September & October 2025

Color Of Change at the Annual Legislative Conference of the Congressional Black Caucus

This year marked the fifty fourth anniversary of the Annual Legislative Conference (ALC) of the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC). The ALC is a unique platform where thought leaders, advocates and legislators converge to promote the political, economic, and social advancement of Black communities. This year's theme of Power, Policy, and Progress called nearly 20,000 people to the nations capitol including a team of Color Of Change staff led by our Interim Executive Director Portia Allen-Kyle.

This CBC ALC is as important as it ever was in this country during this current timeframe in the face of the current administration's neo-segregationist agenda. We have seen attacks to the very legislation that emboldened the original thirteen members to caucus in 1971 to form the CBC, in the tradition of our ancestors we rallied around the community to highlight the evils that are currently facing Black America. Color Of Change engaged with elected officials, partners, and members throughout the week advancing issues around our Black Tech Agenda, Advancing Cultural Legacy, and Defending Black Political Power.

Of special note: Color Of Change alongside SEIU and Community Change celebrated the leadership of Congressional Black Caucus Chairwoman Yvette Clarke, Representatives: Jasmine Crockett, Sydney Kamlager-Dove, and Lamonica McIver.

Organizing Recap

Nearly 500 members from across the country joined Color Of Change for our Urgent Call to Defend Black History.

Color Of Change Interim Executive Director, Portia Allen-Kyle, called out the attacks on our community and culture and the crisis currently unfolding across America as detailed in Project 2025, a coordinated effort to silence our voices, erase our history, and strip away our power. Her inspiring words reminded us why we must fight to preserve our cultural legacy and push back against the neo-segregationist movement.

We were joined by featured distinguished leaders Kimberlé Crenshaw, Executive Director of the African American Policy Forum, and Dr. Kaye Wise Whitehead, President of the Association for the Study of African American Life and History, for a robust conversation on the importance and rich legacy of protecting and preserving Black History, and a community history lesson to ground us in truth. If you were unable to attend, check our recording and next steps from the call.

20 Years of Racial Justice

For two decades, Color Of Change has stood at the center of the fight for justice, dignity, opportunity, and liberation for Black people and communities. We’ve fought to transform criminal justice policy, expand economic opportunity, and build lasting political power for Black people.

With every campaign, we’re working to create a more human, less hostile world for Black people in America — from our work to fight back against predatory tax companies, to our campaigns to reign in the unchecked power of Big Tech and to combat neo-segregationists who aim to overturn our nation’s bedrock civil rights laws.

Our ongoing fight to build real power for Black people could not be more critical, as we face the harms of a neo-segregationist movement spearheaded by the Trump administration that is determined to roll back decades of progress and protections. In recognition of 20 years of Color Of Change, will you join us in recommitting to the urgent struggle to make justice real for us all? 60 Color Of Change members have already made a donation. Will you help us reach our $120,000 anniversary fundraising goal to power our movement?

Donate to Color Of Change

Black Communities Are Under Attack

Last week, U.S. Border Patrol agents in Chicago led a late-night raid on an apartment building. Federal law enforcement used helicopters to land on the roof and destroy people’s apartments and personal property. Black U.S. citizens were detained, children were pulled from their homes, and some were forced naked onto the streets. These officers did not even show a warrant upon entering homes and detaining people.

This is not about crime or public safety. This is about protecting Black power and forcefully pushing back against the Trump administration’s neo-segregationist agenda designed to dismantle our rights and drag our country back into the backwards.

Trump won’t stop with the cities. This is a test for how far he can go, an authoritarian rehearsal to expand control and suppress dissent in every Democratic-led city. First it was Washington D.C. Now, it’s Chicago, Memphis, and Portland. Tomorrow, it will be your community.

We must show this administration that the American people will oppose him at every step — join Color Of Change in pledging to push back and resist federal occupation of our homes and communities! 1,633 people have already taken action. Help us reach our goal of collecting 4,000 signatures before Trump invades another Black-led city.

Sign on: Protect Black Political Power

Until Justice Is Real,

The Color Of Change Connections Team