Dale protests Sessions’ appointment
The election of Donald Trump as president has not come without a certain amount of tumult, with significant contention over some of the president-elect’s appointments. One selection in particular has led to upheaval among some Alabamians – including Russellville’s Charles Dale.
Alabamians Against Sessions for Attorney General has been holding press conferences and sit-ins at the Alabama offices of Sen. Jeff Sessions, including several last Monday, held concurrently at Mobile, Huntsville, Dothan, Birmingham and Montgomery. A Jan. 3 sit-in by NAACP members in Mobile led to their arrest, and the NAACP remains on the move.
The NAACP, along with at least 144 organizations, signed petitions asking the U.S. Senate to block the confirmation of Sessions at the Judiciary Confirmation hearing scheduled for Jan. 10. Additionally, Alabamians gathered at all Sessions’ office locations Jan. 9 at 11 a.m. for a prayer vigil “to call on God to protect its citizenry from the disrespect, callousness and carelessness Sessions has displayed to the people,” according to a press release.
Locally, outspoken NAACP member the Rev. Charles Dale has been involved in Huntsville press conferences and also took part in the two-day NAACP Stop Sessions Bus Trip to Washington, D.C., for the confirmation hearing.
“I was chosen by God a long time ago,” said Dale, explaining what drives him to participate in the fight against Sessions’ appointment. “Wherever He directs me to go, I don’t question Him … It’s not about me. It’s about what God wants me to do.”
Dale said he feels people “are suffering because we allow politicians to do what they are doing, and nobody is standing up and speaking out.”
Dale joined a group of about 50 to attend the confirmation hearing, where Dale said he enjoyed interacting with other NAACP leaders and prominent figures who are spreading the same message, like NAACP Alabama State Conference President Benard Simelton.
A vote on Sessions will be held following Inauguration Day Friday.
