Nikole Hannah Jones’ ‘Center for Journalism & Democracy’ opens following UNC controversies
Among the summit’s lineup was former President Barack Obama, who applauded the creation of the center saying, 'our democracy will be better for it.'
Hannah Jones 'argues that the early pilgrims had the primary intent of preserving slavery, ignoring completely that pilgrims' pursued religious freedom.'
The Center for Journalism & Democracy (CJD) opened at Howard University (Howard) in Washington, DC on November 15.
Described as “the first-of-its-kind academic center committed to strengthening historically-informed, pro-democracy journalism,” the Center is led by 1619 Project creator Nikole Hannah-Jones, according to Howard’s website.
The CJD’s opening comes on the heels of a long, heated saga between Hannah-Jones and The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC-Chapel Hill) that included Hannah-Jones’ rejection of a tenure offer from the university over a year ago, and culminated in a $75,000 settlement in August of this year, as reported by Campus Reform.
[RELATED: Nikole Hannah-Jones reaches settlement with UNC over tenure controversy]
The Center kicked off with an inaugural ‘Democracy Summit,’ which its website describes as “a day-long convening of historians, democracy experts and journalists to collectively unpack present and specific threats to American democracy.”
Among the summit’s lineup was former President Barack Obama, who applauded the creation of the center saying, “our democracy will be better for it.“
Dr. Wayne A.I. Frederick, president of Howard, praised Hannah-Jones as well, saying that she and the curriculum of the 1619 Project “will strengthen our commitment to educating the next generation of diverse journalists.”
Hannah Jones, however, has been the topic of converse for several years. As noted by Campus Reform, “[n]umerous historians have discredited Hannah-Jones, noting she routinely ignores fact-checkers.” For example, she “argues that the early pilgrims had the primary intent of preserving slavery, ignoring completely that pilgrims’ pursued religious freedom.”
[RELATED: REPORT: UNC journalism school backs off plan to give tenure to author of debunked ‘1619 Project’]
Additionally, the Center is slated to work with multiple HBCUs including, Morehouse College, Florida A&M University, North Carolina A&T, North Carolina Central University, Savannah State University, and Texas Southern University.
Campus Reform reached out to the Center for Journalism & Democracy for comment. This article will be updated accordingly.