17. February 2022 · Comments Off on Badger Club – Art Fletcher · Categories: Recent Events

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 17  |  12 NOON to 1PM

PASCO’S ART FLETCHER: Father of Affirmative Action

Most Tri-Citians have probably never heard of Art Fletcher. The Columbia Basin Badger Club hopes to remedy that as we shine a virtual spotlight on the life and achievements of Art Fletcher, arguably one of the most famous people to ever call the Tri-Cities home and, as far as we know, the only Tri-Citian to make a serious run for President of the United States.

 A native of Kansas, Fletcher arrived in Pasco in 1965. A moderate Republican, Fletcher became a protégé of Governor Dan Evans and future US Senator Slade Gorton who convinced him to run for Lt. Governor. He lost, but the race brought him to the attention of newly elected President Richard Nixon, who appointed him as Assistant Secretary of Labor.

 As head of the United Negro College Fund, Fletcher was credited with coining the famous slogan, “A mind is a terrible thing to waste.”


Our speakers are biographer David Hamilton Golland, Professor of History at Governors State University in the Chicago suburbs; former Washington Secretary of State, Sam Reed, who worked closely with Fletcher in Washington state politics; and Nat Jackson, who worked closely with Fletcher in Pasco. Our moderator will be Othene Haywood.

REGISTER HERE: “Art Fletcher: Father of Affirmative Action”

There is no charge for Badger Club members. Non-members pay $5.00.


COMING MARCH 17: “BIRTH DEFECT OF A NATION: Examining Systemic Racism.” Dr. Thomas Sugrue is a historian, lecturer, and author who has studied and written about racism in the twentieth Century. 

REGISTER HERE for BIRTH DEFECT OF A NATION: Examining Systemic Racism