Benjamin F Jr Chavis

NAACP Executive Director Benjamin F. Chavis Jr. asserted his innocence Sunday and vowed to fight allegations of sexual harassment and discrimination that have resulted in a lawsuit against the civil rights group and in calls for his resignation. "I know full well that the plaintiff's accusations are completely false and have no merit," Chavis said.

Former NAACP head Benjamin F. Chavis Jr., a United Church of Christ minister and lead organizer of the Million Man March, has joined the Nation of Islam. Chavis, 49, announced his conversion before a cheering crowd at the group's annual Savior's Day festivities in Chicago. "This is not a political decision, it is not an economic decision, it is a spiritual decision," he said. Chavis was named executive director of the National Assn. for the Advancement of Colored People in 1993.

The NAACP does not have to pay the $332,400 promised by former Executive Director Benjamin F. Chavis Jr. to settle an employee's sexual-harassment claim, a jury ruled Thursday. The jury also concluded the civil rights organization is entitled to a refund of the money already paid. "This marks the end of a very unfortunate episode in the recent history of a great American organization," said NAACP President Kweisi Mfume. Mary E.

Vowing to build a powerful black political force, organizers of last fall's "Million Man March" drafted an urban policy agenda Saturday calling for a new party and an end to church burnings. "We are going to build a God-centered mass movement for empowerment," the Rev. Benjamin F. Chavis Jr. told a news conference after a two-day national-issues hearing that drew participants from around the country. Chavis billed the meeting as a follow-up to the Oct.

On April 9, 1993, Benjamin F. Chavis Jr., the freshly elected NAACP executive director, struck a confrontational pose as he attempted to reverse the moribund image of the 85-year-old civil rights organization. Sixteen months later, Chavis was history--fired last weekend, in the words of one board member, for racing the group's engines "too hard, too fast." Now it's back to the future for the NAACP.

It was the spring of 1993, and Benjamin F. Chavis Jr.'s first official act after taking the reins of the NAACP was to visit Los Angeles--where the eyes of the nation were nervously directed, awaiting a verdict in the federal trial of four officers accused in the beating of Rodney G. King. Chavis was on a mission to broaden the base of the 85-year-old organization, to make it more responsive to the needs of the nation's have-nots.

The executive director of the NAACP, under fire for failing to tell board members that he had authorized spending $332,400 to settle a threatened sex-discrimination lawsuit against him, "is anxious to clear the air and meet with the board," his attorney said Friday. Attorney Abbey Hairston said that Executive Director Benjamin F. Chavis Jr. believed that he had "full authority" to make such a payment from the treasury of the financially strapped organization.

The NAACP has settled a lawsuit by fired Executive Director Benjamin F. Chavis Jr., a court-appointed mediator said Friday. The announcement came three days before a judge was to determine whether to order the civil rights group to reinstate him. "It's been resolved," said the mediator, Robert Barnett. Terms of the settlement, which was filed in Superior Court, were not disclosed.

At an "April baby shower" for pregnant teen-agers, the Rev. Benjamin F. Chavis Jr. asked a question that demonstrated how much work may be ahead for the new executive director of the oldest civil rights organization in the country. "How many of you have heard of the NAACP?" he asked. Only a few hands were raised in the audience of nearly 100 African-American and Latino students at the Riley High School-South campus, a school for pregnant teen-agers and young mothers.

Benjamin F. Chavis Jr., the newly installed executive director of the NAACP, pledged to revitalize the 84-year-old civil rights organization with new spirit and new money. And he said the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, hobbled in the past by infighting, has unified. "This time there's no fighting, no division," Chavis said at the opening of the group's national convention in Indianapolis. "Our ranks are together."

The NAACP does not have to pay the $332,400 promised by former Executive Director Benjamin F. Chavis Jr. to settle an employee's sexual-harassment claim, a jury ruled Thursday. The jury also concluded the civil rights organization is entitled to a refund of the money already paid. "This marks the end of a very unfortunate episode in the recent history of a great American organization," said NAACP President Kweisi Mfume. Mary E.

An audit released Thursday found that some NAACP officers squandered about $150,000 on personal trips, clothing and children's toys at a time when the civil rights organization was plunging into debt. Myrlie Evers-Williams, chairwoman of the board of the National Assn. for the Advancement of Colored People, announced the findings after meeting with board members. The audit focused on Benjamin L. Hooks, executive director of the NAACP for 15 years; the Rev. Benjamin F. Chavis Jr.

The NAACP has settled a lawsuit by fired Executive Director Benjamin F. Chavis Jr., a court-appointed mediator said Friday. The announcement came three days before a judge was to determine whether to order the civil rights group to reinstate him. "It's been resolved," said the mediator, Robert Barnett. Terms of the settlement, which was filed in Superior Court, were not disclosed.

The NAACP has sued its former executive director, Benjamin F. Chavis Jr., for $82,400, saying the NAACP board never authorized him to commit the organization's funds to settle a onetime aide's claim of sexual harassment. The board fired Chavis Aug. 20 in the biggest internal upheaval in the 85-year history of the National Assn. for the Advancement of Colored People. The firing came after it was learned that Chavis made a secret deal to pay Mary E. Stansel as much as $332,400 in NAACP funds.

Only days after the NAACP fired Benjamin F. Chavis Jr. as executive director and minutes after a judge refused to reinstate him, Chavis and organization leaders agreed Wednesday to discuss an amicable settlement of their bitter dispute. Superior Court Judge Herbert Dixon declined Chavis' request Wednesday for a temporary restraining order, saying he could no more order the NAACP to take Chavis back than he could force Chavis to continue to work against his wishes.

On April 9, 1993, Benjamin F. Chavis Jr., the freshly elected NAACP executive director, struck a confrontational pose as he attempted to reverse the moribund image of the 85-year-old civil rights organization. Sixteen months later, Chavis was history--fired last weekend, in the words of one board member, for racing the group's engines "too hard, too fast." Now it's back to the future for the NAACP.

Ousted NAACP head Benjamin F. Chavis Jr. rebounded Sunday from his firing by embracing controversial Nation of Islam Minister Louis Farrakhan at a black leadership summit. At the same time, there was speculation that Chavis is organizing a new, grass-roots organization to challenge the nation's oldest civil rights group.

NAACP Executive Director Benjamin F. Chavis Jr. has lost the support of board members representing Southern branches of the civil rights organization--a development that virtually assures he will be ousted when the board meets Saturday, sources said Monday. The special session was called to discuss criticism of Chavis for secretly settling a sexual discrimination lawsuit against him with the organization's money.

It was the spring of 1993, and Benjamin F. Chavis Jr.'s first official act after taking the reins of the NAACP was to visit Los Angeles--where the eyes of the nation were nervously directed, awaiting a verdict in the federal trial of four officers accused in the beating of Rodney G. King. Chavis was on a mission to broaden the base of the 85-year-old organization, to make it more responsive to the needs of the nation's have-nots.

Ousted NAACP head Benjamin F. Chavis Jr. rebounded Sunday from his firing by embracing controversial Nation of Islam Minister Louis Farrakhan at a black leadership summit. At the same time, there was speculation that Chavis is organizing a new, grass-roots organization to challenge the nation's oldest civil rights group.