Civil Rights Leader To Speak at Democrats Dinner

Sarasota County Democrats will present a famed civil rights leader and Congresswoman as the keynote speaker at this month's annual dinner event.

Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton of Washington, D.C. will headline the annual event named for President John F. Kennedy and Dr. Martin Luther King February 24th at Michael's on East. The theme of the event is "Civil Rights: The Struggle Continues."

"I am thrilled to have lifelong civil rights leader and Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton of Washington, D.C. as our keynote speaker," said Party Chairperson Rita Ferrandino. "Civil rights and equal opportunity for all has long been at the core of what it means to be a Democrat. But here we are in 2013, and we are still fighting for equal pay for women, fighting for our reproductive rights, for a fair shot for Americans of all races, and for the right of people to love whom they choose."

Norton's commitment to the struggle for civil rights goes back to the 1960's when she travelled to Mississippi and witnessed the intensity of violence and Jim Crow repression in the South.

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In 1977 President Jimmy Carter appointed her to serve as the first woman to chair the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and in 1991 she came to Congress as a national figure who had been a civil rights and feminist leader, professor of law, and board member at three Fortune 500 companies.

She is now in her eleventh term, and she has been named one of the 100 most important American women and one of the most powerful women in Washington.

Richard Boylan, a Vice-Chair the Florida Democratic Party and member of the Democratic National Committee will also be speaking. Rick worked at the Democratic National Committee in Washington, D.C. for 20 years, and is a long-standing advocate for LGBT issues. He will speak on the civil rights issues facing the LGBT community today.

The event begins with a social hour at 5 p.m., dinner will be served at 6 p.m., followed by the program. Tickets are $100 each.

For information call (941) 330-9400 or visit www.sarasotadems.org/KK2013 where tickets can be purchased.