After getting back to Chicago, my team and I prepared to attend ComplexCon, a convention hosted by a leading urban magazine. It is a leading convention in showcasing what’s trending in mainstream culture. It was a nice experience, but I realized that I’m not in touch with popular culture. From the fashion down to the hottest new artist(s), I feel like I’ve been living under a rock for the past few years. And you know what, I don’t care.
Introducing Michelle Matthews-Alexander, Multicultural Marketing Manager at General Motors. Michelle has dedicated her career to enhancing major corporations’ relationship with diverse communities. Since joining GM in 2015, Michelle has not only advocated for, but helped spearhead Chevrolet’s Discover the Unexpected Journalism Fellowship program. In partnership with the National Newspaper Publishers Association, she and Chevrolet have invested in the future of Black Journalism while simultaneously supporting students at Historically Black Colleges and Universities. Now in its fourth year, the 2019 Chevrolet Discover The Unexpected program continues to provide opportunity to young journalists as they work to tell the stories that matter.
Since the beginning of the journey I wanted the experience itself to be my “thank you” to the program coordinators. I treat each assignment, opportunity and encounter as a “thank you.” From delving into the depths of “The Green Book” and its comparison to our travel experience, to attending city press briefings I’ve learned that the way that we say “thank you” is through what we produce.
Tedarius Abrams, Sharon Joy Washington and Elae Hill are three young future journalists from HBCUs who started their internships with the Chicago Crusader on Monday, July 8. Blessed with a string of perfect summer weather, they have crisscrossed the city over the last three days, taking selfies at the Bean at Millennium Park and the Riverwalk, to marveling at the mansions of Obama, Nation of Islam Minister Louis Farrakhan and boxer Muhammad Ali.
Wednesday, July 10 marked the final print edition of the historic Chicago Defender. At some Walgreens stores in the city, customers stopped in just to buy the iconic newspaper for one last piece of nostalgia.
Our first assignment for The Chicago Crusader was to attend the press briefing that Mayor Lori Lightfoot held for news publications in the area. It was inspiring to watch her control the room and exert her power as the first Black female mayor of such a prominent city. She even gave us a shout out!
I just want to say how much I’ll miss The Washington Informer staff, especially, Mrs. Rolark Barnes and Dr. Sherman. They are both fantastic. We were greeted so warmly by the staff at The Crusader with packets, business cards, and press passes. They are serious about their jobs, and I can’t wait to get to work for them.
“Providence will continue to work toward meeting patient needs and addressing the social factors that influence a person’s health,” said Tamarah Duperval-Brownlee, MD, MPH, MBA, President and Chief Executive Officer of Providence Health System and Chief Community Impact Officer for Ascension.
The upcoming Go-go documentary we are working on keeps me up at night with excitement. I’m learning so much about the depth of the local culture of D.C., and I’m learning about the passion the Black community has for their culture and how they want to preserve it.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s 2015 report on the role of American fathers in family life, which noted the critical roles fathers played in the health and development of their children, defied stereotypes about Black fatherhood by documenting both their traditional and non-traditional involvement in daily childrearing — even when the fathers were not living in the same home.
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