Remembering Nancy Shakir

Longtime Democracy North Carolina Southeastern Organizer Nancy Shakir passed away on February 5, 2017.

Nancy was a teacher and courageous truth-teller, a mother and grandmother, a candidate for Congress and grassroots organizer. She packed a tremendous amount into her 77 years. A founding member and officer of the National Coalition of 100 Black Women, Nancy also served on the Board of Directors of the New Jersey Council for the Social Studies and the New Jersey Center for Civic and Law-Related Education. She was a Non-Governmental Agency delegate to the United Nations Conference Against Racism in Durban, South Africa, a delegate to the White House Conference on Families, and a commissioner on the Montclair, N.J. Civil Rights Commission.

In North Carolina, Nancy is remembered as a visionary leader, a tireless board member and volunteer, an anti-racism trainer and passionate educator, a radio host and Moral Monday arrestee, a proud member of Kappa Delta Pi (the National Honor Society in Education), and even a politician — she challenged Larry Kissell in 2010 for the Democratic seat in North Carolina’s 8th congressional district, stretching from Charlotte to Fayetteville.

But her fellow Democracy North Carolina organizers Cheryl Ellis and Linda Sutton said it best. They called Nancy a “fierce warrior woman.” Based in Fayetteville, she shared her vast knowledge of politics, coalition building, and activism throughout southeastern North Carolina and beyond.

Nancy graduated with a BA in History from Rutgers University and a MA in Education Administration from St. Peter’s Jesuit College. Her other studies included Organizational Behavior at Polytechnic in Brooklyn, New York. and graduate studies in History at Rutgers University and Fayetteville State University. She was a member of Kappa Delta Pi, National Honor Society in Education.

“She shared her knowledge gained through many years of anti-racism training and her knowledge of the political landscape as well,” added Sutton. “She taught and gave her all to her fellow sisters and brothers in the movement. Always inspiring and motivating, we will miss Nancy at Democracy North Carolina, and the world will miss her for she had so much to give to the world. Well done Nancy, rest now.”

Celebration of Life Service of Nancy Clark-Shakir
Sunday, February 19, at 2 p.m.
Jernigan Warren Funeral Home
545 Ramsey Rd, Fayetteville 28301