#NNPA BlackPress

NNPA Honors Black Lives Matter Founder with Newsmaker of the Year Award

NNPA NEWSWIRE — Alicia Garza, who coined the term “Black Lives Matter,” is an Oakland-based organizer, writer, public speaker and freedom fighter who also serves as the special projects director for the National Domestic Workers Alliance which stands as the nation’s leading voice for dignity and fairness for the millions of domestic workers in America.

Published

6 years ago

March 19, 2019

Oakland Post

By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire Correspondent
@StacyBrownMedia

Alicia Garza said she’s “super excited” about being named the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) 2019 Newsmaker of the Year, an award she’s scheduled to receive on Thursday, March 21, in Washington, D.C., during Black Press Week.

“I’ll say it’s really humbling when the community reaches out and lifts you up for the work you and your team is doing to make black people powerful,” said Garza, one of the co-founders of the Black Lives Matter Movement.

Garza, who coined the term “Black Lives Matter,” is an Oakland-based organizer, writer, public speaker and freedom fighter who also serves as the special projects director for the National Domestic Workers Alliance which stands as the nation’s leading voice for dignity and fairness for the millions of domestic workers in America, according to Garza’s online bio.

Along with Opal Tometi and Patrisse Cullors, Garza founded the Black Lives Matter network which is recognized globally for its focus on combatting anti-Black state-sanctioned violence and the oppression of all Black people.

Since the rise of the Black Lives Matter movement, Garza has become a powerful voice in the media with articles and interviews appearing in publications like Time, Essence, and the New York Times.

“Power means getting to make decisions over your own life,” Garza told NNPA Newswire.

“It means being able to determine where resources go and who they go to and where they don’t go and who they don’t go to,” she said.

Additionally, Garza said power is about making sure that there are consequences where needed, including at the polls.

“The power at the polls means that selecting a leader that will take our concerns and experiences into account because they are shaping policy and shaping culture in the United States and there are so many different barriers for Black people,” Garza said.

“For 2020, it’s still yet to be seen what’s on the table for Black people and [her latest empowerment nonprofit] Black Futures Lab will be working had to make sure candidates are speaking directly to the issues we care about and are listening to the proposals we have,” she said.

Garza’s Black Futures Lab works with Black people to transform communities, building Black political power and changing the way that power operates – locally, statewide, and nationally, she said.

“The problems facing Black communities are complex. The solutions to these problems will come from our imagination, our innovation, and experimentation,” Garza said.

“Changing our communities for the better requires changing a culture that takes Black people for granted and changing policies and laws that make us criminals and keep resources from our communities, she said.

Still, the Black Lives Matter movement is “alive and well,” Garza said.

“Today, Black Lives Matter is an organization with over 40 chapters in four countries, and it is the civil rights movement of our generation,” she said.

“I think what we’ll see in the next year and next few years is Black Lives Matter moving into electoral politics and policy,” Garza said.

In addition to the NNPA Newsmaker of the Year Award, the activist and visionary has received numerous other accolades and recognition including the 2016 Glamour Women of the Year Award, the 2016 Marie Claire New Guard Award, and as a Community Change Agent at the 2016 BET Black Girls Rock Awards.

“Certainly I was motivated by my mom who is really a powerful and multi-talented Black woman who made a way out of no way,” Garza said.

“I’ve also been motivated by the hundreds of thousands of Black people who have come along on this journey for the past six years,” she said.

Oakland Post

Posts by Oakland Post

Up Next

NNPA Leadership and Other Prominent Black Voices Speak Out on College Exam Scandal

Don't Miss

Comcast Formally Launches Afro and Cleo, Two New Black-Centric Networks

Oakland Post

Click to comment

#NNPA BlackPress

Remembering George Floyd

Published

3 days ago

May 25, 2025

Oakland Post

Oakland Post

Posts by Oakland Post

#NNPA BlackPress

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

Oakland Post

Posts by Oakland Post

#NNPA BlackPress

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.