Press & Publicity
Official statements, action alerts, and advocacy updates from the NAACP Main Line Branch.
NAACP Applauds Supreme Court Decision Protecting Mail Voting
A victory for democracy! In a ruling released on Monday, September 14, the Supreme Court voted to preserve mail-in voting access, protecting the right of millions of Americans — especially Black voters and marginalized communities — to make their voices heard safely and securely in the upcoming midterm elections on Tuesday, November 3.
NAACP Main Line Branch Calls on Upper Merion Township to Block Proposed AI Data Center Campus
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Committee on Communications, Press and Publicity
NAACP Main Line Branch (Unit 2270)
naacpmlbranch@gmail.com | 610-813-2097NAACP Main Line Branch Calls on Upper Merion Township to Block Proposed AI Data Center Campus Branch cites EPA Superfund site risks, national NAACP policy, and Baltimore moratorium precedent in demanding full ordinance compliance and independent community impact study KING OF PRUSSIA, PA (May 23, 2026) — The NAACP Main Line Branch (Unit 2270) today issued a formal statement of opposition to the proposed MLP Ventures AI data center campus in Upper Merion Township, calling on the Upper Merion Township Planning Commission, the Board of Supervisors, and all relevant township authorities to use every available power to block and prevent this development in its current form. The proposal, submitted by developer Brian O'Neill of MLP Ventures, involves up to eight interconnected AI data center facilities totaling more than 4 million square feet in Renaissance Park. The largest cluster is proposed on an active EPA Superfund site at 2200 Renaissance Boulevard, where industrial coking waste contaminated four quarries from 1919 to 1981 and groundwater remediation continues to this day. Applications were submitted days before Upper Merion Township enacted a new Data Center Ordinance; the developer is now seeking a grandfathering exemption to avoid its protective standards. "The NAACP Main Line Branch stands firmly against this proposal," said Brian Reese-Turner, President of the NAACP Main Line Branch. "What is being proposed in Upper Merion is precisely what the national NAACP's Stop Dirty Data Centers campaign was designed to confront: a massive industrial development on a contaminated Superfund site, submitted to outrun community-protective regulations, with no independent environmental review and no meaningful community input. We are calling on Upper Merion Township to block this development and to stand with its residents." The branch's opposition is expressly grounded in the NAACP's 2026 Recommendations for Protecting Frontline Communities to Stop Dirty Data, released January 8, 2026 by NAACP President Derrick Johnson, which call for moratoriums when communities lack full environmental monitoring and transparency, explicitly prohibit data center construction on Superfund sites, and require cumulative impact analyses when multiple facilities are proposed in one region. "What Baltimore did, Upper Merion can do," Reese-Turner continued. "The Baltimore City Council passed a one-year moratorium on May 11, 2026, to protect its residents, and the national NAACP applauded that decision. Upper Merion Township has that same authority, and we are calling on the Planning Commission and the Board of Supervisors to use it. At a minimum, no application on an active Superfund site should receive any approval until an independent community impact study is completed and publicly released." The NAACP Main Line Branch is calling on Upper Merion Township to: 1. Deny all grandfathering exemption claims and require full compliance with the Data Center Ordinance. 2. Issue a moratorium on all applications involving the Renaissance Boulevard Superfund site pending an independent EPA Region 3 assessment. 3. Commission an independent community impact study before any application is approved. 4. Require public disclosure of all power generation, water usage, and grid infrastructure cost arrangements. "The residents of Hughes Park, Copper Mill Station, and every neighborhood near this proposed development deserve to know what is being built in their backyard and to have their health and safety protected," Reese-Turner said. "The NAACP Main Line Branch will be at the Planning Commission on Wednesday, May 27. We will be on the record, and we will continue this fight for as long as it takes." The NAACP Main Line Branch (Unit 2270) serves Montgomery County and the surrounding Main Line communities of southeastern Pennsylvania and is a unit of the NAACP Pennsylvania State Conference. ###
seven main line branch resolutions made it to the 117th national convention floor
The Main Line Branch proudly participated in this democratic process, including supporting several resolutions submitted by our branch. President Reese-Turner shared that one resolution authored by Education Committee Chair Alex Tavangar was debated on the convention floor and ultimately adopted after delegates rejected an amendment that would have narrowed its scope.
our first unity in every color community engagement luncheon was a huge success
Our Unity in Every Color Community Engagement Lunch brought together residents from across the Main Line to learn more about the work of the NAACP while supporting the vital work of our branch committees. Guests connected with committee leaders, learned how advocacy happens at the local level, and discovered new opportunities to become involved.
97th anniversary freedom fund honorees
We are proud to celebrate this year's honorees, whose courage and service embody the spirit of "We The People":
W.E.B. Du Bois Community Service Award Honorees
Leon Smith - Dawn Allen - Trish McFarland - Donna L. Allie
Oscar B. Cobbs Sr. Civil Rights Advocacy Award Honorees
Judy Trombetta - Rev. April M. Martin - Charles "Chuck" Marshall - Pastor Daren K. Miller
Tell Congress to Reject Harmful Funding Cuts
The NAACP calls for Congress to reject harmful government funding plans in favor of policies that safeguard the quality of Americans' lives.
Tell Congress: No New Funding For ICE
We cannot wait for more tragedies to occur. Now is the time to hold ICE accountable for the destruction and havoc it wreaks in neighborhoods across the country.
Defending Black Voter Power
Our democracy is in a crisis. The recent Supreme Court decision in Louisiana vs. Callais is a direct attack and amplifies voter suppression spreading across the country. Our fight for our Black voting rights is fueled through organizing and mobilizing to protect Black electoral power.