As the halls of the Rayburn House Office Building bustled with staff and congressmen preparing to head back to the U.S. Capitol for an evening vote on Sept. 14, the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) gathered for a reception to honor freedom fighting and writing.
Presented by Events DC and businessman, entrepreneur and philanthropist Paxton Baker — and hosted ahead of Congressional Black Caucus Foundation’s (CBCF) 55th Annual Legislative Conference (ALC), which runs Sept. 16-20 — the event was not solely a moment to celebrate, but to emphasize to the journalists and publishers in the room that there’s more work to do.
“We’re on the eve of the 200th anniversary of the Black Press in 2027.
But we’ve got homework to do in 2026. We ought to get that vote out. The Black Press is key to getting the vote out for the midterm election,” Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis, NNPA president and CEO, told The Washington Informer. “We have to continue to fight, we have to continue to report, we have to continue to mobilize, and we have to continue to inspire people not to become disillusioned.”
For Chavis, and other speakers, including Reps. Kweisi Mfume (D-Md.) and Gabe Amo (D-R.I.), the reception offered those present a charge ahead of the CBCF conference and once the programming for the ALC wraps.
“This is going to be a great week of workshops, a great week of forums, a great week of tributes, it’s going to be a black-tie event. There’s going to be a lot of parties. That’s fine. But after this week… we’ve got to return to our places to make sure we get that vote out,” said the NNPA president and longtime activist. “We have to return to our places, in fact, to make sure we turn to our young people. We need to raise up a new generation of freedom fighters. And that’s our responsibility.”
Before going to vote in the House, Mfume delivered a speech that highlighted the power of the Black newspapers from its inception to today.
“For a race of people who had suffered, endured and survived two centuries of slavery, oppression, deprivation, degradation, denial, and his privilege it was that press, that freedom of the Black Press. It always told us who we are, where we were, and led us to where we were going,” Mfume told the room of media professionals. “So it is a significant, heavy history that you wear.
It’s almost sacred history that had it not been for newspapers across this country, God only knows where we would be.”
While the Black Press prepares to celebrate 200 years since Samuel Cornish and John B. Russworm published the first Freedom’s Journal on March 16, 1827, the Maryland congressman and former president and CEO of the NAACP emphasized that the work and momentum can’t slow down.
“We need you in a way that you may not even understand. And let me say this, we need you in a way that some of us don’t understand,” said Mfume, who has served two separate tenures in Congress that total about 15 years. “I’ve been around too long to know that you’ve got to continue to fight for what we believe in, and to set the example of where we are going.”
‘Participate in the Storytelling’ and ‘Have A Voice That Matters‘
The reception, which included appetizers, a bar and networking opportunities, allowed for Black media makers and supporters to gather in an intimate setting ahead of the thousands who will convene at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center Sept. 16-20 for the 55th CBCF Annual Legislative Conference.
For the Congressional Black Caucus, this convening is a major moment: it’s the 55th conference, CBCF is marking five decades, and there are 62 members, nearly five times the number of the original 13 representatives who started the legislative organization in March 1971.
Mfume said the Black Press has been part of that growth.
“You found a way to chronicle beyond the end of reconstruction, through the Black codes, up to the turn of the century, when the last Black member of the Congress was voted out of office — vowing on the floor that day, that there would be other Black members, men and women, that would rise, like the phoenix, on this floor, and continue that heritage,” he said. “So much of that was possible, because the people all over this country who wanted to know and who needed to know, found a way to get the information that you provided over and over and over again for your publications.”
While there are now African American legislators in Congress — 58 in the House and four in the Senate — there are federal attacks on diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) and the teaching of parts of African American history.
That’s why for people like Mfume and Amo, the Black Press is critical in telling the full story about this time, just as it has done historically.
“When there’s an attack on truth, on freedom, on values, we know that there’s been a consistent force – the Black Press — standing first and foremost, to make sure that people understand what is going on,” said Amo, Rhode Island’s first Black congressman. “And there’s a lot that’s going on right now.”
In his address during the reception, Amo emphasized how all people can get involved in supporting the work of African American-owned publications.
“Because of the Black press, we have been able to bring truth and light to the stories of all Americans, but especially of Black America. And so as you see people gathering this week for an important occasion, the Annual Legislative Conference with the Congressional Black Caucus [Foundation], people should know that the obligation is to participate in the storytelling,” he said. “Participate in the storytelling, by helping the NNPA, do its work, by advocating, by promoting the freedom of the press, but by also patronizing the great publications that make up this association.
And beyond that, in carrying that story forward, is to take on the responsibility that the truth-telling of the great publications have put upon us.”
As she stood in a room full of Black storytellers, Her Excellency Tiffany Lancaster, an ambassador with the United Nations special envoy and commissioner with the D.C. Mayor’s Office of African Affairs, said she was motivated and encouraged.
“This is inspiring me to say, ‘What organizations do I need to join to make sure that our voices are heard, because honestly it’s not just [the Black Press’] responsibility, it’s all of our responsibility. And our community is our responsibility,” she told The Informer. “[It’s important to] use your voice, empower others, and know that what you do is important and it matters, and what you say matters.”
With ALC week starting to gear up, Lancaster offered advice to participants to enjoy the moment, but also make it count.
“When you see moments like this… ride that wave,” she said. You’ve got to make yourself present, and you’ve got to make yourself known. So get out there, get involved in the event, have a great time. Have fun, and while you’re doing it, create impact, and have a voice that matters.”
