One thing that I have learned in the news business is that very few people know the true meaning of integrity and taking accountability. So many of us spend time polishing our image. When things are going smoothly we love to take the credit. When things blow up, however, it is always the fault of someone or something else, even when we KNOW we were in the position to change that outcome...

My younger brother and I had a very moving conversation this week about the state of the world and whether or not there was any hope of real change in the next 50 years or so. One thing we discussed was the fact that we live in what most people have recognized as a “cancel culture” where once someone makes a seemingly morally corrupt decision or displays any sort of ignorance about a certain issue, they are then “cancelled” from society...

Black and minority lives should matter equally as much as white lives in this country, but they do not. Because of this, the ongoing cycle of movements and protests will naturally continue until we are all considered valuable to each other. That cannot happen if the majority is solely focused on the physical damage of material things, and other violent acts that are in fact the side effects of an unjust nation, that refuses to care when we cry for help...

Happy Father’s Day to every single dad out there. Your lives are appreciated and I hope you are all shown how much love your children have for you. Just like COVID-19, the movement for black lives is still going on. I keep up with a lot of my peers from college and many of them are still going hard in the fight for equality in this country...

For the past few weeks, even months, we have seen the entire world completely turn inside out. Discussions are being held that would not happen otherwise, people’s true colors are showing and if you have been paying attention, it has caused an extreme ripple effect...

Many of us have noticed the worldwide events and protests that have taken place since footage of George Floyd’s murder was released. Many of us also know that this was not the first or second or third time an unarmed black person was killed by a police officer. Sadly, we have all lost count, and this was simply the straw that broke the camel's back, hence the degree of such intense protesting that is going on around the world...

There is yet another video surfacing where we see a police officer murdering an unarmed black man. The police officers were all fired but none have been prosecuted for murder. We all unfortunately know what is going to happen next. There will soon be footage or information of George Floyd’s past, anything that can be scraped up to show that he somehow deserved death, and to die that way...

Mother’s day is tomorrow, and I wanted to send my appreciation to every single mother out there, especially my own whom I am immensely grateful for, Happy Mother’s day mama. I also want to send a special Happy Mother’s day to Wanda Cooper-Jones, who is the mother of Ahmaud Arbery. I really hate that she has to unexpectedly spend this holiday without her son, and after seeing several viral videos of his death, I pray his case gets the proper justice it deserves...

This past Wednesday was Earth Day. When I was in grade school, I never paid much attention to Earth Day, nor did I realize how important it actually is to do my part in protecting the planet. Usually for Earth Day, we would learn about different ways to recycle and how to be resourceful with things the Earth produces naturally. These efforts were often short-lived and I’m not even sure of whether or not they made any substantial impact on the environment...

Today is the last day of Black History Month. The other day, I listened to a song called “Glory” by Common and John Legend. It was the first time that I had heard it in a while yet it touched me the same way it did when it first came out with the movie “Selma” in 2015...

Every one of my columns this month has been related to Black History in some form or fashion, including some of my own personal experiences with it. This one shall be no different, let’s get it! Many people have heard of greek-life in college or know someone that is a part of a sorority or fraternity. ...

My junior year of college, I was able to see the premiere of a documentary titled “Tell Them We are Rising: The story of Historically Black Colleges and Universities”. The film was directed by the great Stanley Nelson Jr., who was also present for the premiere at my alma mater Jackson State University, to speak about the structure and the reasons for creating a movie about HBCUs...

One thing that I have always made sure to do when around my elders, if nothing else is to listen. From what I have noticed, older people have a lot to talk about, so when they talk it is worth listening to. The Bible tells us to be quick to listen and slow to speak. I think this applies heavily when listening to those who have lived longer and have been through a lot more than we have...

Today is the first day of Black History Month. Being a black person in this country is a struggle that goes beyond anyone else’s understanding. Although we have made a lot of strides towards progression, hate and prejudice still overtake us, especially here in the South...

The career field that I am in has given me the opportunity to constantly be in communication with people in my community. It is something that I have really enjoyed and the interactions I have had is part of the reason I chose to be a part of this field...

I hope everyone has had a great start to this year, and if you have set specific goals please remember that you set them for a reason and it is very important to stick to them. If you do, however, happen to slip on some of the resolutions you have made for the new year, have no fear because there is always a lesson in store, especially when things do not go the way you might have planned...

I would first like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. I hope that everyone enjoys their family and is safe throughout the holiday season. It’s crazy to me how in this area people that share some of the same beliefs and celebrate the same holidays are still so divided...

Service is one of those selfless things that everyone needs to continuously be a part of. This week some coworkers and I spoke to students at BHS about the importance of serving the community. We explained to them some of the ways that we serve the community and gave them suggestions on how they could serve as well. The students also had some really good ideas themselves for various service projects...

We are finally in the Christmas season. Holiday movies, music and activities are all starting and this is the time of year that gets me really excited. People tend to be nicer around this season, everyone is full of laughter and joy. I feel it is important that we all treasure these moments while they are here...

The holiday season is officially here and for many there is so much to be done before the end of the year. I know a lot of people that put so much on their plate around this time of year and some have handled things better than others. Some folks have already learned how to obtain perfect peace regardless of people or their circumstances. For others, however, it can be difficult trying to recognize a real and dependable source of peace, especially during one of the most intense seasons of all...

Thanksgiving is coming up, so we all know what that means. Currently I am getting my list together of all the houses that I will be collecting to-go plates from. For this column I thought I would like to talk about some of the things that I am grateful for. To list a few: I am grateful for my family of course, my sense of peace lately, and my ability to get things done...

From what I have experienced, life in general is not the easiest thing to do. Discouragement is inevitable in that we do not control the things that happen to us, but only how we react to them. It is so easy to turn to negative things when you are feeling discouraged. Usually those negative things tend to make your situation worse than when it started...

I remember taking an elective in college called Interpersonal Communications. It was one of the best classes I have ever taken in my life. The purpose of the course was to instill ideals into us (students) that would help us to engage and properly function in our environments...

In some of my later days of undergrad (which by the way wasn’t too long ago), I had a friend give me some really insightful information to ponder. I was telling him about how busy my life had been up to that point and it was mainly because I was overloading myself with work, my internship, classes, social life and student organizations...

Earlier this week, I had the opportunity to serve as a panelist for students at The Delta School in Wilson. Each student gave what they call a ‘presentation of learning’ (POL) and we as panelists were asked to give comments and ask questions about each student’s project...

There has been a lot of controversy over the trial of Amber Guyger, who has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for the death of Botham Jean. Now if you have followed the story then you know that Botham Jean was an accountant who was shot and killed by former Dallas police officer Amber Guyger...

Fall is officially here and there is no telling how long this semi-cool weather we’ve been having is going to last. Either way I am not complaining. Speaking of complaining, I am beginning to learn that it doesn’t really get us far in fixing something. During some of the slightest inconveniences, our initial reaction is usually a complaint. Maybe we let a lot of things bother us that should just simply fall off of our shoulders...

I often wonder why technology is such an important thing in most of our lives, more specifically our cell phones. Almost everyone in the country has one, and for some of us our entire lives are wrapped into what is on this tiny screen. There was a study of 2,000 people by a global tech company called Asurion that said most people struggle to go 10 minutes without checking their cell phone. As I write this, I am checking the screen time on my own cell phone and it is absolutely ridiculous...

I like to say that I am very blessed to have the family that I have. No, life was not always easy, but I always remember having family to lean back on in times of need. One of the reasons why I came home after undergrad was because I missed being around my family so much. I have literally done everything with them, and for those four years I missed out on a lot of significant family moments...

This week had me going back and forth in my thoughts, especially since the recent trauma hit a lot of people and myself really close to home. Life is so much shorter than we all think and we spend a lot of time taking it for granted, including myself...

Last weekend, I had the opportunity to listen to local historymakers tell their stories. I covered a youth writing workshop hosted by members of the Celebrate! Maya Project, and I have to say that I was very inspired by all of the stories that I heard. It really surprised me that we’ve had so many people contributing in abundance to this community for so long...

In this day and age, a lot of people are pushed towards finding their niche and using their skills to be successful in their prospective field. Success is what drives most people to carry out their visions and ideas. People want to be successful or they feel no use in putting time, effort, and sometimes money into what they are doing...

I discussed last week how frustrating it is to be a writer. I must say it hasn’t gotten any easier. Along with having a plethora of topics to talk about, you have an even bigger amount of people giving you suggestions on what to talk about, what not to talk about, and why. I find it all very intriguing...

Being a writer definitely has some of its ups and downs. A good thing is that there is always something to talk about. The bad part about it is that there is ALWAYS something to talk about, which as a writer, makes my life a bit more difficult. There is politics, religion, weather, special events, and plenty of other things that us humans use to connect people and cultures together with writing. ...

I mentioned before that this past spring I received my undergraduate degree in Mass Communications, with a minor in Marketing. I am realizing now that a new school year for most people is about a month away. I’m already starting to feel old. For those of you who plan on starting college, going back to college, or if you are a parent who is about to send your child off to college, there are a few things that you might want to consider in the process...

As the new reporter for the NEA Town Courier, I would first like to say thank you for taking time to read this column. My name is Jonet’ Washington, I am a very recent graduate (May 2019) of Jackson State University in Jackson, Miss., with a B.S. degree in Mass Communications. ...