C. Virginia Fields’ retirement plan: Being a voice for civic engagement

After a long career in public service and social work, C. Virginia Fields has officially announced her retirement as CEO of Black Health, a health advocacy nonprofit also known as the National Black Leadership Commission on Health. In an interview with City & State, Fields discussed the way that her upbringing in segregated Birmingham Alabama, her early political involvement as a young woman marching with Martin Luther King and the many stages of her career in social work and public service are all connected. Although she is retiring, Fields said she remains committed to using her voice to fight for social justice, civil rights and political issues, but she also hopes to spend some time traveling. 

The following interview has been edited for length and clarity. 

Are you excited for retirement? 

I’m looking forward to it, because I think this is – as I have said in various statements – an opportune time for the organization. The work that I’ve done here will hopefully continue. Back in 2019, we went through a rebranding. After two years of a rebranding process, we changed the name from National Black leadership Commission on AIDS to National Black Leadership Commission on Health, because we wanted the name to more reflect our work beyond just HIV/AIDS, and we also understood the intersectionality between HIV/AIDS and other diseases that disproportionately impact African Americans, so we wanted that to be more of the focus. 

We expanded our health focus areas, beyond just HIV/AIDS and hepatitis C, to six other diseases that disproportionately impact African Americans, and a new mission that focuses on eliminating disparities and achieving equity through education, advocacy and policy. With that done, right after that was approved, what happened? COVID. COVID just popped, right in that same year, in November-December. And of course, we had to pivot just like every other organization and do what we had to do … because we are a national organization, so not only did we work right here in New York City, but also led efforts in South Carolina, Baton Rouge, Atlanta, and so forth. And now, as we began to come out of that in 2023, I went back to the board and said, I think this is an opportune time where I will step down. Let’s bring in new leadership so that they now can take the organization to its next chapter. 

How do you feel about the mayor designating this past Juneteenth as C. Virginia fields day?

I felt very happy, very pleased about that, because that was a date when several of the leading HIV-AIDS organizations hosted a retirement party which happened to be on that date. And for the mayor to release, or issue, a proclamation on that same day and name June 19th, 2024 as C. Virginia Fields day in New York City, I felt very honored and I was very pleased to have that done and be associated with such a historic date in the life of black people – African Americans – in terms of what we have all come to understand in the significance of the date. So, in memory and for institutional legacy purposes, I was very pleased. 

What are some accomplishments during your time as president and CEO of Black Health that you’re most proud of? 

I think stabilizing the organization and really expanding its reach as a national organization. This organization was established, I think it was about 1987, under Debra Fraser-Howze and Harriet Michel. At that time, when HIV AIDS was this unknown thing, we saw a lot of white gay men dying, and at that same time, a lot of black gay men were dying. Out of that recognition, a group of faith leaders and business leaders were called together to say, “Look, this is what is happening in our community,” and out of that, we had the Black Leadership Commission on AIDS develop. From there, it moved to the National Black Leadership Commission on AIDS, but it was still pretty much centered in New York City and began to move to New York state working largely with the faith community. 

Under my leadership, building on this foundation that clearly was already laid, I feel very good that we were able to expand our partnerships on a national level and work with faith based leaders as well as community based organizations beyond just the HIV community. I often would say, as someone who’s very active in civic organizations, sororities, national groups, etc. I was not aware about the impact of HIV among black heterosexual women. And I’m saying, well, “If I’m out here, and (…) if I don’t know this, my colleagues and counterparts on a national and local level don’t know this.” So part of our effort was to engage and create more conversations through education, through outreach, through building partnerships. We were able to establish partnerships, probably with over 100 or so organizations nationally, through which we could (…) work together, be a part of conversations and help to get the message out there beyond the populations that I saw us doing at the time when I came into the organization. So building national partnerships, strengthening relationships with diverse groups, health groups, and other professional organizations, and actually elevating discussions about this disease, HIV/AIDS, as it relates to stigma, and certainly continuing to work with faith based organizations, we began to see more of the clergy speak about the stigma and the impact of HIV/AIDS from the pulpit, not just on HIV/AIDS Awareness Day. We saw that taking place more. 

I guess, overall, I would say elevating the conversation, educating the public more broadly, doing outreach on the ground, and fighting for resources to help enable not only Black Health, but other CEOs to do the necessary work speaking at the national conferences (…) and strengthening our relationships with our elected representatives to get their attention. It’s about education. It’s about building partnerships. It’s about getting the attention to focus on what is happening in the Black community. And I would add that when COVID hit and there was so much expression about, “oh we did not know that this was so bad in the Black community,” – I’m talking about other diseases that make us more vulnerable, whether it’s cardiovascular, diabetes or other diseases – and that has been most frustrating, because all of this was known, and the attention was not being given to it. Many of our efforts and national programs were to raise awareness and create more attention, and I think we did that a lot, but obviously, clearly, that’s an ongoing job.

City government has credited you with stabilizing the Black Health organization during your tenure as CEO by “increasing funding, strengthening operations and conducting impactful board and staff development initiatives.” How did you go about this, and what was the process of taking control and directing the organization like? 

Well, a great deal of it clearly, of course, had to do with working with an incredible number of committed people to (do) the work. Staff, people who really have been through the years committed to this effort, whether it was directly at that time working around HIV-AIDS or addressing health disparities in the Black community. So I would say, working with a committed group of staff through the years and board members. As a national organization, I have been able to have partners with leaders across the country. Many of them are leaders in their own community, like, for example, one of our board chairs was Johnny Ford, who was the mayor of Tuskegee, Alabama. … And then, of course, the AIDS Advisory Council, New York state, and being a part of national gatherings addressing issues of health disparities, especially as it impacts the Black community. I think all of that certainly played a role in helping to expand the work and getting meaningful programs (and) that we were able to establish and to stabilize the organization. And, of course, obviously, raising money. The fundraising part was obviously necessary to establish the programs. So it was responding to grant proposals and getting funded for programs by having proposals written, and so forth.

How did your time in public service as a City Council member and then Manhattan borough president inform the rest of your career in social work?

I think I look at it as a trajectory, if you will, or a continuum I should say. I grew up in Birmingham, Alabama, very early involved and engaged in the Civil Rights Movement as a foot soldier marching with Dr. Martin Luther King. I understood very early the impact of getting involved and making a difference through participation. That really helped me growing up in the segregated South and seeing how change was brought about through the Civil Rights Movement and my own sense of activation. From there I went on to college and from there on to graduate school to become a social worker working in the field designed to help people to make a difference, to make a change. That’s what social work is all about. Making a difference. Helping people. I followed that coming out of my upbringing learning in the Civil Rights Movement. 

Then when I moved to New York, I continued those efforts through my community engagement as the chair of the local community board, again, making a difference, creating impact, addressing the needs of people. Then onto the City Council and onto the borough president. My time as an elected official was always looked at from the perspective of how I can use this position to address needs, coming out of my commitment as a social worker. And that is for me, the continuum as I saw it, even as Manhattan borough president. I certainly feel proud about a number of things that we achieved in my tenure as borough president. Right here in Harlem, the redevelopment of Frederick Douglass Boulevard, which was drug infested with dilapidated buildings. We were able –  once I was in the position with a budget and having an office where development was central to that role – I was able to move forward on addressing not only the redevelopment of Frederick Douglass Boulevard, but investing across the borough in senior citizens centers, playgrounds, computers, housing needs and so forth. So all of it for me has been a continuum. 

Once I left public office, I had to make a decision. Well, what do you want to do? The first attraction was lobbying, because you do make good money in lobbying, and I think I did it for a couple of years. I realized that if I was going to be in that space, I might as well stay in public office, so I decided for me, I wanted to stay true to what my calling is, and that is serving people using positions to make a difference, to create real impact based needs and service.

What are some accomplishments during your time in public service which you’re most proud of?

Oh, wow. That’s a good one. I think one of the things that I’m most proud of in terms of my service is promoting civic engagement at the community level, and in each one of the positions that I have had. I think civic engagement really can help people have confidence and know that they can make a difference. Through civic engagement, I have been able to see difference in housing – getting people to own their own properties – especially when I served as a member of the City Council, and the HPD (Housing Preservation & Development) had different programs where it was far easier then to own property because the city owned a lot of the properties, not only in Harlem, but throughout the borough. So encouraging people to engage in their communities has led to home ownership. It has led to more younger people seeking public office, or if not public office, public service, because I continue to say holding office is one thing, but it’s not necessary for everybody. And when I look at some of the individuals who started out with me, like Gerrard Bushell, … he is with the building of the airport out there in JFK. To see some of the other people who have come through my office, now, leading organizations doing really well, (…) I feel good about that. Even on the community board, the people who have taken on leadership roles like Barbara Askins right here in our community, leading the 125th Street business improvement district and doing a phenomenal job. (…) When I look at some of the places where people with whom I was involved, and they were involved with me throughout my career of public service, I can see a lot there that I think I helped make happen.

Before you retired, did you get a chance to speak with your successor and give her any words of encouragement or guidance? And if so, could you share them with me?

Yes, I met with Shirley (Torho) because first of all, my successor is a person who has served on the board of directors here for at least two years. I brought her on as someone who had been a consultant with the office for about eight years prior to that. And I saw that as a young woman (she was) very interested with a passion for the work, and she was doing work as a consultant in many different spaces related to not only HIV, but also health disparities and social determinants of health. The board hired a consultant and they went through a national search. She, as a board member, applied. So obviously, she wasn’t active with the board during that time, because now she was a candidate. 

After the process and she was selected, I’ve had many conversations with her as it relates to passing on information about different stakeholders, relationships that can be maintained about the nature of the work. We’ve gone through a restructuring of the organization as I’m stepping down and she’s stepping in, and that was envisioned based on our rebranding … The restructuring is something that we have talked about, and she has now embraced that and is moving to make that happen. And of course, I’ve talked with her about some of the challenges as far as fund development. Because we’ve seen a lot of changes in that regard over the past, I would say, eight years really, with respect to diminution of funding and reduced funding from groups and entities that used to give much more than what they’re doing now. So we’ve talked about some of the challenges, as well as the rewards, and the rewards for me continue to be engagement on a broader level. 

I’m hopeful that she will expand on the national level, in terms of a voice, that we have certainly built the foundation for, because the message still needs to be carried. Education is extremely important. Working with policy makers so that they fully understand the importance of the work and the need for support, be it policy, or be it financial assistance. You have to be out there engaging in order to make sure that the message gets through and the voice and the organization is heard. And I continue to make myself available. I think it’s something that Henry Kissinger said once that I do adhere to and that is: when you leave, you leave, you don’t hang around. You don’t try to stay in there and you know, control, because people have asked me, well, will you be on the board? Nope. I have no desire to be on the board. When I leave, I leave. But at the same time, I’ve certainly said to her, any questions that she has, or ways that I could continue to be supportive, I am available.

During your retirement celebration on Juneteenth, you said, “I’m going to keep using my voice. I’m not done yet. I may just be getting started.” What did you mean? Do you have any plans for the future which you can share? 

Yes, I am very concerned with part of what we’ve been talking about, continuing on that path that I talked about. Making a difference. Service. Because I just feel very passionate about that. And in that regard, I intend very much to continue with work on areas of civil rights, social justice, and politics. I am a founding member of a group that you hopefully have heard about called Higher Heights, and it was established primarily to help support and get Black women elected to higher positions across the country. We were very involved with Kamala Harris when she ran for the Senate in the state of California. We have been very strategic and engaged in efforts to elect more Black women in higher positions at the state level as well as the national level. I look forward to continuing my work with that group as a member of the political action committee specifically. I intend to try to understand more about civics. Working in our schools, getting civics classes, lessons, back in our schools. So one thing is working on social justice issues that abound. Working on civil rights issues and political issues. I really want to use my voice and be engaged actively in these areas, and then I do want to travel.

Do you have any parting words or anything else you’d like to add?

When you asked me that question, the words that really come to mind are those that Adam Powell used to often say, “Keep the faith.”