The National Association of Black Journalists honored Yohuru Williams, founding director of the Racial Justice Initiative and distinguished university chair at the University of St. Thomas, and Sheree Curry, director of communications, for commentaries they wrote that were published in The Minnesota Star Tribune. The two won an NABJ Salute to Excellence honor in the category for Newspaper – Newsroom Staff 201 and Above Commentary/Essay.
From one of the commentaries:
In Minnesota, the unemployment rate for Black workers climbed to 7.7% in August 2025, up from 5.2% the year before, which is more than twice the rate for white Minnesotans, according to Minnesota’s Department of Employment and Economic Development. … Even in times of growth, Black women in Minnesota face greater job insecurity and lower pay. They earn about 62 centers for every dollar earned by white men, according to the 2024 Status of Women and Girls+ in Minnesota report.
Curry also won a second award for a feature story she wrote for USA Today’s Black History Month special edition about Black missing and murdered women, recounting the story of Minnesotan Brittany Clardy.
