PORTLAND, Ore. — A diverse slate of officials was elected to lead Portland’s branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) on Nov. 21.
They are taking on these roles during a time of racial reckoning and just months after the branch’s former president, Elbert “E.D.” Mondainé, resigned amid allegations of sexual, physical and emotional abuse, first published in the Portland Mercury. Mondainé has since denied all allegations.
Most of the officials-elect are leading members of Rise Up PDX, an accountability group formed in 2019 to bring greater transparency to Portland’s NAACP branch and challenge the former leadership.
President-elect Sharon Gary-Smith, a nationally recognized champion of social justice, was among those dissatisfied with the direction of the leadership and came out of retirement to lead the branch.
“I was not aspiring to run for office and certainly not thinking that I had to run for president,” Gary-Smith said. “But I was inspired to work with others who wanted to make change in our local branch ... I was looking to have a well-run, accountable NAACP that included me.”
Born and raised in Portland, Gary-Smith has four decades of organizing experience. Before retiring, she led the McKenzie River Gathering Foundation, a social justice nonprofit, and worked with the Urban League and the National Black Women’s Health Project, among other organizations.
“I come from being a grassroots, on-the-ground, in-your-face organizer,” she said.
Gary-Smith will work alongside two vice presidents: Tamia Deary and Donovan Smith. Deary brings experience fighting for equity in health and education and leading the PDX Alliance for Self Care, a nonprofit that connects marginalized communities with self care resources.
Smith will represent the younger generation in the NAACP, bringing experience in journalism, environment justice organizing and as the vice chair of Beyond Black — an organization that serves Black people east of 82nd Avenue.
These leaders were elected alongside Natalie Rush (the secretary), Rhyan M. Hills (the treasurer) and Sheila Harris (the assistant treasurer). Everyone except Harris has long worked together in the accountability group.
“Every one of us believes in social and racial justice,” Deary said. “We don't necessarily all go about it in exactly the same way, but I definitely think that we work together to amplify and elevate each other's messages.”
The newly elected leaders were reluctant to take on the roles, but they felt a call to work on behalf of the community and bring accountability to the oldest branch of the NAACP west of the Mississippi.
“There wasn't going to be any change if we weren't the ones who instigated the change,” Deary said.
After the killing of George Floyd sparked mass demonstrations, the branch’s membership grew to more than 1,000 and the organization gained ample financial support. They played a key role in many of Portland’s marches and rallies.
Smith said that this membership spike speaks to the support for the new leadership’s message. More than 200 members cast their ballots online, when the branch’s last election only had about 60 votes, he said.
“(Our message) was something that people who are involved in the branch wanted to see, and it's something that people were inspired enough to actually join this branch to help be a part of,” Smith said.
The newly elected officials aim to mark a new chapter for Portland’s NAACP, ridding the organization of the behaviors alleged of the past leadership.
Smith said that the allegations that came out against Mondainé weren’t surprising.
“It was consistent in terms of the type of behaviors that we were observing,” he said.
The newly elected officials said, in the past, the leadership made financial and political decisions without members in the room. They describe members being silenced and kicked out of meetings for trying to make motions.
In early 2020, 25 members of the Portland branch formally petitioned the NAACP under Article X of the organization’s bylaws to remove Mondainé from office. Now that he resigned, the filing is largely symbolic.
“It was egregious — the environment, the toxicity — I can say that, personally, over the last several years,” Gary-Smith said. “We don't want that anymore, and we're responsible for not having that anymore.”
Looking forward, the new leadership hopes to find ways to actively engage their membership, like the town hall they held prior to the election called “Critical Convos - NAACP Portland, What’s the Point?”
Smith aims to empower other Black youth by giving them a seat at the table, while Deary plans to center the voices of those most impacted by systems of oppression, like members of LGBTQ+, houseless, immigrant or disabled communities.
Deary said that because Portland’s Black community is small, they often get left out of important discussions. The new leadership hopes to use the branch’s connections and resources to play a more prominent role in local decision-making about the police, education and health care, among other issues.
As Gary-Smith puts it, “Having that seat at the table is important in a time of reckoning and change.”