“0UR RICH BLACK HERITAGE. : ETHEL L PAYNE

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, interesting enough, her career didn’t begin as a journalist at all. It was documented that she left her job as a senior library assistant with the Chicago Public Library in 1948 to move overseas to accept a job as a service club hostess at the Army Special Services Club( an organisation similar to the Red Cross ) in Tokyo, Japan. Ethel L Payne later became the Director of the Services Club in Tokyo. Although she was good at her job, in her heart she felt a longing to become a writer. Therefore, she decided to keep a journal of her experiences in Tokyo. After several months of journaling, a reporter from Chicago ended up visiting the Services Club where Ethel worked. Ethel saw this as an opportunity to get an expert’s opinion of her writings in her journal. So, she arranged a meeting where the reporter could review her writings. The visiting reporter from the Chicago Defender newspaper was so intrigued with Ethel’s journal that the reporter agreed to take Ethel’s journal back to the United States. Within a couple of weeks, Ethel’s writings were being used in the Chicago Defender newspaper, as the basis for front page stories! Thanks to the reporter helping to use her writings,Ethel decided to move back to the United States{ in 1951 } to accept a position working for Sengstacke Newspapers,the publisher of the Chicago Defender. Ethel L Payne went on to cover many historic events of the Civil Rights Era. Also, she once asked President Dwight D Eisenhower a question that angered him very much. It was the question of exactly when he planned on ending segregation in interstate travel? As a representative of the Black Press, Ethel L Payne even went and covered the Vietnam War, along with covering the events of the African-American troops in Vietnam. In 2002, Ethel L Payne was one of four journalists honoured with a U.S. postage stamp in a “Women of Journalism” set. Not only was Ethel a pioneer in The Black Press, she was an “Instrument of Change!” On May 28, 1991, Ethel L Payne died of a heart attack(at her home in Washington D.C. ). In closing, thanks to The Black Press, the stories and achievements of the Negro are being told and retold again and again! Black parents and Black children can hold their heads high and know that their ancestors accomplished great things, despite having to endure the degradation of slavery and racism in America.