With the start of the second Trump administration came executive orders that prevented teaching Black history, eliminated diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) and removed African American narratives from federal buildings, websites and more.
Despite efforts to erase African American history, justice advocates and organization leaders are emphasizing the importance of celebrating and preserving Black narratives.
Dr. Karsonya “Kaye” Wise Whitehead, president of the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH), which is celebrating 100 years
“[We] need to focus on planning the trees of truth. We need to train our children, teach our children, love our children, and help our children to focus on turning towards…away from the lies, teaching them about who they are, about our contributions to this country. Use your platform to share the information that people need to have. The more folks get educated about how they can fight, the less people we have fighting against us, and the more folks we have fighting for us.”
Lezli Baskerville, CEO of the National Association for Equal Opportunity in Higher Education (NAFEO) and founding member of HBCU Technology Foundation on Preserving, Uplifting the Black Press
“Without the Black press, without Black-owned newspapers, no plan, no mobilization, nothing that we’re doing would be possible. The fix must include on the front end, the back end, and in the middle, greater support for African American newspapers, African American media companies and publishing companies.”
Dr. Vanessa Northington Gamble, professor of Medical Humanities at George Washington University, who chaired the Legacy Committee of the Tuskegee Syphilis Study in 1996
“Historically, it was Black journalists and Black newspapers who were the trusted messengers, but also they were the ones who revealed the inequities [in medical and health care] and kept telling the story. It’s more important that we have folks, such as [Black journalists] telling the stories.”