Internationally Recognized Civil Rights Attorney Elected to Lead Georgia NAACP

President-Elect Gerald A. Griggs: “The NAACP is back. The monster has awakened, and we will be on the front lines fighting for voting rights, justice, and accountability. When Black people and minorities’ rights are violated, expect to hear from the NAACP.”

On Saturday, April 23, 2022, Attorney Gerald Griggs received more than 65 percent of the vote to become the next President of the Georgia NAACP. Griggs becomes the 13th President of the Georgia NAACP.

For nearly 20 years, the Atlanta native has used activism and his profession to take on systemic injustices in the court system bringing two cases of police brutality involving Jimmy Atchison and Vincent Truitt before the United Nations. As a Georgia State Investigator, President-Elect Griggs was instrumental in the original investigation of Gregory and Travis McMichael and William “Roddie” Bryan that led to their arrests and, ultimately, their convictions. Griggs led a legal team in 2021 that represented voting rights group to sue the State of Georgia over voter suppression. His team included Attorney Fred Gray, who represented Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and Rosa Parks. He also represented many of the families in the case against the now-convicted Robert Sylvester Kelly, also known as R. Kelly, for his crimes against women and young girls. His top three priorities will include addressing police brutality, protecting voting rights, and defending civil rights.

“Right now, our voting and civil rights are under attack in Georgia. I am humbled by the fact that the branches of the NAACP across this state overwhelmingly elected me to pick up the torch to lead this fight to protect all people of color. The NAACP is back. The monster has awakened, and we will be on the front lines fighting for voting rights, justice, and accountability. When Black people and minorities’ rights are violated, expect to hear from the NAACP,” said President-Elect Griggs.

President-Elect Griggs is expected to be sworn in within the next few days. He is a 1996 graduate of Woodward Academy. He furthered his studies at Oxford College of Emory University and Emory University, where he received his BA in 2000. After his time at Emory, Attorney Griggs received JD in 2004 from the University of Cincinnati College of Law. He began practicing law in the State of Georgia in the fall of 2004. Attorney Griggs was recognized as a member of Emory University’s Top 40 Under 40 Distinguished Alumni