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NNPA President Moderates Inspirational CBCF Avoice Heritage Celebration

NNPA NEWSWIRE — In moderating the panel of awardees, Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis Jr. began with the ultra-popular Congresswoman Maxine Waters, the first black woman to chair the House Committee on Financial Services. He asked Waters what could be expected from her committee in terms of improving the quality of life in black communities.

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By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire Correspondent
@StacyBrownMedia

A program to commemorate the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation’s 10th annual Avoice Heritage Celebration concluded in much the same way it began: lively and inspiring.

Held on Tuesday, Feb. 26 at the Eaton Hotel in Washington, D.C., the program, entitled “Roots, Return, Remembrance: The Congressional Black Caucus and the Black Agenda,” reflected on the many diverse stories of migration by African Americans and how they’ve shaped the mission of the CBC.

It kicked off with the Washington Performing Arts Men & Women of the Gospel Choir performing the Black National Anthem, “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” under conductor Stanley Thurston.

After a welcome address and statements, Neema Bickersteth, Jessie Montgomery and Jannina Norpoth – the cast of Scott Joplin’s Opera, “Treemonisha” – performed “We Will Trust You As Our Leader.”

CBC Chair, California Rep. Karen Bass received the Distinguished Champion for Global Black Empowerment Award while Reps. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.); Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-Texas); Rep. Bobby Scott (D-Va.); Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.); and Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.); each received the Distinguished Leader of Black Legislative Empowerment awards.

The National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) – the trade organization that represents the 215 African American-owned newspapers and media companies around the country – live-streamed the event to viewers on various social media platforms.

“There are millions of young people in particular who are searching and thirsting for knowledge and information, so we thought this would be a great program for them to see,” said NNPA President and CEO Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis Jr., who moderated an energetic panel discussion featuring the awardees.

Because of special hearings planned with President Donald Trump’s former attorney Michael Cohen, Representative Cummings could not attend the event.

However, Cummings was featured in a video of the honorees that spoke about the importance of the Avoice Virtual Library, the CBCF’s award-winning digital archive that counts as a valuable tool for researchers, educators, students and anyone interested in African American legislative history.

Avoice was developed in 2005 following the devastation of Hurricane Katrina that revealed the fragility of preserving physical, historical artifacts.

As part of the virtual library project, the CBCF collects, preserves and disseminates historical information cataloging the rich history of African Americans in Congress and the library offers a section for educators with lesson units and detailed classroom activities to help teachers incorporate African American legislative history into their curricula.

Chavis noted that members of the Black Press, which marks 192 years in business, continue to publish daily in print and on digital platforms.

In moderating the panel of awardees, Chavis began with the ultra-popular Waters, the first black woman to chair the House Committee on Financial Services. He asked Waters what could be expected from her committee in terms of improving the quality of life in black communities.

“What I’ve said to [businesses] is to not come to my committee to try to carry on your de-regulation. No more of that,” Waters said. “We want you to go figure out how you will fix all the wrongs you created that did not allow black people to credibly own their own homes and businesses.”

Waters vowed to “change the direction of America and the way we’ve been discriminated against.” She said, “I’m ready.”

Johnson, the chair of the House Committee on Science, Technology and Space, said her committee isn’t sexy or exciting for a lot of people, but it’s terribly important.

“We will continue to stress that we need our young people to see opportunities in STEM fields,” Johnson said, adding that she ensures that historically black colleges and universities are included in all grant and other funding that passes through her committee.

Before turning to Scott, Chavis drew laughter and applause when he remarked, “Lord have mercy on Virginia” – a reference to the blackface and other scandals engulfing top officials there.

Scott agreed, but cautioned against distraction. “We can spend all the time talking about that and not talk about equity and education,” said Scott, who chairs the House Committee on Education and Labor. “We have a lot of work to do. With all the distractions going on, nobody notices what we’re doing,” he said.

“A couple of days ago, we gave a presentation to a higher education group and left there for a hearing on minimum wage and the reporters who staked me out didn’t want to talk about all the great things we’re doing for higher education or labor, they wanted to talk about ‘what’s up with the governor…’

“What I did today, $100 billion legislation in school construction and we passed the Fair Pay Act, and [The Black Press] is the only place you will hear that it happened because of all the news on distractions. Meanwhile, we have to do what we need to do,” Scott said.

Thompson, the chair of the House Committee on Homeland Security, said his committee does everything from airport security to maritime security. “You name it. In America, we provide security. However, I don’t want in the name of security, to have people targeted because of their color or religion,” Thompson said.

“My job is not only to secure America, but to make America uphold its values as a country for people who live here,” he said.

Waters capped the night encouraging her colleagues to embrace millennials and not “shield them” from the realities of racism and other problems.

“They don’t want to be shielded. They want to be told the truth,” she said.

“I am honored and so pleased that I’ve been adopted by the millennials… I am everybody’s Auntie.”

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#NNPA BlackPress

Trump Set to Sign Largest Cut to Medicaid After a Marathon Protest Speech by Leader Jeffries

BLACKPRESSUSA NEWSWIRE — The bill also represents the biggest cut in Medicare in history and is a threat to the health care coverage of over 15 million people. The spending in Trump’s signature legislation also opens the door to a second era of over-incarceration in the U.S.

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By Lauren Burke

By a vote of 218 to 214, the GOP-controlled U.S. House passed President Trump’s massive budget and spending bill that will add $3.5 trillion to the national debt, according to the Congressional Budget Office (CBO). The bill also represents the biggest cut in Medicare in history and is a threat to the health care coverage of over 15 million people. The spending in Trump’s signature legislation also opens the door to a second era of over-incarceration in the U.S. With $175 billion allocated in spending for immigration enforcement, the money for more police officers eclipsed the 2026 budget for the U.S. Marines, which is $57 billion. Almost all of the policy focus from the Trump Administration has focused on deporting immigrants of color from Mexico and Haiti.

The vote occurred as members were pressed to complete their work before the arbitrary deadline of the July 4 holiday set by President Trump. It also occurred after Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries took the House floor for over 8 hours in protest. Leader Jeffries broke the record in the U.S. House for the longest floor speech in history on the House floor. The Senate passed the bill days before and was tied at 50-50, with Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski saying that, “my hope is that the House is gonna look at this and recognize that we’re not there yet.” There were no changes made to the Senate bill by the House. A series of overnight phone calls to Republicans voting against, not changes, was what won over enough Republicans to pass the legislation, even though it adds trillions to the debt. The Trump spending bill also cuts money to Pell grants.

“The Big Ugly Bill steals food out of the hands of starving children, steals medicine from the cabinets of cancer patients, and equips ICE with more funding and more weapons of war than the United States Marine Corps. Is there any question of who those agents will be going to war for, or who they will be going to war against? Beyond these sadistic provisions, Republicans just voted nearly unanimously to close urban and rural hospitals, cripple the child tax credit, and to top it all off, add $3.3 trillion to the ticking time bomb that is the federal deficit – all from a party that embarrassingly pretends to stand for fiscal responsibility and lowering costs,” wrote Congressional Black Caucus Chairwoman Yvette Clarke (D-NY) in a statement on July 3.

“The Congressional Budget Office predicts that 17 million people will lose their health insurance, including over 322,000 Virginians. It will make college less affordable.  Three million people will lose access to food assistance through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). And up to 16 million students could lose access to free school meals. The Republican bill does all of this to fund tax breaks for millionaires, billionaires, and corporations,” wrote Education and Workforce Committee ranking member Rep. Bobby Scott (D-VA) in a statement. The bill’s passage has prompted Democrats to start thinking about 2026 and the next election cycle. With the margins of victory in the U.S. House and U.S. Senate being so narrow, many are convinced that the balance of power and the question of millions being able to enjoy health care come down to only several thousand votes in congressional elections. But currently, Republicans controlled by the MAGA movement control all three branches of government. That reality was never made more stark and more clear than the last seven days of activity in the U.S. House and U.S. Senate.

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WATCH: NNPA Publishers Pivot To Survive

7.2.25 via NBC 4 Washington

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7.2.25 via NBC 4 Washington

https://youtube.com/watch?v=9oZc5Sz0jQQ&feature=oembed

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#NNPA BlackPress

Congressional Black Caucus Challenges Target on Diversity

BLACKPRESSUSA NEWSWIRE — we found that the explanations offered by the leadership of the Target Corporation fell woefully short of what our communities deserve and of the values of inclusion that Target once touted

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By Stacy M. Brown
Black Press USA Senior National Correspondent

Target is grappling with worsening financial and reputational fallout as the national selective buying and public education program launched by the Black Press of America and other national and local leaders continues to erode the retailer’s sales and foot traffic. But a recent meeting that the retailer intended to keep quiet between CEO Brian Cornell and members of the Congressional Black Caucus Diversity Task Force was publicly reported after the Black Press discovered the session, and the CBC later put Target on blast.

“The Congressional Black Caucus met with the leadership of the Target Corporation on Capitol Hill to directly address deep concerns about the impact of the company’s unconscionable decision to end a number of its diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts,” CBC Chair Yvette Clarke stated. “Like many of the coalition leaders and partner organizations that have chosen to boycott their stores across the country, we found that the explanations offered by the leadership of the Target Corporation fell woefully short of what our communities deserve and of the values of inclusion that Target once touted,” Congresswoman emphasized.  “Black consumers contribute overwhelmingly to our economy and the Target Corporation’s bottom line. Our communities deserve to shop at businesses that publicly share our values without sacrificing our dignity. It is no longer acceptable to deliver promises to our communities in private without also demonstrating those values publicly.”

Lauren Burke, Capitol Hill correspondent for Black Press of America, was present when Target CEO Cornell and a contingent of Target officials arrived at the U.S. Capitol last month. “It’s always helpful to have meetings like this and get some candid feedback and continue to evolve our thinking,” Cornell told Burke as he exited the meeting. And walked down a long hallway in the Cannon House Office Building. “We look forward to follow-up conversations,” he stated. When asked if the issue of the ongoing boycott was discussed, Cornell’s response was, “That was not a big area of focus — we’re focused on running a great business each and every day. Take care of our teams. Take care of the guests who shop with us and do the right things in our communities.”

A national public education campaign on Target, spearheaded by Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis Jr., president and CEO of the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA), the NNPA’s board of directors, and with other national African American leaders, has combined consumer education efforts with a call for selective buying. The NNPA is a trade association that represents the more than 220 African American-owned newspapers and media companies known as the Black Press of America, the voice of 50 million African Americans across the nation. The coalition has requested that Target restore and expand its stated commitment to do business with local community-owned businesses inclusive of the Black Press of  America, and to significantly increase investment in Black-owned businesses and media, Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU, Black-owned Banks, national Black Church denominations, and grassroots and local organizations committed to improving the quality of life of all Americans, and especially those from underserved communities. According to Target’s latest earnings report, net sales for the first quarter of 2025 fell 2.8 percent to $23.85 billion compared to the same period last year. Comparable store sales dropped 3.8 percent, and in-store foot traffic slid 5.7 percent.

Shares of Target have also struggled under the pressure. The company’s stock traded around $103.85 early Wednesday afternoon, down significantly from roughly $145 before the controversy escalated. Analysts note that Target has lost more than $12 billion in market value since the beginning of the year. “We will continue to inform and to mobilize Black consumers in every state in the United States,” Chavis said. “Target today has a profound opportunity to respond with respect and restorative commitment.”

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