I invite you to the 55th Annual Legislative Conference (ALC), produced by the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation (CBCF). This year, CBCF also marks 50 years as the nonprofit organization behind ALC’s policy work, programs, and impact. I welcome every participant, leader, scholar, partner, and ally with pride and gratitude. For half a century, ALC has helped shape national policy by bringing people together to face hard challenges, share ideas, and turn meaningful dialogue into powerful, coordinated action.
CBCF’s golden anniversary is a significant milestone. Fifty years ago, our founders built CBCF with a clear vision: equity, opportunity, and strong leadership for our communities. This year’s theme, Rooted, Ready, and Rising, helps us honor that history, prepare for today’s work, and look ahead to the future.
When members of the Congressional Black Caucus established CBCF in 1976 as an independent, nonpartisan research and educational institute, they planted something built to last. We are rooted in the legacy of pioneers like Rep. Shirley Chisholm, Rep. John Conyers Jr., Rep. Charles Rangel, Rep. Louis Stokes, and Delegate Walter E. Fauntroy, along with every founder who worked to ensure all communities have a voice in shaping national policy. They built a lasting foundation for empowerment, one that opens doors for emerging leaders, scholars, and community members working toward a fairer, more inclusive society.
Because of that foundation, we are ready to meet the challenges facing our communities today. For 50 years, CBCF has supported progress through various programs and major policy research. Our programs have prepared thousands of leaders now working in government, business, schools, and many other fields. Through our research and convening power, CBCF has also ensured that our communities were prepared with information and tools to help protect, strengthen, and empower our communities. This conference is more than a gathering. By attending, you are learning, connecting, and helping that critical work continue.
CBCF’s golden anniversary is a year-long celebration, and we are excited to mark it in a big way throughout this year’s conference. From the Sojourner Truth Legacy Awards to the Day of Healing Prayer Breakfast to the Phoenix Awards and every gathering in between, each moment honors 50 years of building leaders and shaping policy, from local communities to the halls of government.
It is always important to lead with joy and remember that the celebratory aspects of this incredible week do not take anything away from the work. If anything, it sharpens our focus. Alongside the festivities, our sessions and forums will dig into the real challenges in front of us: protecting and expanding voting rights for every community, ensuring AI, technology, and the world of finance work to build wealth and opportunity for our communities rather than leave them behind, and delivering real-time solutions to harmful, and new employment gaps, affordability and the rising cost of living. These conversations are built to move past the convention center and into action.
We also encourage everyone to visit our interactive exhibits this week, including a full-scale museum experience and the debut of a documentary commemorating CBCF’s 50-year history, a celebration of the past, and a look at the path ahead.
Looking forward to the next 50 years, we are rising to meet what is ahead. CBCF will keep building bridges, encouraging collaboration, and investing in the next generation so that opportunity and dignity reach all people, including Black Americans who have often been denied both.
ROOTED in our legacy and READY for the work in front of us, we will keep RISING together.
Welcome to #ALC55, and #CBCF50, #RootedReadyRising, CBCF’s Golden Anniversary Year. Let’s make it a powerful, inspiring week.
This year’s theme is “Rooted, Ready & Rising”
The dates of the conference are September 16 through September 20.
The conference’s location is the Walter E. Washington Convention Center
(Address: 801 Allen Y Lew Place NW, Washington, DC 20001).
