"Iremember, after standing in a line that spanned at least four hallways in the Hilton Hotel on Chicago's Michigan Avenue, finally entering a crowded, almost vibrating conference floor. The murmur of reporters already rife with questions permeated the room. I sat near the back and stared at an illustration of bold, yellow lettering with blue skyscrapers emerging from above. The letters read, "NABJ." At my first National Association of Black Journalists Convention, in 2024, I waited for then-presidential candidate Donald Trump to emerge."
"At the time, NABJ's decision to invite a hostile actor to a Black advocacy space in the name of journalistic tradition left many professional Black journalists reeling. Almost two years later, in the wake of the Trump administration's blatant attacks against Black journalists, the decision seems even more incomprehensible. From the federally backed arrests of Georgia Fort, Don Lemon, and Jerome Richardson in January, to Trump's recent racist social-media post depicting Barack and Michelle Obama as monkeys, the president's hostility toward Black people, immigrants, and anyone who questions power has been transparent."
At the 2024 National Association of Black Journalists convention, attendees awaited then-presidential candidate Donald Trump, provoking controversy. NABJ's choice to host Trump shocked many professional Black journalists given his record of hostility. The Trump administration engaged in actions perceived as attacks against Black journalists, including federally backed arrests of Georgia Fort, Don Lemon, and Jerome Richardson. Trump posted a racist image depicting Barack and Michelle Obama as monkeys and faced backlash for using a Jesse Jackson tribute as self-promoting PR. Nikole Hannah-Jones said an autocratic presidential candidate should not be treated like a normal candidate, noting NABJ's advocacy mission.
Read at The Nation
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