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Missing Black Girls and the Individuals and Organizations Trying to Help

NNPA NEWSWIRE — An estimated 64,000 Black girls and women across the United States that have gone missing. Iniaya Wilson and Skylar Minnie are also among an unfortunately growing number of young people listed in the “critically missing” section of the expansive database of the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children.

Published

6 years ago

March 16, 2019

Oakland Post

By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire Correspondent
@StacyBrownMedia

Have you seen Iniaya Wilson?

Just 14, Iniaya has been missing from her Columbus, Ohio home since January 25.

She’s African American, has brown hair and brown eyes; standing 5 feet 6 inches tall and weighing 120 pounds.

Have you seen Skylar Mannie?

From Lancaster, Calif., Skylar is also Black and just 13 years old. She was last seen on Feb. 14.

She has black hair, brown eyes, stands 5 feet 5 inches and weighs 130 pounds.

The two are among the estimated 64,000 Black girls and women across the United States that have gone missing. Iniaya and Skylar are also among an unfortunately growing number of young people listed in the “critically missing” section of the expansive database of the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children.

That includes girls and women of all backgrounds, an important distinction because of the lack of media coverage of African Americans who’ve gone missing.

That has spurred activists and some in Congress to action.

In efforts to address the problem of missing Black children nationwide, Reps. Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-N.J.), Robin Kelly (D-Ill.), and Yvette D. Clarke (D-NY) initiated the Congressional Caucus on Black Women and Girls in 2016. Through the caucus, they hope to create public policies that “eliminate significant barriers and disparities experienced by black women.”

According to BlackNews.com, members of the caucus believe that more federal assistance and collaboration is needed to further eliminate the problem.

“I feel like knocking on every attic, every garage to see where those girls are,” House Majority Leader Nancy Pelosi said. “Let’s be an example to the world that we can’t rest until these girls are found.”

Further, the nonprofit Black and Missing But Not Forgotten, also has focused its attention on spotlighting and finding missing African Americans.

Since 2007, the organization has sought to develop relationships with media, government agencies and the public to ensure that missing African Americans receive prompt attention and concern to garner the best possible outcomes for each case.

A 2010 study about the media coverage of missing children in the United States discovered that only 20 percent of reported stories focused on missing Black children despite it corresponding to 33 percent of the overall missing children cases.

The report revealed that missing Black youth – especially Black girls – are underreported in the news and it seems that many people don’t even care.

The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children said that in 2018 alone, there were 424,066 reports of missing children made to law enforcement around the country.

John and Revé Walsh and other child advocates founded the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children as a private, non-profit organization to serve as the national clearinghouse and to provide a coordinated, national response to problems relating to missing and exploited children.

Walsh, who formerly hosted “America’s Most Wanted,” now does similar work with his show, “In Pursuit.”

The show, which airs on the Investigation Discovery network, has remained relentless in its pursuit of missing children.

“I’m excited to see our co-founder John Walsh back doing what he does best – catching fugitives and bringing justice to victims,” John F. Clark, NCMEC’s president and CEO, said in a blog on the NCME website.

So far, the nonprofit has helped law enforcement find more than 284,000 missing kids, and NCMEC’s 24/7 Call Center has handled more than 4.8 million phone calls and has access to 190 languages.

Walsh founded NCMEC nearly 35 years ago after his 6-year-old son, Adam, was abducted and later found murdered.

With the expanding power of social media, Walsh said people are more involved now than ever before. “Call me. Contact me… You tell me where the bad guy is, and we’ll go get ‘em,” Walsh said on the blog.

According to multiple reports, when Black girls go missing, it’s often unclear whether they have run away from home, were inflicted violence, abducted, sent into the sex industry, among others. Essentially, according to BlackNews.com, their safety and assurance to be brought back home was commonly ignored and not an utmost concern.

That concern heightened when investigators in California announced that they were trying to identify the body of a young Black girl who was found dead inside a duffel bag in a suburb of Los Angeles. The girl was eventually identified as Trinity Love Jones.

Investigators said the circumstances of her death are still being determined.

The discovery combined with the lack of any new missing person reports that match the girl’s description shed further light on the plight of missing Black girls.

Trinity’s body was found near a hiking trail in Hacienda Heights but authorities said initially that they had little information to help identify her. She was found wearing a long pink shirt with the words “Future Princess Hero” and grey pants with panda prints.

Because Hacienda Heights isn’t far from Lancaster, where Skylar Mannie went missing, the Los Angeles Sheriff Department did release a statement clarifying that the body found did not belong to Skylar.

“LASD confirms the victim found in Hacienda Heights is not Skylar Mannie who was reported missing in Lancaster. Homicide investigators are working diligently to solve the case of the girl found in Hacienda Heights and we ask our residents to keep an eye out for Skylar,” the sheriff’s department said in the statement at the time.

“We’ve detained two people of interest who may be connected to the case,” a subsequent statement said.

While she has not been named a suspect in the death of her daughter Trinity, Taquesta Graham, 28, arrived in California for questioning after being detained in Texas on an alleged parole violation.

Deputy Michelle Sanchez of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department Information Bureau said in a statement, “Graham remains to be held in Los Angeles County custody on the unrelated warrant. Homicide investigators continue to vet community timps and follow up on additional evidence obtained during the investigation. The criminal case naming Taquesta Graham is being prepared for presentation to the District Attorney’s Office on a later date.”

Graham’s boyfriend, Emiel Lamar Hunt, 38, was charged with murder for the death of Trinity Love Jones. He is scheduled to appear in Los Angeles County Superior Court to enter a plea on April 26.

Hunt served more than a decade in prison following a conviction for abusing his own son in San Diego County in 2005, according to sheriff’s Detective Marc Boivert.

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3 days ago

May 25, 2025

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OP-ED: Oregon Bill Threatens the Future of Black Owned Newspapers and Community Journalism

BLACKPRESSUSA NEWSWIRE — Nearly half of Oregon’s media outlets are now owned by national conglomerates with no lasting investment in local communities. According to an OPB analysis, Oregon has lost more than 90 news jobs (and counting) in the past five years. These were reporters, editors and photographers covering school boards, investigating corruption and telling community stories, until their jobs were cut by out-of-state corporations.

Published

5 days ago

May 23, 2025

Oakland Post

By Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis, Jr.
President and CEO, National Newspaper Publishers Association

For decades, The Skanner newspaper in Portland, the Portland Observer, and the Portland Medium have served Portland, Oregon’s Black community and others with a vital purpose: to inform, uplift and empower. But legislation now moving through the Oregon Legislature threatens these community news institutions—and others like them.

As President and CEO of the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA), which represents more than 255 Black-owned media outlets across the United States—including historic publications like The Skanner, Portland Observer, and the Portland Medium—l believe that some Oregon lawmakers would do more harm than good for local journalism and community-owned publications they are hoping to protect.

Oregon Senate Bill 686 would require large digital platforms such as Google and Meta to pay for linking to news content. The goal is to bring desperately needed support to local newsrooms. However, the approach, while well-intentioned, puts smaller, community-based publications at a future severe financial risk.

We need to ask – will these payments paid by tech companies benefit the journalists and outlets that need them most? Nearly half of Oregon’s media outlets are now owned by national conglomerates with no lasting investment in local communities. According to an OPB analysis, Oregon has lost more than 90 news jobs (and counting) in the past five years. These were reporters, editors, and photographers covering school boards, investigating corruption, and telling community stories, until their jobs were cut by out-of-state corporations.

Legislation that sends money to these national conglomerate owners—without the right safeguards to protect independent and community-based outlets—rewards the forces that caused this inequitable crisis in the first place. A just and inclusive policy must guarantee that support flows to the front lines of local journalism and not to the boardrooms of large national media corporations.

The Black Press exists to fill in the gaps left by larger newsrooms. Our reporters are trusted messengers. Our outlets serve as forums for civic engagement, accountability and cultural pride. We also increasingly rely on our digital platforms to reach our audiences, especially younger generations—where they are.

We are fervently asking Oregon lawmakers to take a step back and engage in meaningful dialogue with those most affected: community publishers, small and independent outlets and the readers we serve. The Skanner, The Portland Observer, and The Portland Medium do not have national corporate parents or large investors. And they, like many smaller, community-trusted outlets, rely on traffic from search engines and social media to boost advertising revenue, drive subscriptions, and raise awareness.

Let’s work together to build a better future for Black-owned newspapers and community journalism that is fair, local,l and representative of all Oregonians.

Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis Jr., President & CEO, National Newspaper Publishers Association

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Hate and Chaos Rise in Trump’s America

BLACKPRESSUSA NEWSWIRE — Tactics ranged from local policy manipulation to threats of violence. The SPLC documented bomb threats at 60 polling places in Georgia, traced to Russian email domains.

Published

5 days ago

May 23, 2025

Stacy M. Brown

By Stacy M. Brown
Black Press USA Senior National Correspondent

The Southern Poverty Law Center has identified 1,371 hate and antigovernment extremist groups operating across the United States in 2024. In its latest Year in Hate & Extremism report, the SPLC reveals how these groups are embedding themselves in politics and policymaking while targeting marginalized communities through intimidation, disinformation, and violence. “Extremists at all levels of government are using cruelty, chaos, and constant attacks on communities and our democracy to make us feel powerless,” said SPLC President Margaret Huang. The report outlines how hard-right groups aggressively targeted diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives throughout 2024. Figures on the far right falsely framed DEI as a threat to white Americans, with some branding it a form of “white genocide.” After the collapse of Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge, a former Utah legislator blamed the incident on DEI, posting “DEI = DIE.”

Tactics ranged from local policy manipulation to threats of violence. The SPLC documented bomb threats at 60 polling places in Georgia, traced to Russian email domains. Similar threats hit Jewish institutions and Planet Fitness locations after far-right social media accounts attacked them for trans-inclusive policies. Telegram, which SPLC describes as a hub for hate groups, helped extremists cross-recruit between neo-Nazi, QAnon, and white nationalist spaces. The platform’s lax moderation allowed groups like the Terrorgram Collective—designated terrorists by the U.S. State Department—to thrive. Militia movements were also reorganized, with 50 groups documented in 2024. Many, calling themselves “minutemen,” trained in paramilitary tactics while lobbying local governments for official recognition. These groups shared personnel and ideology with white nationalist organizations.

The manosphere continued to radicalize boys and young men. The Fresh & Fit podcast, now listed as a hate group, promoted misogyny while mocking and attacking Black women. Manosphere influencers used social media algorithms to drive youth toward male-supremacy content. Turning Point USA played a key role in pushing white nationalist rhetoric into mainstream politics. Its leader Charlie Kirk claimed native-born Americans are being replaced by immigrants, while the group advised on Project 2025 and organized Trump campaign events. “We know that these groups build their power by threatening violence, capturing political parties and government, and infesting the mainstream discourse with conspiracy theories,” said Rachel Carroll Rivas, interim director of the SPLC’s Intelligence Project. “By exposing the players, tactics, and code words of the hard right, we hope to dismantle their mythology and inspire people to fight back.”

Click here for the full report or visit http://www.splcenter.org/resources/guides/year-hate-extremism-2024.