By AFRO Staff
Since 1892 AFRO reporters, photographers, editors and publishers have kept the publication going with a commitment to recording Black history, serving the community and seeking change. This year was no different. With an amazing group of tenacious reporters unafraid to ask the tough questions, the AFRO was able to cover everything from health and education to politics, public safety, business and more. Read below to learn a bit about the reporters and the work done in 2025.
Ericka Alston Buck
AFRO Freelancer
Reporting for AFRO News has taught me that my voice has responsibility. I learned that people aren’t just giving interviews, they’re trusting me with their stories, their history and how they want to be seen. It showed me how important it is to tell our stories with intention, accuracy and respect, because representation really matters in our community.
I learned just how connected and resilient our community is. No matter the story, I kept seeing a shared commitment to showing up and pushing the community forward. It reminded me that I’m not just “covering events,” I’m helping document the heartbeat of Baltimore and the people who keep it moving forward.
Tashi McQueen
AFRO Staff Writer
Looking back on 2025, I thank the Lord Jesus for another year of contributing to the AFRO’s vital mission: shining a light on and uplifting the Black community with the information that matters most.
One of my proudest moments was attending the Maryland, Delaware, District of Columbia Press Association (MDDC) awards. I had the honor of reporting on AFRO News taking home more than 25 awards. I was thrilled to personally contribute to our award-winning legacy. This year, I took home four awards from MDDC and my story on the passing of renowned poet and author Nikki Giovanni earned first place at the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) awards. These achievements were humbling and serve as a powerful reminder that I’m on the right track.
Beyond the accolades, I am thankful for the opportunity to honor the lives of several significant Black leaders. By attending their services and speaking with their loved ones, I worked to convey the deep legacies they left behind. While I might not have been eager for this task in the past, I have grown to appreciate the beauty in documenting the final chapters of a life well-lived.
Many more stories and voices from this past year have left a lasting impression on me, and for those connections, I am truly thankful.
Megan Sayles
AFRO Staff Writer
This year, more than ever before, I learned that being a journalist can be an act of resistance— especially working for a media company like the AFRO. We were created more than 130 years ago to champion racial equality, the advancement of our community and Black achievement. Though the injustices we face today may not seem as blatant as the segregation, discrimination and lynching of the past, 2025 taught me that we’re fighting many of the same core battles— who gets to vote, who is protected by the law, who can afford to live in their own communities and whose history and humanity are recognized by society. As journalists at the AFRO, we confront oppression by giving a voice to the marginalized, speaking truth in the face of censorship and misinformation and holding people in power accountable.
Amid the hurdles of this year, I’ve learned that we cannot survive without hope. Hope gives us purpose, motivation and strength to stay in the fight. It’s why our communities— many of which have faced decades of disinvestment— take matters into their own hands. From demanding new parks and school improvements, to neighborhood beautification efforts, to showing up for local businesses and protesting big-box retailers, I’ve witnessed the Black community refuse to surrender. I vow to continue illuminating our struggle, resilience, collective action and wins in 2026.
Victoria Mejicanos
AFRO Staff Writer
The most moving moment from my time at the AFRO this year was learning that as a result of my reporting on credit gaps in Baltimore, the Maryland Bankers Association and Coppin State University’s (CSU) Center for Strategic Entrepreneurship hosted a Community Conversation on credit equity, bringing together leaders from across the state to discuss actionable solutions. It was a great reminder of the power of journalism and that my location (I live in California) is not a limitation to quality work.
Andrea Stevens
AFRO Staff Writer
I covered an array of topics this year, from politics, health and entertainment to community events. Most moving, for me, were my pieces on postpartum health. I have learned that Black news and education can save lives and help people feel seen.
Kevin McNeir
AFRO Staff Writer
As an experienced editor and reporter for the Black Press, 2025 has proven to be an exciting and enlightening adventure. And while I have written just under 100 stories, when asked to reflect on the top stories I covered, I easily identified three.
The first was about Jimmie C. Gardner, a promising baseball player with the Chicago Cubs, who was convicted of a crime he did not commit after a West Virginia forensics official lied under oath. Gardner spent 27 years in prison. Since his release, he has committed his life to helping others who find themselves seeking justice.
Two other stories, published as a series, showcased the inequities faced by communities of color in New Orleans, La., focusing on the 20th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina. While I assumed that I knew the details behind the devastation, what I learned in my reporting is how quickly and easily Blacks have been ignored and denied equitable opportunities to rebuild their homes and lives even two decades since the storm.
Mekhi Abbott
AFRO Freelancer
Reflecting on 2025 and the articles I wrote for the AFRO, I am grateful for the stories I covered that truly made an impact at both a local and national level. During the summer, I covered Baltimore City Mayor Brandon M. Scott and Maryland’s Congressional delegation as they addressed public safety, infrastructure initiatives in response to federal funding cuts and the current state of the Francis Scott Key Bridge reconstruction. I also got the amazing opportunity to cover Adam Jones’ induction into the Baltimore Orioles Hall of Fame. As a sports enthusiast whose first sport was baseball, interviewing an Orioles and USA Baseball National team legend was a truly amazing experience.
The most moving story I covered this year was recent: Baltimore Collegiate School for Boys is fighting to stay open. Baltimore Collegiate is the only public charter school in Baltimore specifically serving young Black boys. The school provides not only education, but mentorship and necessary opportunities for personal development that are unavailable elsewhere. Hearing the personal testimonies from students and parents about the school’s impact, sometimes within just one school year, showed me its importance and why it should stay open.
Dr. Deborah Bailey
AFRO Contributing Editor
My most moving moment from the year was interviewing Pastor Segun Adebayo of Macedonia Baptist Church in Bethesda,Md. about Moses African Cemetery. We spoke about the lost graves of Black ancestors he and others say are buried beneath a parking lot. The fact that Black people’s graves are still being desecrated in 2025 is beyond belief.
The AFRO allows me to thoroughly cover the issue of desecrated and neglected black burial grounds with a consistency no other media source can claim. More is coming in 2026! As contributing editor, I value augmenting the AFRO’s local, state and national coverage.
James Fields
AFRO Freelance Photographer
As I reflect on the year 2025, I’m thankful for the opportunity to capture some amazing moments in time for AFRO News. I covered the “Daddy and Me Tea,” where black men dressed up, celebrated and danced with their daughters. As a sports enthusiast, I enjoyed the CIAA Basketball tournament assignment. I also photographed the final Preakness Stakes and Black Eyed Susan races at the legendary Pimlico Race Track before its demolition and complete renovation. The AFRO made it possible for me to capture events that I may not have been able to document otherwise. May the new year bring even greater events to capture.
Thanks and Happy New Year to all my friends at the AFRO American Newspaper.
Alexis Taylor
AFRO Managing Editor
It’s no secret that 2025 was a challenging year for not only members of the Black Press, but news media organizations across the country. Those who weren’t under direct, targeted attack from the current presidential administration felt the pressure, as those in power publicly encouraged a disdain for anything dealing with the word “Black.” Still, African-American media companies and leaders stood strong.
Covering local, national and international news in 2025 has been a challenge eased only by the assurance that the articles we write and publish will make change. From Black maternal mortality to the gender pay gap, I can only hope that my words have sparked conversation and–more importantly–action.
Looking back over the past 12 months, my top moments are clear.
In March, I had an opportunity to record the stories of nurses, five years into a world still off-kilter from COVID-19. On April 29, I saw the women of the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion receive their long overdue Congressional Gold Medal.
I think the moment that made me most proud was when I learned that Florida’s Raiford Prison had banned a May special edition of the AFRO from inmates who receive the paper. Officials labeled our coverage of George Floyd, the fifth anniversary of his death, the promises broken and the change that still needs to happen as a threat to security and rehabilitation initiatives. It let me know that we are doing something right. In that same month, most humbling, was seeing my name and face in Editor and Publisher Magazine, the trade magazine of my industry, as a member of the “Editor’s Extraordinaire, Class of 2025.”
In June, the residents of Baltimore helped me understand how they persevere, 10 years after the death of Freddie Gray. In August, Hurricane Katrina survivors from Mississippi broadened my view of the tragedies that took place 20 years ago. And on Oct. 16, at 6 a.m. in the morning, I was honored to watch the men who organized the 1995 Million Man March pour libations, discuss the work that still needs to be done and celebrate the 30th anniversary of the largest demonstration of Black men in history.
Though it was tough at times, our small editorial department, with the help of the community, truly made miracles happen in 2025. I am very appreciative of the support and leadership of our publisher, Dr. Frances “Toni” Murphy Draper, and every writer, photographer, intern and team member who helped pull together the weekly edition of the paper, while also working on news for our website and special projects like the AFRO special, “Preakness Festival 150: A Celebration of Heritage and Style.”
Despite all efforts and against all odds, we are still here…going strong, “pleading our own cause” and looking forward to the “good trouble” of 2026.