NAACP Steps to the Forefront with a New Multimedia Website

As soon as the home page for the NAACP historical timeline website loads up, Laurence Fishburne greets you with a lengthy introduction this website. His image is integrated into the interface as he details information about this website and the history of the NAACP. The site is billed as an interactive timeline and this is definitely a true statement. This website was funded by a $500,000 grant from the Verizon foundation, the philanthropic arm of Verizon. Additionally, resources from the NAACP timeline will be available to teachers, students and parents through Verizon Thinkfinity, a free education website.

The timeline starts from 1909 (the year in which the NAACP was created) and flows all the way through 2010. The timeline is coordinated with a map of the United States so you can tell where a specific event occurred in the US. Cities such as Topeka, Hollywood, Scottsboro (Alabama), and Washington, D.C. The topics covered include Lynch Law, Separate and Unequal, Birth of a Race, Smart and Safe and other important historical topics. Within each topic are specific “Impact” issues which delve into further historical details that pertain to the “parent” topic. Very detailed and thorough information is found throughout the entire website. For example, did you know that the NAACP Board of Directors used $1000 from the NAACP Legal Defense Fund to argue the Scottsboro boys case in 1932? This lead to the reversal of the death sentences of these men and established specific laws that still stand today. This is one of the many facts you will learn while browsing this site.

Celebrities such as Tatyana Ali, Dennis Haysbert, Nia Long and Chandra Wilson give video narratives throughout the site which add to the essence of the experience. This website is very impressive. I enjoyed searching and learning about the timeline of the NAACP. My favorite section is the people section, I was able to learn about a multitude of people ranging from Marcus Garvey to Devin Brown to Willie Roberson. The amount of learning on this site will be extremely high. I urge other African American online media outlets and digital publications to look very closely at what the NAACP has done with this site. While the site is built completely in Flash you won’t be able to browse from your iPhone however this is a definite bookmark to continue to check back and learn (even after the month of February is over). I highly recommend spending several visits on this site and spending some quality time looking around and learning. In fact … just follow the mantra of the site which is:

Look Around … Explore … Discover … and Learn.

About the Author
I am a developing social and digital media junkie on an adventure through life. Right now I am on the chapter in the book where I live in Los Angeles. Reach me on twitter @ahr19. Thanks for reading my post.
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