Honoring The Late Dr. Hazel Dukes: A Lifetime Fighting for Justice, A Legacy That Lives On
Today, for Women’s History Month, we celebrate Dr. Hazel Nell Dukes, born March 17, 1932, and passed March 1, 2025, sixteen days before her 93rd birthday. She would have been 94 today. Dr. Dukes was the epitome of activism and advocacy. All of us who do the work are standing on her strong shoulders. A legacy of leadership, activism, and community power was her lifelong work and an example for us all to strive for.
Dr. Dukes was both the president of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People‘s (NAACP) New York State chapter and its national president. Dr. Dukes was a significant civil rights activist whose influence went well beyond her work with the NAACP. She was the first Black citizen to administer a governor’s oath, a “Queen Mother” of advocacy, a trailblazing political strategist, and an advocate for educational equity.
Often known as “Ma” or the “Matriarch of the Civil Rights Movement” by those close to her, Dr. Dukes played a pivotal role in the civil rights movement. Over the course of her seven decades in leadership, she emerged as a leading advocate for political empowerment, education, and racial fairness. She was a powerful figure in Democratic politics and a trusted counselor to several New York governors, including Mario Cuomo, Andrew Cuomo, and Kathy Hochul, as well as NYC’s first African American Mayor, David Dinkins. Additionally, she endorsed Shirley Chisholm in 1972 and played a significant role in promoting the election of Black women to high office, including Kamala Harris.
She was a Champion of Education & Social Justice. Dr. Dukes was appointed by President Lyndon B. Johnson to the “Head Start” program and spent decades advocating for education reform, affordable housing, and environmental justice. She dedicated her life and spent decades fighting against housing discrimination and for expanded voting access, particularly in New York and her native Alabama.
She achieved many historical and trailblazing firsts:
First Layperson to Swear in a New York Governor: In January 2023, Dr. Dukes made history as the first layperson in the United States to administer the oath of office to a governor, specifically Governor Kathy Hochul.
First Black Person in the Nassau County Attorney’s Office: She broke a significant racial barrier in 1966 when she became the first Black employee hired by the Nassau County Attorney’s Office, where she focused on housing and foster care cases. She later led the New York City Off-Track Betting Corporation.
First Black Vice Chair of the Nassau County Democratic Committee: Dr. Dukes was the first Black woman to serve in this leadership position.
One of Few Women to Serve as National NAACP President: She was only the second woman to serve as the national president of the NAACP (1989–1992), a role she held while also being a member of the National Board of Directors
In 2023, the NAACP awarded its highest honor, the 108th Spingarn Medal, to Dr. Hazel N. Dukes in recognition of her seven decades of transformative civil rights leadership.
“I am overwhelmed with joy and gratitude to be included among this distinguished list of Spingarn medalists,” said Dr. Hazel N. Dukes after receiving the Spingarn Medal. “This medal serves as a recognition of my life’s work and reflects on those who have walked with me over the past 70 years. To know my name is etched in NAACP history and American history alongside the civil rights legends who came before me is a humbling honor. These 70 years have not been easy; they have been filled with pain, hardships, and tribulations. But the struggles of those who paved the way serve as a powerful reminder that we must take bold steps to confront racism and tirelessly advocate for civil rights. We must continue fighting the good fight. Throughout my time as an NAACP leader, my greatest privilege has been to mentor those growing up in the Association. I hope my legacy leaves a roadmap for younger generations to learn from and use as they carry this movement forward.”
The Medal was presented during the Spingarn Freedom Fund Awards Dinner, where Secretary Clinton commended Dr. Dukes for her many decades of service to the people of New York and dedication to bettering the lives of Black Americans across the country.
An honorary street, “Dr. Hazel Dukes Way,” was dedicated in Roslyn Heights, NY, on March 18, 2023. The street, formerly known as Edwards Street (or Edwards Avenue), is located by the Roslyn Gardens apartment complex. This location is deeply significant because Dr. Dukes was instrumental in integrating the complex when she became its first Black resident in the 1950s. While living there, she fought against housing discrimination and helped elect the first Black member of the Roslyn school board. During the dedication ceremony, which took place the day after her 91st birthday, she referred to the neighborhood as “home”.
Dr. Dukes received a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration from Adelphi University, Garden City, New York, and completed post-graduate work at Queens College. In 1990, she was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Laws Degree from the City University of New York Law School at Queens College, and in 2009, was conferred the Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters from Medgar Evers College, Brooklyn, New York. In 2012, she was awarded the Honorary Degree of Doctor of Humane Letters from Touro College of Osteopathic Medicine, Harlem, New York.
Into her 90s, she remained on the frontlines, whether protesting police brutality or pushing for better health care in underserved neighborhoods. Despite her many titles and distinctions, she often described herself simply as a servant of the people. “…if I can help somebody as I pass along; then my living shall not have been in vain.” Words we could all afford to live by.
Happy Heavenly Birthday, Dr. Hazel Dukes!
