NABJ Conventions: A great Place to Socialize
I can’ t forget the fun that NABJ conventions have engendered. From cozy card games to grand receptions, banquets and the momentous parties— including the annual hot-ticket NABJ Sports Task Force Scholarship Jam— NABJ conventions have been a great place for Black journalists to socialize and unwind.
Over the years, the convention has often hosted premieres of new television shows and Hollywood films. It hosts an annual literary café that puts dozens of Black authors and their work on display. And for more than three decades the convention has held a photo auction where the works of many of the nation’ s top Black photojournalists can be purchased.
And, of course, each year the convention offers a full slate of workshops, seminars and related activities. The number and scope of these sessions have grown significantly, to more than 200 last year in Cleveland.
But one of the most important hallmarks of NABJ’ s annual gatherings that can’ t be adequately described in program guides is their family atmosphere— which has sometimes turned friendships into family.
Angela Dodson and Michael Days, her late husband, are a good example.
“ We attended our first NABJ together in 1979” in Washington, D. C., Dodson recalled. They married four years later.“ We attended most NABJ conventions together for the next 46 years and made many lifelong friends,” she added.
A couple of their children joined them at some conventions, and all the children’ s godparents were NABJ members. Day’ s August 2 birthday often fell during the convention, and the couple celebrated there with friends. Both Dodson and Days eventually served as board members, with Dodson doing a stint as national secretary in the early 1980s. Days was a president of the NABJ chapters in Louisville and Philadelphia. Sadly, Michael Days passed away in October 2025.
NABJ Conventions: The COVID Years
Resilience is another NABJ value, but one that faced a major test and uncertainty when the covid pandemic shut down much of the nation in 2020. Then NABJ President Dorothy Tucker contracted the virus and had no choice but to power through it as she and NABJ Executive Director Drew Berry worried about how to navigate the pandemic without losing a million dollars or more by canceling a convention contract with the Washington, D. C., host hotel. Fortunately for NABJ the hotel canceled first, after the local government prohibited in-person events.
Then, in a surprisingly successful move, NABJ decided to hold a virtual convention, complete with meal functions. NABJ had food and wine delivered to the homes of people who registered for the online meeting.
“ The idea of a virtual convention was born out of fear, frustration, and prayer,” Tucker said. Once a production contractor was selected,“ we had to decide how big the avatars would be, how they would be dressed and make sure they looked Black. It was crazy. There had to be separate links for each panel, the jobs fair, the breakout rooms and links for private discussions and the receptions.”
Not only were members pleased with the virtual convention, but NABJ also met its financial goals.
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