DENVER – On January 14, 2025, the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Colorado Holiday Commission honored ACLU of Colorado Executive Director Deborah Richardson with the Honorable Dr. Menola Upshaw Lifetime Achievement Award. This award commemorates those who have dedicated themselves to the advancement of communities across Colorado and have continued Dr. King’s legacy of human and civil rights advocacy. She received this award alongside Bobby King, Vice President of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at Colorado Access.
“I am enormously grateful and humbled to have received this award,” said Deborah Richardson, ACLU of Colorado Executive Director. “For more than three decades, I have been committed to social justice and the advancement of underrepresented communities, but we would not be here if we did not fight as a community. This award is a recognition of our collective efforts and deep commitment to leave this world better than we found it.”
Raised in the historically Black community of Collier Heights, Ms. Richardson was surrounded by neighbors who were civil rights icons, professionals, and organizers, including her parents. Deborah was among the first Black students to integrate Atlanta Public Schools.
“As my mother would say, ‘Deborah, this is not about you. This is about something bigger than you,’" said Ms. Richardson. “Let us all continue to strive together for a just and equitable state.”
Throughout her career, Deborah Richardson has led nonprofit organizations in advancing transformational social change. She previously served as Executive Vice President of the National Center for Civil and Human Rights (Atlanta) and Founding Director of its International Human Trafficking Institute; Chief Program Officer, Women’s Funding Network (San Francisco); Chief Executive Officer, Atlanta Women’s Foundation; Founding Executive Director, Fulton County Juvenile Justice Fund (now YouthSpark); Director of Program Development and Evaluation, Fulton County Juvenile Court; Managing Director, National Black Arts Festival; and Branch Director, Phyllis Wheatley YWCA.
Recognitions for her work and commitment to social change include a number of awards: Power to Inspire, National Center for Civil and Human Rights; Liberty Bell, Atlanta Bar Association; Grassroots Justice, Georgia Justice Project; Community Service, Spelman College Board of Trustees; Unsung Hero, Atlanta Regional Commission; Beloved Community, Spelman College Social Justice Institute; Trailblazer, The Links Incorporated; Deborah Richardson Day Proclamation, Atlanta City Council; Pathbreaker, Shared Hope USA; Voice For Children, Georgia Voice for Children; and Lives of Commitment, Auburn Theological Seminary.