Yesterday at the District of Columbia Commission on Human Rights’ annual International Human Rights Day, Wade Henderson – President and CEO of the Leadership Conference – was recognized with the Cornelius R. “Neil” Alexander Humanitarian Award, for his commitment to advancing both civil and human rights of American citizens.

In his acceptance speech, Henderson made mention of the man for whom the award is named, “Neil Alexander was a tireless and largely unsung champion of civil and human rights.  Our city and the struggle for equal justice benefited immensely from his legal expertise and his leadership in enforcing the District’s human rights law.”

He also used his speech to draw attention to two issues that The Leadership Conference is spearheading actions toward: 1.) the lack of voting rights for DC residents, and 2.) reforming the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights.  He articulated the innate connection between civil rights and human rights, and his vision and aim of the organization for which he works so tirelessly, “The Leadership Conference itself was founded in 1950 at the dawn of the modern civil rights movement just two years after the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights… [it] has worked to help America take that walk in the bright sunshine of human rights.”