Regional Council of Negro Leadership

This article has multiple issues. Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page. (Learn how and when to remove these messages) This article relies largely or entirely on a single source. Relevant discussion may be found on the talk page. Please help improve this article by introducing citations to additional sources. Find sources: "Regional Council of Negro Leadership" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (January 2018) This article may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. The specific problem is: The article has an over-reliance on quotes and does not properly cite sources. Please help improve this article if you can. (March 2024) (Learn how and when to remove this message) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

The Regional Council of Negro Leadership (RCNL) was a society in Mississippi founded by T. R. M. Howard in 1951 to promote a program of civil rights, self-help, and business ownership for African Americans. It pledged "to guide our people in their civic responsibilities regarding education, registration and voting, law enforcement, tax paying, the preservation of property, the value of saving and in all things which will make us stable, qualified conscientious citizens." Instead of starting from the "grass roots," however, the strategy was to "reach the masses through their chosen leaders" by harnessing the talents of blacks with a proven record in business, the professions, education, and the church.^[1]