"OUR RICH BLACK HERITAGE" : JOHN J. NEIMORE

"The two most important days in your life are the day you are born and the day you find out why" -Mark Twain On July 4, 1917, "THE VOICE" newspaper, the first newspaper that represented the "New Negro Movement" in America, and was edited by Hubert H. Harrison— was officially launched at a rally at the Metropolitan Baptist Church in Harlem, located in upper Manhattan, New York. The event was actually a "Negro Rally" that was called by Harrison’s Liberty League, in response to attacks on Negroes by White Supremacists, in the "East St. Louis Massacre" that occurred in 1917. The Liberty League was the first organization of the New Negro Movement, which Marcus Garvey and many other Negro activists were members. You see, in the early 1900s, there were "Over 275" Negro Newspapers being published & circulated throughout thousands of cities within the United States, serving as a voice for the American Negro. Sadly, today in America, millions of Black adults & Black youth know little to nothing about those Old Negro Newspapers! Here is a partial list of the leading Negro Newspapers from the early 1900s : The Colored American( 1893 - 1904 ); The Negro World, published by Marcus Garvey(early 1900s) ; The Monroe Broadcast, Monroe, Louisiana ( 1932 ) ; The Pittsburgh Courier( 1911 - 2002 ) ; The Atlanta Daily World (1931-2003); The Chicago Defender (1910-1979 ) ; and The Philadelphia Tribune (1912-2001). Today, in Monroe, Louisiana, the two local BLACK newspapers are "The Monroe Free Press" and "The Monroe Dispatch." For many people, without these two Black Owned Newspapers, they wouldn't know as much about what goes on within Our Black Communities in Monroe. Without a doubt, is my sincerest hope that this article will stimulate more Black People to learn more about the Old Negro Newspapers that helped paved the way for the Black Newspapers of today! Ok, let's get on to this week's Black Pioneer. John J. Neimore was born on February 23, 1862, in Washington County, Texas. Even at the tender age of 17, John knew that he was born to be a Newspaper Man.Therefore, in 1879, he decided to move from Texas to California to start a newspaper. Although John was a tenderfoot and wet behind the ears, he was determined to achieve his goal of becoming a Newspaper Man. He named his first Newspaper,"The Owl," and he used the newspaper to help newly arrived Colored People adapt to living in Los Angeles, California. Even though his first Newspaper only ran for brief while, the knowledge, experience, and the contacts he obtained from owning & running a newspaper were priceless! For the rest of his life John worked as a Newspaper Man. Shortly after he shutdown operations of The Owl Newspaper, he founded another Newspaper called "The Weekly Observer." Later, he started a Newspaper called "The Advocate," and after that a Newspaper called "The Eagle," which was later changed to "The California Eagle." In addition to running the newspapers, he also served as President of a publishing and investment company. Around 1910, John J. Neimore's health began to fail him, and he finally succumbed to death on March 9, 1912. In closing, it has been said that one of the greatest achievements that one can do in life is create or start something that outlives their own life. John J. Neimore's newspaper that he started,"The California Eagle," ran all the way up until January 7, 1964," OVER HALF-A-CENTURY after his death!"