The NAACP of Portland announced they have removed their endorsement of the Women’s March on Portland, an anti-Trump protest which was scheduled for Jan. 21.

The reasoning behind this is because Jo Ann Hardesty, president of the NAACP, seen that the original organizers of the march would not talk about discrimination affecting women of color or Black Lives Matter, deeming the two “too political”.

“I can’t imagine bringing 20,000 women together and not addressing
the most critical issues that are facing women in our community,”

Since then, the organizers on the Women’s March has since been replaced, in attempts to diversify leadership. Margaret Jacobsen, one of the new organizers told Willamette Week, “We’re changing it so that people feel welcome and know that they are safe here.” Jacobsen has vowed to turn the organization around in the upcoming weeks and has expressed that she would like for Hardesty to speak, but will respect her decision not to come.

The NAACP is aware of the change in leadership but Harden says that the damage had already been done.