Vice President Kamala Harris will not attend NABJ convention, controversy surrounds event

Vice President Kamala Harris will not be attending the annual convention of the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) in Chicago, sparking controversy and backlash within the organization. According to a source with direct knowledge of the negotiations, Harris’s campaign team was unable to secure her attendance due to prior commitments and travels related to her presidential campaign.

The NABJ, which is hosting a town hall with former President Donald Trump, has faced criticism for inviting Trump, who has a history of attacking Black journalists and undermining the free press. The decision to host Trump has led to the resignation of the convention’s co-chair, Karen Attiah, and calls from the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) to rescind the invitation.

In response to the backlash, NABJ President Ken Lemon defended the decision to host Trump, citing a tradition of non-partisan invitations and a commitment to fact-checking during the conversation. However, protesters have organized a demonstration outside the convention venue, expressing that Trump is not welcome in Chicago.

Meanwhile, Vice President Harris, who was also invited to the convention, had a panel of respected journalists on standby for a conversation that will no longer take place. The Biden-Harris administration has emphasized its commitment to speaking with Black-owned media outlets, but Harris’s absence from the NABJ convention has raised questions about the administration’s engagement with the Black community.