Opal Lee
After leading a campaign that caught the attention of big-time celebrities like Jamie Foxx and Diddy, Fort Worth activist Opal Lee is receiving a major honor from Visit Fort Worth.
Visit Fort Worth announced Wednesday that 94-year-old Lee would be the recipient of its annual Hospitality Award, which goes to an individual or organization that "has made significant contributions to developing, marketing, and delivering visitor experiences for Fort Worth’s travel, tourism and hospitality industry."
In 2020, Lee led her Walk 2 DC campaign, walking from Fort Worth to Washington, D.C., to raise awareness and gather signatures for her petition to make Juneteenth — that is, June 19, when slaves in Texas learned they were free following the issuance of the Emancipation Proclamation — a national holiday.
Her initial goal was to gather 100,000 signatures for the cause. But when big-name celebrities like Jamie Foxx, Lupita Nyong’o, Usher, and Diddy caught wind of the effort and shared it to their social channels, Lee's signatures rounded out to about 1.5 million.
“Opal Lee’s positive message about freedom captured national attention this year. In honoring her, we want to emphasize that everyone is welcome in Fort Worth, Texas,” Mark Nurdin, chairman of the Visit Fort Worth Board of Directors, said in a statement.
Previous award Hospitality Award honorees include DFW Airport, Mayor Betsy Price, and Leon Bridges.
“We have simply got to make people aware that none of us are free until we’re all free, and we aren’t free yet," Lee says. "As we address local inequality, we become a more welcoming city.”
Lee will receive the Hospitality Award Feb. 5 at the Visit Fort Worth Annual Meeting & Breakfast, expected to take place at the Omni Fort Worth Hotel. According to Visit Fort Worth, the event will implement social distancing, taking less than 50% occupancy of the Omni ballroom and seating tables of six instead of the usual 10. Visit Fort Worth also plans to enforce masks and temperature checks.
Along with the Hospitality Award, Visit Fort Worth also plans to announce the recipient of the second annual Beyond Award, which honors frontline workers in the hospitality industry. Locals can nominate an employee of a hotel, restaurant, or cultural attraction between now and Jan. 11 at fortworth.com/events/annual/beyond-award.
More information about the Annual Meeting & Breakfast is available here.
