As the first African-American leader of a major union in the United States, newly elected American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees President Lee Saunders lends his voice to the current cadre of civil rights advocates. Saunders (second from left) is shown here with (L to R) Hilary O. Shelton, director of the NAACP’s Washington Bureau; Melanie L. Campbell, president and CEO of the National Coalition on Black Civic Participation; and Wade Henderson, president and CEO of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights.
All were attending a reception held in Saunders’ honor on July 31 at the national headquarters of the AFL-CIO in Washington, D.C. The reception was sponsored by the NAACP, National Urban League, National Action Network and the AFL-CIO.