Your vote counts! Remember to vote Democrat Nov. 5!
October 22, 2022 - October 28, 2022 The Afro-American A5
Volume 123 No. 20–22 Volume 133 No. 1
THE BLACKwww.afro.com MEDIA AUTHORITY • AFRO.COM
$2.00 $1.00
AUGUST 3, 2024 - AUGUST 9, 2024
Black athletes shine at 2024 Paris Olympic Games
AP Photo/Frank Franklin II
AP Photo/Darron Cummings
: AP Photo/Andrew Medichini
The 2024 Summer Olympic Games in Paris are officially underway as Black athletes from across the globe continue to show off their skill and prowess in a range of disciplines, including Nyjah Huston (left) in street skateboarding, Lauren Scruggs in fencing and Simone Manuel in swimming. By Mekhi Abbott AFRO Sports Intern mabbott@afro.com
afro.com
Every four years, athletes from around the world meet up to test their strength and skill on the world stage. This year, the Summer Olympic Games are back with athletes of all ethnicities and backgrounds going head to head in competition in athletic disciplines both popular and lesser known. The world watched on July 26 as the 2024 opening ceremony took place at locations across Paris. Since that time, Black athletes have once again moved into the spotlight. Lauren Scruggs, a 21-year-old fencer, and street skateboarding superstar
10
7
47105 21847
2
Nyjah Huston headline the list of Black Olympic athletes who have earned a medal so far at the 2024 Paris Summer Olympic Games. Simone Manuel has contributed to Team USA by winning a silver medal in the women’s 4x100 meter freestyle relay in swimming. Fredrick Richard has also led the men’s U.S. gymnastics team to victory, clinching their first Olympic medal since the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing. Scruggs, currently a rising senior at Harvard University, made history as the first Black American woman to win an Olympic medal in foil fencing. The final bout in women’s fencing turned out to be a historic battle as two American women claimed the
gold and silver medals for the first time in Olympic history. Scruggs claimed the silver medal, while Lee Kiefer took home the gold. Huston, already regarded
The California native began skateboarding at age five at the request of his father, who also used to skateboard. Huston cites skating six days a week alongside his
“The atmosphere is great overall in the Olympic village. Within the Team USA building there is a lot of camaraderie and conversation between athletes of all sports and disciplines.” as the greatest street skateboarder of all time, was able to earn his first Olympic medal after finishing third in the men’s street skateboarding competition on July 29.
brothers and father from early childhood as the reason he has developed amazing skills in the sport. He has described skateboarding as the “family business” in an interview with
NBC Sports. Huston, now 29, has vocalized his intentions to qualify and compete at the 2028 Summer Olympics, which will be held in Los Angeles. In the first week of competition, the threetime All-American athlete, Frederick Richard, added an Olympic bronze medallist to his list of achievements. The rising junior at the University of Michigan already has an extensive list of accomplishments at only 20 years old. Richard led the way for Team USA in gymnastics, scoring the highest on the team in three of the four events he competed in: parallel bars, horizontal bars and a floor routine. Manuel continues to add
to her already impressive Olympic résumé. She won two gold medals and two silver medals at the 2016 Rio Summer Olympic Games. It was at the 2016 Rio Games where Manuel set an Olympic and American record in the 100-meter freestyle. She still holds the American record for the event. She also won a bronze medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Ashleigh Johnson, a twotime Olympic gold medallist, is the goalkeeper for the women’s U.S. Olympic water polo team in Paris. Johnson is widely regarded as the greatest active goalkeeper in the sport of water polo. These athletic accomplishments cannot solely be attributed to the Continued on A5
Trump insults Black journalists at annual conference By Tashi McQueen AFRO Political Writer tmcqueen@afro.com Former President Donald J. Trump, Republican presidential nominee, fueled controversy during a question and answer session at the 2024 National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) Annual Convention and Career Fair on July 31. Rachel Scott, senior congressional correspondent for ABC News, opened the conversation by asking Trump to explain why Black voters should vote for him, considering previous insulting comments he has made about Black elected officials and other people of color. “I don’t think I’ve ever been asked a question in such a horrible manner,” said Trump, in response to the first question. “Are you with ABC? Because I think they’re a fake news network. I think it’s a very rude introduction,” he continued. Trump evaded a response to the first question, instead taking several digs at Scott, the company she works for and NABJ itself for a late start due to technical difficulties. The conversation with the former president
“It has always been our policy to ensure that candidates know that an invitation is not an endorsement. While we acknowledge the concerns expressed by our members, we believe it is important for us to provide our members with the opportunity to hear directly from candidates and hold them accountable.”
Copyright © 2024 by the Afro-American Company
caused a stir once it was disclosed to the Black journalists that make up NABJ and the general public. NABJ leadership addressed the controversy around the invitation, emphasizing that they spent months in communication with both political parties about participating in the convention. Trump said NABJ invited him “under false pretense,” claiming that Vice President Kamala Harris (D) would be in attendance for the session as well. Ultimately, she was not on the stage for the conversation at the convention. “NABJ has been in talks with both the Democratic and Republican parties since January. NABJ was in contact with Vice President Kamala Harris’ team for an in-person panel before President Joe Biden dropped out of the race in July,” said NABJ President Ken Lemon in a statement. “We were advised by her campaign at the time that her schedule could not accommodate this request.” Lemon said the last word they received from her campaign, earlier this week, was that Harris would not be available in person or virtually during the convention. Less than an hour before the conversation, NABJ announced that they were in conversation with Harris’ campaign for a live or Continued on A5