NAACP seeks to extend deadline for eugenics claims

RALEIGH, NC (AP) — North Carolina’s NAACP is sending an open letter to the governor, speaker of the House and state Senate leaders seeking a yearlong deadline extension for victims of the state’s eugenics program.

The state’s deadline for victims to file a claim is Monday at 5 p.m.

State’s NAACP President the Rev. William Barber said North Carolina has not done a good enough job reaching out to victims.

The proposed new deadline is also the day that victims whose claims are approved by the state are scheduled to receive compensation.

A bill to extend the period to file claims for victims of the decades-long sterilization program was submitted to the General Assembly last month. As of last week, about a third of the estimated living victims had submitted claims.

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