By Garry Blanson One of the pioneers of the Black Press was “ETHEL L. PAYNE.” Many people referred to Ethel as The “FIRST LADY” of the Black Press. Well, interestingly enough, her career didn’t begin as a journalist at all.…
Category: Opinions
Our Rich Black Heritage: Richard Barrington
By Garry Blanson ONCE upon a time, in old Monroe, Louisiana( back when White people “ literally owned” Negroes as their private property ), there lived a respectable Negro slave named Richard Barrington. It is reported that he came to…
Our Rich Black Heritage: Mary Church Terrell
By Garry Blanson When you think about any of the long-term Black Civil Rights Organizations in Monroe, Louisiana, one of the first that comes to mind is The National Association For The Advancement of Colored People …
Our Rich Black Heritage: John Wesley Cromwell
By Garry Blanson JOHN WESLEY CROMWELL Known for his natural ability to create intellectual organizations and his knowledge of Negro History, John Wesley Cromwell was a teacher, journalist, lawyer, teacher, and civil rights activist. He was born on September 5,…
Is $750,000 worth the embarrassment HBCU Athletics gets for losing big to larger universities on National TV?
By Ro Wright III Recently, Southern University Jaguars played the Louisiana State University Tigers at LSU’s Death Valley Stadium to a sold out crowd of more 103,000 fans. As great as the idea sounded in the months prior to the…
Our Rich Black Heritage: George B. Hamlet
By Garry Blanson GEORGE B HAMLET was the first African-American mayor of Monroe, La. Before 2022, I was told and thought that Abe Piere was the first Black Mayor of Monroe, Louisiana. However, while doing research, I discovered that Abe Pierce wasn’t…
Our Rich Black Heritage: Alfred Lawless
By Garry Blanson Recently, I read about A Petition. The Petition read, “Change Our School Name back to Alfred Lawless High School.” You see when Hurricane Katrina devastated the lower 9th Ward Black Community in New Orleans, Louisiana. It also…