By Hamil R. Harris and Micarie Kemp
Former President Donald Trump's speech before the National Association of Black Journalists drew fire from many of 3,600 attending the Chicago confab even before he had delivered it.
In addition to a storm of protest on social media, Karen Attiah, the co-chair of NABJ24, stepped down from her post because she said that she was never consulted on the decision to allow Trump to speak.
Attiah said for the journalists interviewing Trump,” I wish them the best of luck," and she still planned to take part in other events at the convention that begins today and goes through Saturday.
"For everyone else, I'm looking forward to meeting and reconnecting with all of you in the Windy City,” said Attiah, who is a columnist for the Washington Post. "While my decision was influenced by a variety of factors, I was not involved or consulted with in any way with the decision to platform Trump in such a format.”
Attiah, who writes about international affairs, culture and human rights issues, was part of a storm of writers and columnists who spoke against Trump speaking.
Columnist Richard Prince said in his Journalisms Column that “Fact Checkers will have their work cut out for them,” and that remains to be seen. The speech is scheduled for noon Chicago Time.
In light of the controversy surrounding Trump's invitation, NABJ says it has been actively engaging with both major political parties since January, and although Vice President Kamala Harris was invited for an in-person panel, her schedule could not accommodate the request.
However, NABJ says the organization is currently in discussions with her campaign to schedule a Q&A session, either in person or virtually, for September 2024.
On Wednesday, NABJ President Ken Lemon issued a statement affirming that the decision to invite Trump aligned with the organization’s longstanding practice of hosting prominent figures while making clear that such invitations do not constitute endorsements.
"I consulted with a group of our Founders and past NABJ Presidents Tuesday on-site in Chicago, and as a group, we affirmed that the invitation to Former President Trump was in line with NABJ’s usual practices since 1976. It has always been our policy to ensure that candidates know that an invitation is not an endorsement. We also agreed that while this race is much different — and contentious — so are the consequences.
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. We also want to provide our members with the facts. We have partnered with PolitiFact for live fact-checking using the hashtag #NABJFactCheck and via our initial announcement link here: bit.ly/NABJ24ConversationWithTrump." - President Ken Lemon
