On Monday, June 10, the City of High Point had a very exciting announcement that should bring a lot of positive national notoriety to the second-largest city in Guilford County. The National Civic League has named the City of High Point a 2024 All-America City Award winner.
That puts the city in with ten high-achieving communities that are being recognized for “transformative, community-driven efforts to strengthen democracy through local action and innovation, showcasing the strength of its civic infrastructure – the network of relationships, partnerships and capacities driving effective decision-making and problem-solving.”
It’s quite a feather in the city’s cap given all the competition from around the country.
From Friday, June 7 to Sunday, June 9, finalists got together in Denver and presented their stories and told about their initiatives to a jury of nationally recognized civic leaders.
The teams making the presentations represented a broad spectrum of society, including high school students, older adults, city managers, business leaders, police officers, faith leaders and elected officials.
According to a proud June 10 press release from High Point officials, “High Point’s dynamic and creative presentation featured spoken word and compelling personal stories from its community delegation.”
Members of that delegation included High Point Mayor Cyril Jefferson, Mayor Pro Tem Michael Holmes, Councilman Patrick Harman, City Manager Tasha Logan Ford, City staff, spoken word poet Douglas McCollum, local artist Zoe Kamiya and representatives from High Point Discovered, Greater High Point Food Alliance, Thrive High Point and D-UP Inc.
The press release continues, “The group showcased democracy-strengthening initiatives, including the City’s branding project, the work of the Greater High Point Food Alliance to combat food insecurities and Thrive High Point’s efforts to address systemic disparities through reparative resource allocation.”
The jury liked what it heard because High Point was one of the ten winning communities, which were all announced during the closing ceremony on Sunday.
This is the second time the City of High Point has won this award. It won it for the first time in 1962.
“Congratulations to the 2024 All-America City Award recipients,” said Doug Linkhart, president of the National Civic League. “These communities are collaborating with residents and diverse stakeholders to tackle local challenges and seize opportunities. They remind us that the foundations of our democracy are strengthened through both individual and collective action.”
High Point Mayor Cyril Jefferson was highly enthused.
“I am deeply grateful to our city staff and community partners for their dedication and teamwork in securing this award,” Jefferson stated. “The All-America City recognition highlights our commitment to growth, innovation and inclusivity, ensuring every voice in High Point is heard and valued and further emphasizes the global impact felt by our city’s creative DNA. Together, we are building a vibrant and thriving community. Together, we are changing the world.”
“You must be kidding”.
Woke award of shame more like.
The problem with this is America is not a democracy. (control of an organization or group by the majority of its members)
America is a republic. Always has been and always will be. (A republic protects the rights of the individual and puts individual rights above the majority) Otherwise you have mob rule, dictatorships and out of control government powers.
To many people keep blurring this line. The American Revolutionary War of 1812 highlights some differences. In 1776 we separated from this form of government and formed a Republic.