membership
• Implementation of strategies that maximize our use of new media and increase portals for interaction – data, social media, communications platforms
Commitment to Community:
• Invite increased membership and establish membership retention programs
• Implement processes and procedures that allow us to regularly review our progress in the areas of social justice, education, economics, labor, criminal justice, police accountability, health & wellness
• Develop new partnerships with organizations and corporations, to reinvest in the community by using community benefits agreements.
• Facilitate regular community roundtables that engender collaboration and relationship building, to improve excellence and establish beneficial projects
• Ensuring educational opportunity and excellence for all children by maintaining our focus on trends, gains, and failures, and applying successful advocacy methods for consistent improvement
• Honoring the original founding intent as a bi-racial endeavor to advance justice for African Americans, by connecting with the multi-faith community and creating portals for engagement
“My platform for the leadership of the NAACP is built upon my core values,” says Sakin. “They are transparency, integrity, honest, authenticity, shared leadership (rather than empowerment), vision, dedication (rather than commitment), service and excellence.”
According to Sakin, she wants to bring the NAACP back to the days of Carl Mack’s presidency when the chapter was very active, people in the community knew what the NAACP was doing, there was standing room only in many of their meetings, and the community knew that the NAACP would effectively address their issues.
“We can’t speak about we want change if we don’t get off our butts and actually be the change that we want to happen,” said Sakin in an interview with The Seattle Medium.
