SACRAMENTO - State Assembly Member Warren Furutani has named Evelyn Knight as the Woman of the Year for the 55th Assembly District.  Knight will be honored today on the Assembly floor during a ceremony in the state Capitol.

Knight has directed her life, whether as a teacher, social worker, or community volunteer, to a singleness of purpose- that of championing service to community, humanity and family. She currently serves with, among many others, the Board of the African-American Heritage Society, Long Beach Economic Development Commission, Centro Shalom, and the Los Angeles Legal Aid Advisory Council.

Arriving in Long Beach in 1962, and working at Catholic Social Services, she quickly noted the lack of public services in the African American community.  To empower the neighborhood, she helped to organize the Community Improvement League that was able to markedly improve residents’ quality of life.

She marched with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in the 1965 Selma March to Montgomery, which ultimately let to precedent-setting federal civil rights legislation and the Voting Rights Act.  The next struggle was voter registration and Evelyn returned to Alabama to take on that challenge.

“Evelyn truly embodies the spirit of how one individual can contribute and change a community for the better,” Assembly Member Furutani said.  “Without question, she is committed to seeing public policy improve all communities, not just those with economic or political clout.”

The Woman of the Year event started in 1987 by Assemblywomen Bev Hansen and Sally Tanner, who noticed that the California Legislature had no events planned for the month of March, Women’s History Month.  In celebration of the contributions to society made by women throughout California, the Legislature arranged to invite one woman from each Assembly and Senate district to come to the Capitol and be honored for their accomplishments.