NAACP Support of Scott Sisters: Damned If They Do, Damned If They Don't

The NAACP continues to struggle to regain its relevance in the Black community. Somewhere along the line the organization lost its voice. NAACP president Ben Jealous works hard to find ways to get the NAACP back in the discussion. The organization is large and has ability to get visibility from the mainstream media on occasion. Of course, because the organization is large ... it is difficult for it to be quick or nimble. As a result, the NAACP often seems to chime in towards the end of the life cycle of a problem.

The NAACP was late to the story of the Jena 6. They were late to the story of Troy Davis. And last month, the NAACP was late to the story of the Scott Sisters.

Some online activists have damned the NAACP for being glory-hounds who simply cherry-pick on issues that are already close to resolution. For example, the Scott Sisters have been imprisoned for over 16 years, yet the NAACP didn't get engaged until September 2010 in spite of a call for their support much earlier.  Evelyn Rasco, the mother of the two sisters, indicates in this radio interview with Nordette Adams that she has not heard from Ben Jealous or anyone else from the NAACP until this past week.

On the other hand, African American Pundit reports that the true hero in the Scott Sisters case is a Black freedom fighter named Nancy Lockhart. Ms. Lockhart has been suing the Internet, and her Free the Scott Sisters Blog, along with radio shows began a grassroots effort to free the Scott sisters.

I suspect that Jamie Scott and Gladys Scott are grateful to the NAACP and anyone else ... late tot he party or not ... who advocated for their release.   At the end of the day ... isn't that the point?   The publicity-hound nature of the NAACP on a national basis is self-evident.  However, would we rather have a publicity-hound NAACP advocating for good causes *or* would we rather that they be silent on those same good causes?

Is the NAACP in a case of being damned if they do and damned if they don't?