WE INVITE YOU TO CO-INVEST WITH OUR LEADERS
Angela Wilson-Turnbull
Angela Wilson-Turnbull recalls the excitement
of taking a road trip from Detroit to Charleston,
South Carolina to visit her father’s family. Her
older brother Carl Jr. was nine years old and
she was five. They both froze in terror as their
father, a young Black metallurgical chemist, was
pulled over by police and removed from his white
Plymouth Fury.
“I leaned from the window and yelled DADDY! as their mouths
spewed threats while billy clubs affirmed each verbal offense.”
During those moments, Angela remembers asking God to save
her father. When the officers saw her face, they stopped. From
then on, Angela acknowledges that she was formed to speak
out in the dangerous presence of injustice.
Now, she is instinctively drawn to stand for justice. As a
member of St. Augustine Catholic Church, Angela has found
her home and platform to speak out and lead, especially
under the leadership of the church’s current pastor, Father
Patrick Smith.
Angela is deeply moved by St. Augustine’s rich history of social justice and community activism. In 1858,
this Black Catholic Community took a bold stand by building the first Catholic elementary school for
Black youth in Washington, DC during a time when educating Blacks was illegal. More than a century
before the civil rights movement of the 1960’s (of which St. Augustine’s Church played an active role),
this parish was a vital voice for justice.
Angela believes the universals of the Industrial Areas Foundation, with which WIN is affiliated, coupled
with the social justice teachings of the Catholic Church provide a sure guide for how to most effectively
use power to strategically impact the community. It became clear to her how St. Augustine’s Advocacy
Ministry could expand its mission to make the maximum impact in the area of social justice and
community work. “We make a difference!”
Through Angela’s collaborative leadership, St. Augustine’s Advocacy Ministry has been active in multiple
WIN campaigns and community initiatives: organizing to close DC General and fighting homelessness;
advocating for jobs for DC residents, community safety, gun violence prevention, youth engagement with
GOTV efforts; and collaborating with community leaders to establish the Greater Columbia Heights Faith
Coalition to preserve and expand affordable housing opportunities. According to Angela, St. Augustine
Catholic Church and the WIN Core Team there, have stood up to fight these problems with passion and
conviction to honor human dignity. It has been her privilege and joy to have a leadership role is this faith
community’s effort to achieve justice and equality for the residents of this great city.