Congressional Black Caucus Foundation Recognizes Toyota's Commitment to Preserve African American History

WASHINGTON, DC -- March 5, 2015: African-American novelist, playwright and poet James Baldwin once said, “people are trapped in history and history is trapped in them.” The Congressional Black Caucus Foundation (CBCF) wants to ensure that African American history is protected for generations to come.

Toyota Motor Sales (TMS), U.S.A., Inc., also is dedicated to preserving African-American history. In honor of this and its philanthropic efforts in the community, the company recently received the “Distinguished Corporation Avoice Heritage Award” from the CBCF during the sixth annual Avoice Heritage Celebration in Washington, D.C.

Toyota supports the African American community and organizations in three focus areas -- safety, the environment and education. Last year, Toyota donated $10,000 to the National Trust for Historic Preservation, an organization dedicated to saving threatened historic sites such as Atlanta’s Sweet Auburn District, the Malcolm X-Ella Little Collins House in Boston and Philadelphia’s Joe Frazier’s Gym. Additionally, Toyota recently contributed to the National Archives to preserve important documents, including the GI Bill of Rights and House Passage of the Bill of Rights.

The “Distinguished Corporation Avoice Award” honors a corporation that is committed to cultivating minority civic engagement, public discourse of Africa-American history, or the preservation of important historic artifacts through philanthropic or programmatic support.

"Toyota is honored to receive this award," said Jim Colon, vice president, African American Business Strategy, TMS. "We look forward to continuing our partnership with the CBCF and encouraging the preservation of our the nation’s history."

“Toyota’s legacy of leadership is demonstrated through its philanthropic endeavors, environmental initiatives and focus on education,” said A. Shuanise Washington, president and CEO of the CBCF. “We appreciate Toyota’s commitment to civic engagement and look forward to continuing our partnership.”

The Avoice Heritage Celebration is the foundation's official Black History Month observance, which helps to support the Avoice virtual library. The CBCF Avoice Virtual Library is a premier source of information about historical and contemporary African-American policy issues important to researchers, academics, educators and students.