NAACP Image Awards to honor Tyler Perry

Tyler Perry

TV  series and movie maker Tyler Perry will receive the NAACP Chairman’s Award during the 41ST NAACP Image Awards, broadcast Friday, February 26th (8:00-10:00 PM ET live/PT tape-delayed) on Fox.

The Chairman’s Award, chosen by NAACP Board Chairman Julian Bond, is bestowed in recognition of special achievement and distinguished public service. Past honorees include Former Vice President Al Gore and Dr. Wangari Muta Maathai, Aretha Franklin, Bono, President Barack Obama, The Dave Matthews Band, Danny Glover, Aaron McGruder and Janet Jackson.

“Tyler Perry is a tremendous inspiration to people on many levels. His remarkable life experiences, which inform his extraordinary body of work in film, television and stage, have also shaped his focus on significant charitable causes and civil-rights initiatives,” said Bond.

Perry is currently nominated for multiple NAACP Image Awards, including Outstanding Writing in a Motion Picture (Theatrical or Television) for “Tyler Perry’s I Can Do Bad All By Myself” and for Outstanding Comedy Series for “Tyler Perry’s House of Payne.”

Perry hasn’t forgotten about the poverty in which he was raised. He has been involved in civil rights cases and charities that focus on helping the homeless, such as Feeding America, Covenant House, Hosea Feed the Hungry and Perry Place. In 2009, he made a gift of $1 million to the NAACP and recently donated another $1 million via The Tyler Perry Foundation to aid the victims of the earthquakes in Haiti.

Event sponsors for the 41ST NAACP Image Awards include FedEx, Pepsi, UAW/Chrysler, AT&T, Ford Motor Company, Hyundai, Sprint and American Airlines.