WASHINGTON, April 19 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- NAACP President and CEO, Benjamin Todd Jealous, NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund President John Payton and National Urban League President and CEO Marc Morial issued the following statement in response to the Obama Administration's decision to boycott the Durban Review Conference.

"The NAACP, the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, and the National Urban League are profoundly disappointed by President Obama's decision to boycott the Durban Review Conference on racism. Even though there are parties at the table with which the U.S. will ultimately disagree, this conference provides an opportunity to have constructive debate and advance human rights throughout the globe."

"There is more work to be done to advance the human rights and civil rights agenda both in the U.S. and abroad. That work benefits from the presence and collaboration of all countries and we believe it would also benefit from leadership from the United States and this administration. Boycotting this conference deprives it of the voice of this administration and its leadership. That will only undermine efforts to address human rights and civil rights around the world."

SOURCE NAACP