The original Bay State Banner 50th Anniversary Magazine was created by Banner staff in 2015:

PUBLISHER Melvin B. Miller

CO-PUBLISHER Sandra L. Casagrand

EDITORS Yawu Miller Robin Washington Lisa Simmons

ART DIRECTOR Daniel Goodwin

PRODUCTION Caleb Olson

COVER AND BACK-PAGE ARTWORK Ekua Holmes

BAY STATE BANNER ALUMNI

At a regional conference of the National Association of Black Journalists 20 years ago, Bay State Banner publisher Melvin B. Miller responded to an honor presented to him by asking all the writers and photographers who ever worked for the Banner to stand up. Few remained seated. An impressive number of Banner alumni have gone on to major media outlets, many covering some of the most significant stories of our time. Some of the most recognizable names are:

- Gwen Ifill, anchor, “PBS NewsHour,” and anchor/managing editor, “Washington Week”

- Kevin Merida, managing editor, Washington Post and senior vice president, ESPN

- Michael Fields, reporter/bureau chief, National Public Radio

- Cheryl Devall, reporter, National Public Radio

- June Cross, producer, CBS News and PBS documentary producer

- Dasal Banks, Hollywood cameraman

- Crystal Hubbard, bestselling author and romance writer

- Robin Washington, editor, Duluth News Tribune, NPR commentator and PBS documentary producer

- Rehema Ellis, reporter, NBC News

- Elisa Batista, reporter, Wired Magazine

- Steve Curwood, executive producer, “Living On Earth” (Public Radio International) and host, “World of Opera” (NPR)

- Desair Brown, reader advocacy editor, USA Today

- Lara Sukhtian, Middle East correspondent, Reuters

Others have made their mark in local media at the Boston Herald, Boston Globe, WGBH-TV and other stations. They include Gus Martins, Dorothy Clark, Carmen Fields, Barbara Barrow, Janice Melton, Jordana Hart, Wesley Williams, Howard Manly, Frank Holland, Jamyra Perry and many more. The Banner appreciates them all.

Banner photographers whose work is represented in this magazine include Roy Thompson, Bob Hale, Wes Williams, Tyrone Hall and Don West, whose photos appear in the 1975-1985 section and each thereafter.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR OF OUR 60TH ANNIVERSARY SPECIAL SECTION

Kenneth J. Cooper, a Pulitzer Prize winner, has been a journalist for nearly half a century, specializing in government, politics and social policy, at the Washington Post, Boston Globe, Knight Ridder, GBH News, St. Louis Post-Dispatch and St. Louis American. In 1984, Cooper, then 28, shared a Pulitzer for special local reporting for “The Race Factor,” a Boston Globe series that examined institutional racism in Boston. He became the youngest African American to win a Pulitzer for journalism, a milestone that stood for three decades.

ABOUT THE COVER ARTIST OF OUR 60TH ANNIVERSARY SPECIAL SECTION

Lucilda Dassardo-Cooper is a painter whose works of oil on canvas depict luminous images with a spiritual aura. Her paintings draw on experiences living in India, Egypt and Jamaica, the land of her birth. A graduate of MassArt, Lucilda Dassardo-Cooper has represented the United States in India’s Triennale. She is also a certified yoga teacher.

CURRENT BAY STATE BANNER STAFF

Publisher/Editor Ronald Mitchell

Associate Publisher André Stark

ADVERTISING

Director of Digital Sales Colin Redd

Advertising Manager Rachel Reardon

NEWS REPORTING

Contributing Editors Amber Payne, Kenneth J. Cooper, Brian Wright O’Connor

Health Editor Karen Miller

Staff Writer Avery Bleichfeld

Contributing Writers Yawu Miller, Tanya Hart, Deidre Montague,

Peter C. Roby, Zhi Zhu

Copy Editor Dorothy Clark

Staff Photographer Don West

SPORTS

Contributing Writers Jimmy Myers, Jack Drewry

ARTS & CULTURE

Contributing Editor Celina Colby

Contributing Writers Olivia Grant, Susan Saccoccia

PRODUCTION

Design/Layout J. Storin, Carole Allen, Cagen Luse