Members of Irvington's NAN at the conference.
IRVINGTON, NJ — Irvington Municipal Council First Vice President October Hudley attended the annual legislative conference of the National Action Network in Washington, D.C., on Thursday, Nov. 14, to discuss civil rights strategies going into the next election year. Hudley serves as president of the Irvington chapter of NAN, a civil right’s organization founded by the Rev. Al Sharpton.
Hudley and 17 other members from the Irvington chapter traveled to the conference, an event filled with keynote speeches, presentations and networking with peers and industry leaders.
“Yesterday, Nov. 14, The Irvington chapter of the National Action Network attended the National Action Network legislative conference in Washington, D.C.,” Hudley said in a quote sent to the Irvington Herald after the event.
“Elected members of Congress and activists, such as the Rev. Al Sharpton, the honorable Congressman Donald M. Payne Jr., Rashida Tlaib, Ayanna Pressle, Sheila Jackson-Lee, Al Green, Eric Swalwell, Kristan Gillbrabd, Frederica Wilson and Charles E. Schumer, to name a few, discussed various topics, such as the 2020 census, voting rights, gun violence, health care and more,” she continued.
“I am excited because the Irvington chapter of the National Action Network will serve on the Religious Sect Sub-Committee of the 2020 census in Irvington, where I serve as chairperson,” she added. “We will be meeting with local religious leaders, stressing the importance of what this will mean.”
Speakers included Sharpton, leading elected officials, civil rights advocates and prominent allies, as the NAN brought together advocates and change-makers to address the civil rights community’s most pressing policy changes, according to NAN members who attended.
“I was most enlightened at the conference by Congresswoman Sheila Jackson, as she assertively addressed the importance of the census,” said Cheryl Matos, one of the members of NAN’s Irvington chapter who traveled with Hudley to the conference, in a quote sent to the Irvington Herald after the event. “She emphasized the necessity of being counted and clarified the many purposes of the census that are crucial for the funding of vital programs and projects that directly impact our lives and communities.”
“Ms. Jackson also highlighted the many employment opportunities available in the census process,” she continued. “She also encouraged the conference attendees to visit the census information table on site for further details.”
“I thought the conference was informative and needed,” Thomas Taylor, who traveled with Hudley to Washington, D.C., said via phone interview with the Irvington Herald after the conference. “I thought it was needed because, with the information that they provided for potential voters, it was inspiring to everyone where I’d like to take action in my own community and help people make informative decisions on the potential candidate who might have a strong view of a person’s interests.”
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