Tom Joyner, Garry D. Howard, Bob Black, Wanda Lloyd and WaPo Metro Seven to be Inducted
WASHINGTON, D.C. (July 5, 2019) – The National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) unveiled today the names of its 2019 class of Hall of Fame inductees. Every year, NABJ pays homage to legendary black journalists who have made outstanding contributions to the industry over the span of their careers and beyond.
Bob Black, Garry D. Howard, “The Fly Jock” Tom Joyner, Wanda Lloyd and the members of the Washington Post Metro Seven will be inducted at the Hall of Fame Luncheon during NABJ’s National Convention & Career Fair in Miami on Friday, Aug.9, 2019, at the JW Marriott Miami Turnberry Resort & Spa – Aventura. Tickets can be purchased here.
“This year’s Hall of Fame inductees have made significant contributions to not only their respective fields within the journalism community but also in the black community worldwide,” said NABJ President Sarah Glover. “They have blazed trails and opened doors that have helped black journalists who have come after them to thrive and survive in the industry.”
The inductees and an abbreviated overview of their accomplishments are listed in alphabetical order below.
. . . The Washington Post Metro Seven
In 1972, seven African American journalists — Ivan C. Brandon, LaBarbara A. Bowman, Leon Dash, Penny Mickelbury, Ronald A. Taylor, Richard Prince and the late Michael B. Hodge, who died in 2017 — took a stand against alleged discrimination while working at The Washington Post. They filed a complaint with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, which alleged that the paper was “denying black employees an equal opportunity with respect to job assignments, promotional opportunities, including promotions to management positions and other terms and conditions of employment,” according to writer Steven Gray in the NABJ Journal.
The group of journalists was heralded as the first in U.S. history to file this form of a complaint with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Known as the Metro Seven, the group inspired other co-workers, including women employed at the paper, and journalists worldwide that would come after them to advocate for their own right to equal treatment in hiring, promotion and compensation practices.
During a press conference in 1972, Metro Seven member LaBarbara A. Bowman, a past recipient of the NABJ Ida B. Wells Award, stated, “the complaint to the EEOC represents our belief that this discrimination cannot continue to exist at a publication in a city that is 71.1 percent black…. (the complaint) came after very much thought, very much consideration. We’re very sorry we had to take this step. There is no alternative.” Since the activism of the Metro Seven, the Washington Post has been considered to have made many advancements in the areas of diversity and inclusion.
“The principles we fought for in the Metro Seven have guided my entire professional life. Thank you, NABJ,” said Richard Prince, also a past NABJ Ida B. Wells Award recipient and author of the “Journal-isms” column.
Leon Dash, a founder of NABJ and Pulitzer Prize-winning author, added, “It is truly an honor to be inducted into the National Association of Black Journalists’ Hall of Fame with the other members of the Metro Seven.”
The Hall of Fame Luncheon is powered by AARP.
Metro Seven at Facebook for Black History Month
Ivan Brandon, Bobbi Bowman, Richard Prince and Ronald A. Taylor spoke at Facebook’s D.C. headquarters for Black History Month on Feb. 19, 2019. The session was moderated by Robert Traynam and arranged by A.B. Obi-Okoye.
