Dubuque 37th Annual Freedom Fund Banquet

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Our annual Freedom Fund Banquet will be held at Diamond Jo Casino, 301 Bell Street, on Friday 23 October 2026. The room will open at 5:00 p.m. Soft drinks, wine, beer and mixed drinks will be available for purchase. The welcome address will be at 5:45pm, followed by a buffet of heavy appetizers. The program will begin around 6:30pm.
“We, The People” was the core theme of the 2026 NAACP National Convention (the 117th). This theme served as a reminder that the U.S. Constitution belongs to all people, not just politicians or the wealthy, and emphasized equal rights, voting access, and economic justice as the nation approaches its 250th anniversary. “We, The People” is also the theme of the 2026 Freedom Fund banquet, Dubuque Branch NAACP’s 37th.

The keynote speaker at the Freedom Fund Banquet will be Henry Hamilton III, who recently retired as a federal Administrative Law Judge. Hamilton has also served as an Administrative Judge and Senior Trial Attorney with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission; Magistrate Judge for the State of Iowa; City Prosecutor for the City of Des Moines, Iowa; and as a private practitioner with the Parrish Law Firm, Des Moines, Iowa.

Hamilton is the Immediate Past President of the Iowa State Bar Association. He is Chair of the American Bar Association Solo and Small Firm Division. Hamilton serves as Vice-chair of the Iowa Advisory Committee to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights and is a member of the Drake Law School Board of Counselors. Additionally, he is author of the Iowa Manual on Civil Procedure (2023).

He is a 1988 graduate of Drake University, Des Moines, IA, and a 1992 graduate of Drake University Law School. Hamilton will speak about honoring Iowa’s Pioneering African American Lawyers and navigating today’s Civil Rights Challenges. On December 28, 1846, Iowa, the “ free child of the Missouri Compromise,” becomes the twenty-ninth state in the Union. Although African Americans have never comprised more than a small percentage of Iowa’s total population, the state has a surprisingly significant, albeit complex, history of both advancing and restricting the civil rights of African Americans .

Iowa’s pioneering African American lawyers are instrumental in this early era in both securing civil rights within the state, and in advancing the development of the nation’s African American legal community. His speech will explore their remarkable journeys, the battles they waged, and the enduring impact of their work.

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Monies raised from the Freedom Fund banquet provide the operating funding for Dubuque Branch NAACP, as well as supporting the annual MLK Tribute (and the monetary awards that students receive). If you wish to attend the Freedom Fund banquet, please complete the enclosed form and return it with payment to NAACP, PO BOX 1012, Dubuque, Iowa 52004-1012 by 16 October 2026.

You can also make reservations using the below form and mail with your check or pay online at our ActBlue page: Here

Ticket Prices

• Youth (High School) $30 Check / $32 ActBlue
• Youth (College) $40 Check / $42 ActBlue
• Adult $50 Check / $52 ActBlue
• Tables hold 10 people, so multiple the above prices by 10 for table prices via check / ActBlue
• Membership + Freedom Fund Ticket $75 (a $5 savings)

On behalf of the Dubuque Branch of the NAACP Freedom Fund Committee, thank you in advance for your support