Rev Al Sharpton

Founder & President

As one of the preeminent civil rights leaders of our time, Reverend Al Sharpton serves as the founder and president of the National Action Network (NAN), anchors Politics Nation on MSNBC, hosts the nationally syndicated radio shows Keepin’ It Real and The Hour of Power, holds weekly action rallies and speaks out on behalf of those who have been silenced and marginalized. Rooted in the spirit and tradition of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., NAN boasts more than 100 chapters across the country to promote a modern civil rights agenda that includes the fight for one standard of justice, decency and equal opportunity for all.

In 2007, President Barack Obama addressed NAN’s annual convention and called Sharpton “the voice of the voiceless and a champion for the downtrodden”. He returned in both 2011 and 2014 to praise NAN for its ongoing work in the areas of critical concern such as voting rights and criminal justice reform. He emphasized in a keynote speech that “National Action Network is not the National Satisfaction Network; it’s the National Action Network.” Indeed, it is.

It all began when Sharpton was just a little boy and quickly discovered both his voice and his oratorical skills. He started his ministry when he was just four years old, preaching his first sermon at the Washington Temple Church of God and Christ. At the age of 13, he was appointed by Rev. Jesse Jackson and Rev. William Augustus Jones as Youth Director for the New York chapter of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference’s Operation Breadbasket, an organization founded by Dr. King in 1966. Operation Breadbasket served as the economic arm of SCLC and provided the curious and vivacious Sharpton with on-the-ground training in civil disobedience and direct action.

Sharpton had the unique opportunity to absorb a wealth of knowledge from Dr. King’s lieutenants: Rev. Jones, Rev. Ralph Abernathy, Hosea Williams and later Dr. Wyatt Tee Walker. He would go on to incorporate Dr. King’s teachings of nonviolent activism into his work and fight for justice. At the age of 16, he founded the National Youth Movement, Inc. and in 1991 officially launched National Action Network. Under Sharpton’s leadership and vision, NAN has emerged as one of the leading civil rights organizations in the country with headquarters in New York City and regional offices in Washington, D.C., Atlanta, Miami, Los Angeles and Detroit.

A native New Yorker, Sharpton made it his mission to highlight the racism and bigotry embedded in the north – often times hidden underneath a veneer of progress. In the summer of 1986, with the crack epidemic sweeping across New York City and indeed the nation, he started painting crack houses with red X’s to bring about awareness. Later that year when 23-year-old Michael Griffith was chased by a white mob and killed when a passing car struck him in Howard Beach, Queens, Sharpton organized several protests calling for justice. Even as some yelled racial epithets as they marched, they held their heads high and pressed onward.

In 1989, a 16-year-old teenager named Yusuf Hawkins was attacked by a white mob wielding bats and subsequently shot and killed in Bensonhurst, Brooklyn. Sharpton led the call for accountability and held several protests which were again met with a hostile response. At one such demonstration in 1991, he was stabbed in the chest and rushed to Coney Island Hospital. Despite the vicious incident, the preacher and activist showed mercy to his attacker, and even asked the judge for leniency at his sentencing. The entire incident galvanized Sharpton even more.

In 1992, he threw his hat in the ring for U.S. Senate. Though he didn’t win the Democratic nomination, he beat Liz Holtzman, the City Comptroller, former DA and U.S. Representative. He garnered 15 percent of the overall vote. Sharpton would later run for Mayor of New York City, and in 2004 he gave a rousing prolific speech at the Democratic National Convention as he ran for President of the United States.

Though he was never elected to office, Sharpton cracked the proverbial ceiling so that others could one day shatter it. He showed young people everywhere that a kid from Brooklyn could aim for whatever they wanted, no matter how many obstacles were placed before them. He served as an example of someone who not only spoke of progress, but hit the streets and made it happen, while always maintaining his focus on creating a more just and equal society.

For decades, Sharpton has turned the power of protest into a mechanism by which to garner reform. In 1997, when Abner Louima was viciously brutalized by NYPD officers, he organized rallies, marches and pressers, and helped lead the fight for a conviction. In 1998, when four young Black and Latino basketball players were shot by New Jersey state troopers, Sharpton led protests, even shutting down parts of the New Jersey turnpike. The focus highlighted how pervasive racial profiling was in traffic stops, and resulted in statewide changes to policing practices.

When 23-year-old Amadou Diallo was shot 41 times in a hail of bullets by plainclothes officers as he stood in the vestibule of his own home in the Bronx in 1999, Sharpton once again called for justice, led demonstrations and stood alongside the family during such a difficult period. Six years later when plainclothes officers fired 50 shots and killed Sean Bell hours before his wedding, he did the same. When the cops charged in Bell’s death were acquitted, Sharpton led massive protests around the city which shut down bridges and tunnels.

Through the years, the civil rights champion has remained consistent pushing for police reform and accountability. In 2014, Eric Garner died after officers in Staten Island placed him in a banned chokehold. Sharpton stood with Garner’s mother, organized rallies and called for justice – even testifying years later in front of the House Judiciary Committee demanding federal regulation and changes to policing. Whether it was organizing a silent march against stop-and-frisk policies in New York City, or delivering eulogies for victims of police brutality, Sharpton’s commitment to fighting on behalf of others has never wavered.

In 2020, after a global pandemic hit the nation and devastated Black and Brown communities especially hard, NAN increased food drives, served meals and provided support during such a tumultuous time. Sadly, police misconduct never ceased even as families grappled with an unknown virus. That May, 46-year-old George Floyd was killed after Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin placed his knee on Floyd’s neck for over 9 minutes as he cried out in agony. The incident was caught on cell phone video for the world to see. Sharpton delivered a powerful eulogy for Floyd, both humanizing him and demanding accountability at the same time. Chauvin was eventually convicted of murder, and the other officers at the scene were convicted of violating Floyd’s civil rights. It was a rare moment when law enforcement was truly held accountable for their actions, and it was the culmination of decades of Sharpton’s activism.

NAN and Sharpton have consistently fought for justice even when the perpetrators weren’t police officers. In 2012, 17-year-old Trayvon Martin was killed by a self-proclaimed neighborhood watchman as he walked with an iced tea and a bag of skittles. Sharpton drew attention to the case, led rallies and has stood with Trayvon’s mother and family through the years as they grappled with such a horrific, unjust loss. When 25-year-old Ahmaud Arbery was killed while out jogging by white vigilantes in 2020, it would take law enforcement 10 weeks to make the first arrests. Sharpton once again stood with the family, demanded justice, attended the trial and helped raise awareness about the case. In November 2021, all three white men were found guilty of murder charges, and in February of 2022, they were found guilty in a federal hate crimes trial. Justice was finally served.

Throughout the years, Sharpton utilized his gifts to raise awareness for injustice wherever it occurred. In fact, he has been arrested over 30 times for acts of civil disobedience, including spending 90 days in jail for protesting the bombing of the island of Vieques. He also spent 45 days in jail and another 10 days for other peaceful demonstrations. He has, in short, paid real dues.

Vanity Fair published an exclusive profile piece in 2014 in which they referred to Sharpton as “arguably the country’s most influential civil rights leader.” And they were correct. Year after year, he and NAN hold a national convention at the Sheraton Times Square Hotel where thousands attend, including dignitaries, elected officials, clergy and activists from around the country, as well as from around the world. Every August, he commemorates Dr. King’s historic March on Washington, and as recently as 2020, over 200,000 people attended demanding national police reform.  

Sharpton is the author of several books, including Go and Tell Pharaoh, Al on America The Rejected Stone, Rise Up, and most recently Righteous Troublemakers. He has served as a guest lecturer at Tennessee State University, and has received honorary doctorate degrees from Medgar Evers College, Fisk University, Bethune-Cookman University, Virginia Union University, Voorhees College, among others.

In 2000, Coretta Scott King participated in a NAN-organized “Redeem the Dream” march in Washington, D.C. She praised Sharpton for continuing the steadfast work of her late husband. It was the highest honor he could receive. Thirteen years later, nearly a quarter of a million people attended the 50th anniversary of Dr. King’s 1963 March on Washington. It was a defining moment.

Today, Sharpton and NAN continue advocating on behalf of the powerless, and keep up the fight for voting rights, pay equity, police reform, reproductive rights, fair housing, health care, LGBTQ rights, environmental justice, quality education and so much more. They empower youth leaders around the country to carry the torch of freedom and justice forward. Sharpton speaks on the world stage, addressing racial disparity in a host of nations, reminding everyone that nobody is truly free until we are all free.

Sharpton resides in New York City. He is the proud father of two daughters, Dominique and Ashley, and the grandfather of Marcus Al Sharpton Bright.

Rev. Dr. W. Franklyn Richardson

Chairman of the Board

Reverend Dr. W. Franklyn Richardson was born on June 14, 1949, in Philadelphia to William and Amanda Richardson. The Richardson family, like many other African American families, was anchored in the church during the pivotal 1950’s. As a youngster growing up in one of the nation’s major cities, the young man who would grow to national prominence as a religious leader and activist, received his early education in the public schools of Philadelphia. He graduated from West
Philadelphia High School in 1966 and enrolled in the Community College of Philadelphia.

Rev. Richardson surrendered to God’s call to ministry early in life and on May 28, 1967, he preached his first sermon at the Community Baptist Church in Philadelphia were he was issued a license to preach. After attempting to follow his dreams, Dr. Richardson came to the humbling conclusion that maybe college life was not for him when hereceived less than exemplary grades in his first year. However, as Rev. Richardson often times recounts. “God was not through with him yet.” With the advice of his pastor and mentor, the Reverend James B. Hamlin, Dr. Richardson enrolled in Virginia Union University in Richmond and his life’s path was forever changed. At Virginia Union, Rev. Richardson received close academic and moral guidance that set him on the road to life-long service and development.

While at Virginia Union, Dr. Richardson was elected president of his freshman and sophomore classes, president of the Council of Religion and he was inducted into the national service fraternity, Alpha Phi Omega. At the age of 19 W. Franklyn Richardson became the full-time pastor of two churches in Richmond. He served as the spiritual head of Rising Mount Zion Baptist Church and St. James Baptist Church. Later he earned a B.A. degree with honors from Virginia Union and in l97l wed his college sweetheart, Inez Nunnally, who is also a Virginia Union graduate. He served as pastor of both Rising Mount Zion and St. James Baptist Churches for six years until 1974. He became Pastor of Grace Baptist Church in April of I 975. Rev. Dr. Richardson earned masters and doctorate degrees in theology from Yale University School of Divinity in New Haven, CT and the United Theological Seminary in Dayton, OH, respectively.

Rev. Dr. Richardson serves on the board of several corporations and national organizations and was the youngest person to serve as General Secretary of The National Baptist Convention, USA Inc. As Pastor of the historic Grace Baptist Church in Mount Vernon, NY, Dr. Richardson leads the largest African American church in Westchester County, New York. He continues to guide and administer to the spiritual needs of Grace’s more than 3,000 parishioners. Dr. Richardson has been able to succeed in this effort by developing and retaining a progressive and professional staff. At Grace, Pastor Richardson established “Windows of Grace” the church’s TV ministry, which broadcasts on The Word Network and MBC in much of the country. Under his leadership, Grace Baptist Church has become involved in many community programs. The church ministers to persons in prisons, visits and ministers to the sick and shut-in, has established relationships with senior citizens, the homeless and others. Dr. Richardson has been an advocate and provider of support for persons with problems such as alcohol or drug addictions and AIDS.

In the span of Pastor Richardson’s tenure, Grace Baptist Church has evolved into one of the most progressive religious centers in the nation. Rev. Richardson has instituted a congregational philosophy that recognizes the importance and historic role of women in the church and has re-emphasized the significance of stewardship within the Christian experience. Pastor Richardson has ordained several ministers and hosts of deacons, including the first female minister from the Grace family and the first female Chairperson of the Deacon ministry.

Reverend Richardson has become a renowned leader and preacher who has traveled to Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe and South America. Despite interaction with U.S. Presidents, and heads of states he has made sure that he uses the power of the pulpit to uplift and support local issues in Mount Vernon. Throughout the past decade he has been an advocate of community empowerment and as a leader and founder of the Coalition for the Empowerment of People of African Ancestry, Rev. Richardson was able to galvanize Mount Vernon residents’ to elect Westchester County’s first predominately African American School Board in 1997.

Rev. Richardson has continued to be sustained and balanced by his loving family. Rev. Richardson and Mrs. Inez Richardson are the proud parents of two adult children, a daughter, Orchid Richardson-Burnside, and a son, Minister W. Franklyn Richardson, III. Dr. Richardson believes that Grace must be at the vanguard of liberation and empowerment of African American people through our Christian faith.

Michael A. Hardy Esq.

Executive Vice President & General Counsel, Esq.

Michael A. Hardy, Esq. has been a practicing attorney since 1988. He is admitted to the Bar of the State of New York, each of the New York State Federal Districts, The Second Circuit Court of Appeals and the Supreme Court of the United States. In 2008, he officially assumed the position of General Counsel to the National Action Network. He is one of the Founders of the National Action Network. He has been involved in Movement politics and the fight for a more perfect union since 1981.

Dominique Sharpton

Director of Membership

Dominique Sharpton is the eldest daughter of two to Rev. Al and Kathy Jordan Sharpton. She has been an influential force in the National Action Network since she formally joined in 2008. Since 2008, as the membership director, Dominique has led the increase in NAN members while working with chapters around the country to increase their membership. She has not only led the organization in terms of expansion, but she has staunchly promoted activism with the rising youth, motivating real action. She has worked hard to encourage, empower, and educate the youth for the continuation of civil rights activism and to bridge the gap between the new and the old, to ensure action in the generations to come.

Dominique attended Temple University having received scholarships from Canaan Baptist Church, The William Fox Scholarship Fund, and McDonalds Corporation. She studied theater, music, and communications under the mentorship of Bill Cosby, who enrolled her in her first acting school, the Freedom Theater in Philadelphia, PA. While at Temple, she was inducted into the National Honors Society for having a 3.63 average and interned for the Philly Fringe Festival. She then went on to attend a conservatory, The American Musical and Dramatic Academy (AMDA), in New York City where she graduated in Feb. of 2007. She has recently starred in the musical “Showboat” as Queenie, in Cape Cod and shot an under five in the 2009 movie Duplicity, starring Julia Roberts. She still studies her craft and takes classes at TVI actor’s studio in NYC and takes private vocal lessons with a private coach.

Aside from her love for theater and children, she has also explored the realms of producing. For a year she co‐ produced her father’s syndicated radio show “Keeping it Real” with Al Sharpton and has recently co‐produced a Broadway event at Birdland Jazz Club with Amy Birnbaum, celebrating Afro‐ American music on Broadway. She is currently producing her father’s live radio broadcast rally every Saturday morning from 9‐11 a.m. on WLIB‐1190 a.m. She is also very involved in The National Action Network and serves as the Director of Membership for over 45 chapters. She has been diligently working on the forefront with her father, helping to organize marches and rallies around the country in pursuit of justice. She is also a member of the Women’s Auxiliary, NAN mass choir, decency initiative (where she co‐hosted an open mic series), and co‐chair of the Youth movement. She devotes a lot of time mentoring young people around the city, having recently co‐founded a youth-based organization with her sister Ashley called “Harlem INC” which has transformed into an entertainment Company called “Sharpton entertainment LLC”. They work to provide positive outlets for youth and showcase their many talents, as well as raising issues and hardships that young adults are facing and dealing with today. She has also spoken at the Children’s Aid Society and other organizations as a youth spokesperson. She started an online private business and has begun writing a book about her life story which she works on in her spare time. She has received numerous awards and recognition for her efforts to help young people and for being a true leader and inspiration for young girls all around the country. She thanks God and her parents for not giving up on her and for being the light of her life. Dominique has one sister, Ashley, and a godson, Daun, whom she loves very much. She resides in Brooklyn with her family.

Dominique Sharpton is also the board president for Education for a Better America (EBA).

Education for a Better America seeks to promote, fund, organize and conduct activities that will build an educational support system that serves the needs of students in urban communities. The mission of the corporation is to build bridges between policymakers and the classrooms by supporting innovations in the delivery of education; creating a dialogue between policymakers, community leaders, educators, parents, and students; and disseminating information that will positively impact our schools.

Check out the Membership section.

REV. NELSON B. RIVERS, III

Vice President, Religious Affairs and External Relations

REV. NELSON B. RIVERS, III came from the small farming community of Bennett’s Point, SC and nearby Charleston, Rev. Nelson B. Rivers, III, son of Merelyn and the late Nelson Rivers, Jr., is a preacher of the Gospel, civil rights professional, and community organizer. He has served as the guest preacher at churches in 23 states from Florida to California and Hawaii.

Rev. Rivers is married to the former Carolyn Smalls of Charleston and has four children and six grandchildren. He received his bachelor’s degree from Wilberforce University in Ohio. He was ordained at the Olivet Baptist Church of Christ in Fayetteville, GA by the late Dr. Howard W. Creecy, Sr. He is pursuing his Master of Divinity at Erskine Theological Seminary, Due West, SC.

In September 2008, Rev. Rivers became the Pastor of Charity Missionary Baptist Church in the Liberty Hill Community of North Charleston, SC. He is committed to preaching and teaching the Word of the liberating “good news” of Jesus the Christ.

For over 38 years Rev. Rivers worked at every level of the NAACP, including President, North Charleston, SC Branch; Executive Director, South Carolina State Conference; Director, Southeast Region; Chief Operating Officer, twice as Chief of Field Operations, and Vice President of Stakeholder Relations from 2008 until May 2014. Rev. Rivers led the NAACP’s successful efforts to significantly increase the Association’s support from various key stakeholders including the Black church, faith groups, civic groups, fraternities, sororities and civil rights and progressive organizations.

His work led to the election of more than 300 new black elected officials in South Carolina between 1986 and 1994. He was a leading organizer of the largest civil rights demonstration in the history of South Carolina when over 50,000 marched on the state capitol in January 2000 to demand the removal of the Confederate Battle Flag.

Rev. Rivers is co-president of the Charleston Area Justice Ministry (CAJM) and was founding member of the organization in 2011. CAJM is an inter-faith, inter-religious group of 25 congregations in the Charleston, SC area committed to congregational work for justice to address the root causes of poverty and injustice, through the empowerment of marginalized people.

He is on the Board of Trustees of Wilberforce University. From 1994 to 1998, he served as president of the university’s Alumni Association.  During his tenure, membership tripled and the alumni contributed over $2 million to the university. Rev. Rivers has appeared on NPR, CNN, and 60 Minutes. He had a speaking role in the movie Separate but Equal starring Sidney Poitier.

He has received numerous awards for his civil rights and community work, including:

• Order of the Palmetto, the State of South Carolina’s highest award

• Honorary Doctor of Humanities Degree, Wilberforce University

• Induction in Wilberforce University Association Hall of Fame

• Induction into the South Carolina Black Hall of Fame

• 2003 Harvey Gantt Triumph Award Recipient, Greater Charleston YWCA

• Medgar Evers Award of Excellence in 2004 as the top NAACP staff professional

• Honored with month of October, 2008 South Carolina African American Heritage Calendar

Rev. Rivers is guided by the words of Jesus the Christ found in the Gospel of Mark 10:43: “Yet it shall not be so among you; but whoever desires to become great among you shall be your servant.” He is honored to serve as a servant of the people of God!

Derek Perkinson

NYC Field Director

Derek Perkinson joined the National Action Network as the NYC Field Director, in 2018. Perkinson oversees NAN advocacy and organizing efforts, including staff and volunteer leader efforts, the individual New York City chapters, and the 18 committees in all five boroughs. Derek manages the House of Justice, the National Action Network’s National Headquarters in Harlem. Before joining NAN, Derek worked at the Black Institute – a think tank and nonprofit advocacy organization – where he served as the Chief Community Organizer in their New York City office. He has years of experience organizing communities of color to advocate and engage in political campaigns, criminal justice reform, economic justice, census, and voting rights, civic engagement, and immigration policy.

Derek is a member of Community Board 10 in Harlem. He also sits on the Advisory Boards for the P.O.S.T. Act (Protection Oversight Surveillance Technology), calling for transparency and accountability within the NYPD’s use of surveillance technology and Climate Crisis Policy, advocating for our climate.

Jennifer Jones Austin

Jennifer Jones Austin a fourth-generation leader of faith and social justice, Jennifer fights for equity. As CEO of the Federation of Protestant Welfare Agencies (FPWA), an anti-poverty, policy and advocacy organization with 170 member agencies and faith partners, she has led and secured monumental changes in social policy to strengthen and empower the disenfranchised and marginalized. Jennifer brings to her work a profound understanding of the link between race, poverty, law and social policy in America, and the role religion plays.

Prior to joining FPWA, Ms. Jones Austin served as Senior Vice President of the United Way of New York City; the City of New York’s first Family Services Coordinator; Deputy Commissioner for the NYC Administration for Children’s Services; Civil Rights Deputy Bureau Chief for Attorney General Eliot Spitzer; and Vice President for LearnNow/Edison Schools, Inc.

Ms. Jones Austin chairs the NYC Racial Justice Commission, the first of its kind in the nation tasked with revising the City’s charter to dismantle structural racism in government functions and ensure equity for Black, indigenous and other persons of color. She serves as the Vice Chair of the Board of National Action Network, a founding member of the 400 Years of African-American History Commission, a member of the Feerick Center for Social Justice Advisory Board, a member of the Center for Law, Brain and Behavior Advisory Board at Harvard University, and a member of the COVID-19 “Roll Up Your Sleeves” Task Force created to ensure vaccine information and equitable access in Black and Brown communities. She is the scholar in residence at Nyack College and Alliance Theological Seminary Center for Racial Reconciliation (CRR).

Jennifer Jones Austin has chaired several other influential boards and commissions, including the Mayoral Transition for Bill de Blasio, the NYC Procurement Policy Board, the NYC Board of Correction where she presided over the promulgation of rules to end solitary confinement, the NYS Supermarket Commission, and the Community Engagement Advisory for Brooklyn District Attorney Gonzalez’s Justice 2020 Initiative. She was a lead advisor for the 2020-2021 NYPD Reform and Reinvention Collaborative.

Jennifer co-hosts WBLS’ “Open Line”, guest hosts weekly the nationally syndicated radio program, “Keep’n It Real with Rev. Al Sharpton”, and appears frequently on the cable show, “Brooklyn Savvy”. She is a returning guest and contributor on the “Karen Hunter Show”.

Jones Austin is the author of Consider It Pure Joy. Described as “a story that if not lived would make for a great novel”, it is the harrowing account of her year-long battle with a sudden, life-threatening illness, and the power of faith and community to transform desperation into joy. She is the editor of God in The Ghetto: A Prophetic Word Revisited, the re-release of her father, William Augustus Jones Jr.’s seminal work deconstructing the “System” of racism, capitalism and militarism all working in concert to continually oppress people of color.

A graduate of the Fordham University School of Law, the New York University Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service, and Rutgers University, Jennifer is also a recipient of numerous awards and recognitions, including two honorary doctorates and four honors bestowed upon her by her three alma maters.

Jennifer has two children and resides in Brooklyn, New York with her husband.