Nekima Levy Armstrong facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Nekima Levy Armstrong
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Levy Armstrong in 2015
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| Born |
Nekima Levy-Pounds
June 27, 1976 Jackson, Mississippi, U.S.
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| Nationality | American |
| Alma mater | University of Southern California (BA) University of Illinois (JD) |
| Occupation | Attorney |
| Children | 5 |
Nekima Valdez Levy Armstrong (née Levy-Pounds, born around 1976) is an American lawyer and activist who works for social justice. She was the leader of the Minneapolis chapter of the NAACP from 2015 to 2016. She has also led many groups that focus on making things fair for everyone, especially regarding race, in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul area.
Levy Armstrong taught law at the University of St. Thomas in Minneapolis from 2003 to 2016. After her time as NAACP president and leaving her teaching job, she ran for mayor of Minneapolis in 2017. She has been a well-known activist in many protests. These protests were about police killings of Black Americans. She has also been involved in lawsuits. These lawsuits aimed to stop Minneapolis from changing its housing rules. She argued that these changes would hurt the environment and communities of color.
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Early Life and Education
Nekima Levy Armstrong was born on June 27, 1976, in Jackson, Mississippi. She was the oldest of five sisters. When she was eight, her family moved to South Central Los Angeles. At 14, she went to the Brooks School in North Andover, Massachusetts, as a boarding student.
She earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Southern California. Then, she got her law degree (Juris Doctor) from the University of Illinois College of Law. Levy Armstrong lived in Los Angeles until 2003. That's when she moved to Minnesota.
Career and Community Work
Teaching and Helping the Community
Levy Armstrong started teaching law at the University of St. Thomas in 2003. She became a full professor there in 2013. In 2006, she started the Community Justice Project. This project helped law students work with communities that needed legal support. It was a partnership with the Saint Paul chapter of the NAACP.
In 2011, Levy Armstrong directed an African American history museum in South Minneapolis. The museum received many donations. However, it faced money problems and eventually closed.
Levy Armstrong also helped start Brotherhood Inc. This group helps young African American men avoid gang activity and prison. She leads the Minnesota State Advisory Committee. This committee advises the United States Commission on Civil Rights. She also chairs Everybody In, a group that works to close job gaps based on race in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul area.
Involvement with Black Lives Matter
Levy Armstrong joined protests against police actions in Ferguson, Missouri in 2014. She also took part in a Black Lives Matter protest. This protest was about police brutality. It happened at the Mall of America in December 2014. She and ten other protesters were charged by the city. But a judge later dropped the charges against them.
Leading the Minneapolis NAACP
In 2015, Levy Armstrong became the president of the Minneapolis chapter of the NAACP. She ran without anyone opposing her. Some people thought she focused too much on police brutality. But Levy Armstrong wanted to get more young people involved with the NAACP. She often spoke about how unfair things were for different races in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul area. She said these problems were some of the worst in the country.
In November 2015, a man named Jamar Clark was shot by Minneapolis police officers. Levy Armstrong was involved in a protest that blocked Interstate 94. She was among the first protesters arrested. She also led other protests after Clark's death.
Levy Armstrong left her teaching job in 2016. She wanted to work full-time on issues of fairness in money and race. In October of that year, she said she would not run for a second term as NAACP president. She stated she planned to be even more active in the community. Her replacement, Jason Sole, said Levy Armstrong helped connect the NAACP with the Black Lives Matter movement.
Running for Mayor
A year after Jamar Clark's death, Levy Armstrong announced she would run for mayor of Minneapolis. This was for the city's 2017 election. She ran as a member of the Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party. She made her announcement outside a police station. This was the same place where people had protested Clark's killing.
Levy Armstrong faced the current mayor, Betsy Hodges, and other candidates. She chose not to go through the party's official nomination process. She felt the party's meetings were "confusing and unwelcoming." She lost the election in November 2017. She finished in fifth place.
Continuing Community Activism
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In 2020, Levy Armstrong joined protests in Minneapolis. These protests were about the murder of George Floyd. He was an unarmed Black man killed by a white Minneapolis police officer. Levy Armstrong was present when police used tear gas on protesters. This happened without warning. This incident led to Levy Armstrong being part of a lawsuit. The lawsuit was filed by the American Civil Liberties Union. It was about the right to peaceful protest.
Levy Armstrong also spoke out against Minneapolis police union leader Bob Kroll. She joined protests asking for him to resign. A protest group she led gathered outside Kroll's home. They also criticized Kroll's partner, a TV reporter. Some protesters used piñata figures of Kroll and the reporter. This caused some discussion.
In 2023, Levy Armstrong was part of a legal team. They sued Minneapolis over its 2040 Plan. This plan aimed to change housing rules to help with housing shortages. Levy Armstrong argued that these changes would harm the environment and communities of color. She said it would make it harder for people of color to own homes. A judge ruled in favor of the lawsuit. This forced Minneapolis to stop its plan. Levy Armstrong celebrated this decision as a "major victory."
Personal Life
Levy Armstrong lived in Brooklyn Park, Minnesota, until 2015. Then she moved to north Minneapolis. She is married and has five children. Two of her children are adopted. In the mid-2010s, she sometimes preached at Minneapolis's First Covenant Church.
