Sorority Mourns Loss of Civil Rights Giant
Rupert F. Richardson
Leader/activist was former NAACP national president
Rupert F. Richardson
Alpha Kappa Alpha’s worldwide network of 200,000 members is mourning the loss of Rupert F. Richardson.
Hailed as a “civil rights leader,” Richardson gained notoriety as the former president of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). Serving in that capacity from 1992 to 1995, Richardson broadened the organization’s focus to embrace human rights and economic parity. A visionary, she collaborated with the Harvard University School of Business to re-evaluate the NAACP’s mission and strategic plan. As a show of the reverence the organization held for her, she was named president emeritus following her term.
Prior to serving as head of the NAACP, Richardson served as vice president of the organization. She came to the attention of the national organization during her 16-year term as president of the Louisiana State Conference of the NAACP. In tribute to her leadership, the Rupert F. Richardson President Award was created in her honor.
After leading the NAACP, she worked in a key capacity with the State of Louisiana’s Department of Health and Hospitals.
An advocate for health awareness, Richardson once led the NAACP’s National Health Committee. In that capacity, she worked to reduce HIV/AIDS cases. She also served as deputy assistant secretary for alcohol and drug abuse for the State of Louisiana. She further demonstrated her commitment to health awareness by serving in a variety of health-related areas including planning, mental health, employment and substance abuse. In 1994, she devoted her life to health advocacy and formed her own health care consulting firm.
She also brought her considerable talents to the State of Louisiana by serving on the Louisiana Gaming Control Board, the Louisiana Commission on Human Rights, the Louisiana Advisory Committee to the U.S.Commission on Civil Rights and the Louisiana State University School of Social Welfare advisory board.
She graduated from Southern University, with a bachelor’s degree and earned her master’s degrees in counseling and psychology from McNeese State University.
She was a Life Member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority.
“We are deeply saddened by the loss of Rupert F. Richardson. She was a great woman who was a tireless crusader for justice,” said Barbara A. McKinzie, international president, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority. “She represented the Alpha Kappa Alpha ideal because she dedicated her life to serving others. In that pursuit, she exhibited true strength and courage and reflected the best in Alpha Kappa Alpha’s character. On behalf of our entire membership, we mourn her loss and offer our deepest condolences to her family.”