Ben Crump uses NAACP Image Awards speech to pledge fight for Black history in schools

Ben Crump's rousing acceptance speech at the 54th Annual NAACP Image Awards brought a star-studded audience to its feet as he rattled off the names Black men and women who fought for justice against racism.

He invoked the names — Harriet Tubman, Fredrick Douglas, Ida B. Wells, Thurgood Marshall, Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X, Shirley Chisolm and John Lewis — and said they all mattered and played a vital role in shaping American history. He said they were not "just mere footnotes in history" but rather heroes of American history.

The Tallahassee-based civil rights attorney, who received the NAACP's Social Justice Impact Award during Sunday's ceremony in Pasadena, California, used the platform to chide Florida's recent move to ban an Advanced Placement course on Black history after the state’s department of education argued the course lacked "educational value and historical accuracy.”

The policy change makes Florida the first state in the country to ban the Advanced Placement African-American Studies course, a move that has sparked swift outrage, protests and national attention.

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"I will continue to fight in the court of law and the court of public opinion," Crump said, during his five-minute speech. "Now that they're trying to ban our most celebrated Black authors and AP African American Studies, we must advocate for our children and our culture in the classrooms and demand, demand that they acknowledge the teaching of Black history."

In an interview the Tallahassee Democrat, Crump said he mentioned Florida's ban on the Advanced Placement course because it may set a precedent for other states to follow, adding, "We have to say no."

"You don't get to decide our history. All history matters," said Crump, adding his opposition to ban the teaching of famed Black authors in public schools. "So that's why I thought it was important to say just as hard as we fight for the lives of those who have been unjustly taken from us, we must fight for the teaching of Black history."

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Crump's legal career includes numerous high-profile cases where he's represented the families of Black men and women who've died in police custody, including the killing of George Floyd by former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin.

He continues to receive national recognition for his work. Earlier this month, St. Thomas University renamed its law school in honor of civil rights attorney. The school is now named the Benjamin L. Crump College of Law at St. Thomas University — making it the first law school to be named after a practicing Black attorney.

When asked how being honored by the NAACP meant to him, Crump said he was humbled to be acknowledged by his peers and an organization that's pushed for equity in the treatment of Black people. In addition, he said it's important not for just Black children but for all children to know that Black history is American history.

"It is motivation to continue to go and fight harder for our culture and our children," Crump said.

Contact Reporter TaMaryn Waters at tlwaters@tallahassee.com and follow @TaMarynWaters on Twitter.

This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: NAACP Image Awards: Tallahassee civil rights lawyer Ben Crump awarded