Tag Archives: Emerald 8th Anniversary

Community

The Morning Update Show — 5/2

The Morning Update Show — hosted by Trae Holiday and The Big O (Omari Salisbury) — is the only weekday news and information livestream that delivers culturally relevant content to the Pacific Northwest’s urban audience. Omari and Trae analyze the day’s local and national headlines as well as melanin magic in our community. Watch live every weekday at 11 a.m. on any of the following channels, hosted by Converge Media: YouTube, Twitch, Facebook, Periscope, and whereweconverge.com.

We also post the Morning Update Show here on the Emerald each day after it airs, so you can catch up any time of day while you peruse our latest posts.

Morning Update Show — Monday, May 2

LIVE — Yolanda Norton of Beyoncé Mass | LIVE — Brett Hamil of the South Seattle Emerald | Congrats South Seattle Emerald — 8 Years of Excellence | Sound Transit and Fare Collection | Community Uplifting Community

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Voices

My Emerald Story: A Legacy of Community

In celebration of the South Seattle Emerald’s 8th Anniversary, we asked community members to share moments in our publication’s history that remain special to them.

by Marcus Harrison Green

Join me in helping the Emerald create ripples and sparks everywhere! Information is Power! Imagine media for, by, and accountable to the community — thankfully, you don’t have to, because the Emerald already exists! As a founding board member living in a community so often treated as powerless, I’ve seen the Emerald grow to become a beacon of light that reminds us of our power, our wisdom, and our agency. But we can’t continue to do it without sustainable financial resources that allow us to thrive. Help us celebrate authentic community stories during the Emerald’s 8th anniversary campaign, Ripples & Sparks at Home, April 20–28, by becoming a recurring donor! 

—Bridgette Hempstead, Community Activist, Founding Board Member, & Rainmaker

Legacy.

I’ve reflected continuously on that word over the last couple of weeks. Today not only marks the celebration of the South Seattle Emerald’s eighth anniversary, but also my second to last day as its interim editor-in-chief and executive director. Next week, I will transition from the day-to-day operations of the Emerald to fully adopt the role of publisher as a part of the Emerald’s board of directors. 

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Voices

My Emerald Story: Storytelling That Creates Ripples and Sparks

In celebration of the South Seattle Emerald’s 8th Anniversary, we asked community members to share moments in our publication’s history that remain special to them.

by Barb Taylor

Join me in helping the Emerald create ripples and sparks everywhere! Information is Power! Imagine media for, by, and accountable to the community — thankfully, you don’t have to, because the Emerald already exists! As a founding board member living in a community so often treated as powerless, I’ve seen the Emerald grow to become a beacon of light that reminds us of our power, our wisdom, and our agency. But we can’t continue to do it without sustainable financial resources that allow us to thrive. Help us celebrate authentic community stories during the Emerald’s 8th anniversary campaign, Ripples & Sparks at Home, April 20–28, by becoming a recurring donor! 

—Bridgette Hempstead, Community Activist, Founding Board Member, & Rainmaker

Congratulations to the South Seattle Emerald for eight great years!  A special moment for me in the publication’s history occurred last March, when the Emerald shone a light on kinship care in South Seattle and on policy that supports those who are raising their relatives’ children through publishing the opinion piece “They’re Raising Grandkids With Little Help, and During a Pandemic. Can’t We Lend them a Hand?” 

Continue reading My Emerald Story: Storytelling That Creates Ripples and Sparks →
Voices

My Emerald Story: A Deep Sense of Home

In celebration of the South Seattle Emerald’s 8th Anniversary, we asked community members to share moments in our publication’s history that remain special to them.

by Sarah Stuteville

The Emerald is a blueprint to showing, sharing, and bridging Black and Brown folks through the power of storytelling. The Emerald is what we should be truly striving for as a community. Don’t just talk about it. Create a way to practice and be about us coming together. The Emerald is setting the example. Join me in supporting the Emerald as a recurring donor during their 8th anniversary campaign, Ripples & Sparks at Home, April 20–28. Become a Rainmaker today by choosing the “recurring donor” option on the donation page!

—Sharon Nyree Williams, Artist, Orator, & Rainmaker

My first exposure to the Emerald was, like for many of us, through founder Marcus Harrison Green. It was 2014 and I was still working at the University of Washington (UW) in the Journalism Department. I was still writing a column for The Seattle Times and I was hustling to find funding for The Seattle Globalist — a now-closed publication dedicated to providing media training for diverse and underrepresented communities. 

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Voices

My Emerald Story: A Community Worth Fighting For

In celebration of the South Seattle Emerald’s 8th Anniversary, we asked community members to share moments in our publication’s history that remain special to them.

by Andrew Johnston

Help the Emerald create more “ripples and sparks” throughout the community! I’m the publisher’s mother and an Emerald founding board member. I’ve lived in Seattle all my life. Over most of those 77 years, the brilliance, diversity, and beauty of our community lacked a constant spotlight — that was until the Emerald came along. I’ve seen my son and the Emerald team sacrifice sleep, health care, self-care, and better salaries elsewhere to keep the Emerald shining a light on our community. I’d never ask anyone to make that kind of sacrifice, but I do ask to do what you can today to support the Emerald as a Rainmaker, or sustaining donor, during their 8th anniversary campaign, Ripples & Sparks at Home, April 20–28. Become a Rainmaker today by choosing the “recurring donor” option on the donation page!

—Cynthia “Mama” Green, The Publisher’s Mama & Rainmaker

Way back in 2014, I was introduced to Marcus Harrison Green at a community event at the now-bygone Hillman City Collaboratory. At this time, the South Seattle Emerald, still in its infancy, was little more than Marcus himself. He passionately explained its impetus and where he saw it going. We immediately started vibing on community journalism and countering The Seattle Times’ editorial board and other mainstream propaganda machines that consistently tip the scales of justice in favor of the rich and powerful. I was a young architect with no tangible connection to the world of journalism, but I recognized journalism’s power and was awakening to how this power was being abused to the detriment of my city and beyond. I also recognized the importance of Marcus’ work because it represented a solution, a path forward, a way to empower a community of folks so often misrepresented and held down. I left our conversation energized and excited about this new friend I had met. 

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Voices

My Emerald Story: Whose Voices Do We Prioritize?

In celebration of the South Seattle Emerald’s 8th Anniversary, we asked community members to share moments in our publication’s history that remain special to them.

by Paul Benz the Younger

Help the Emerald create more “ripples and sparks” throughout the community! I’m the publisher’s mother and an Emerald founding board member. I’ve lived in Seattle all my life. Over most of those 77 years, the brilliance, diversity, and beauty of our community lacked a constant spotlight — that was until the Emerald came along. I’ve seen my son and the Emerald team sacrifice sleep, health care, self-care, and better salaries elsewhere to keep the Emerald shining a light on our community. I’d never ask anyone to make that kind of sacrifice, but I do ask to do what you can today to support the Emerald as a Rainmaker, or sustaining donor, during their 8th anniversary campaign, Ripples & Sparks at Home, April 20–28. Become a Rainmaker today by choosing the “recurring donor” option on the donation page!

—Cynthia “Mama” Green, The Publisher’s Mama & Rainmaker

The Emerald is local news I trust and a place I enjoy going to for information on what is happening in the greater Seattle area. I also trust that it is prioritizing local, marginalized voices and news stories, which is particularly important to me.

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Voices

My Emerald Story: My Extended Family

In celebration of the South Seattle Emerald’s 8th Anniversary, we asked community members to share moments in our publication’s history that remain special to them.

by Jamil Suleman

Join me in helping the Emerald create ripples and sparks everywhere! Information is Power! Imagine media for, by, and accountable to the community — thankfully, you don’t have to, because the Emerald already exists! As a founding board member living in a community so often treated as powerless, I’ve seen the Emerald grow to become a beacon of light that reminds us of our power, our wisdom, and our agency. But we can’t continue to do it without sustainable financial resources that allow us to thrive. Help us celebrate authentic community stories during the Emerald’s 8th anniversary campaign, Ripples & Sparks at Home, April 20–28, by becoming a recurring donor! 

—Bridgette Hempstead, Community Activist, Founding Board Member, & Rainmaker

The amount of support and community love I and my homies have received from Marcus Green and the South Seattle Emerald over the years has been one of the most inspiring things to be a part of. I’ve written for the Emerald, produced amazing local-focused video work with our Indie Genius Media team, have been featured for several causes and performances, and have connected some of my most trusted friends to the Emerald over the years. I could tell a thousand stories of gratitude and service, but I’ll focus on some of the more recent opportunities the Emerald has given us.

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Voices

My Emerald Story: A True Jewel

In celebration of the South Seattle Emerald’s 8th Anniversary, we asked community members to share moments in our publication’s history that remain special to them.

by Benjamin Hunter

Without the Emerald, the true narrative of our community would rarely be told. For too long, and for too often, most media has painted our community in a negative light. When I say community, I include everyone who our mainstream media often ignores, diminishes, and casts aside. The Emerald has been here to remind our community of its worth, and that like all emeralds, karat for karat, the people of our community are worth more than gold. Join me in supporting the Emerald as a recurring donor during their 8th anniversary campaign, Ripples & Sparks at Home, April 20–28. Become a Rainmaker today by choosing the “recurring donor” option!

—Phillip “Papa” Green, The Publisher’s Dad (and Longtime Community Curmudgeon)

I can’t think about the South Seattle Emerald without thinking back to the old days when it started. It was 2013 or 2014 (ha, “the old days”), and I had just started the Hillman City Collaboratory — a co-working space, event space, and social change incubator — with my friend and co-conspirator John Helmiere. 

Now, I recognize that I’m a transplant to this city and that people had been organizing long before I got here. But for me, there was this palpable energy in the South End at this time. Rainier Valley Corps was being formed. Families of Color Seattle was getting started. Even in City government, Randy Engstrom was leading an incredible team of people in the Office of Arts & Culture that was changing the ways we did our cultural and creative work. People with incredible ideas, ambition, and collective vision for the Rainier Valley were sharing, networking, collaborating, and dreaming up a better world. They challenged every stereotype of the Seattle freeze. They wanted to say hi to others walking down the street! That alone makes all the difference. 

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Voices

My Emerald Story: Building Back Greater

In celebration of the South Seattle Emerald’s 8th Anniversary, we asked community members to share moments in our publication’s history that remain special to them.

by Cynthia Green

Help the Emerald create more “ripples and sparks” throughout the community! I’m the publisher’s mother and an Emerald founding board member. I’ve lived in Seattle all my life. Over most of those 77 years, the brilliance, diversity, and beauty of our community lacked a constant spotlight — that was until the Emerald came along. I’ve seen my son and the Emerald team sacrifice sleep, health care, self-care, and better salaries elsewhere to keep the Emerald shining a light on our community. I’d never ask anyone to make that kind of sacrifice, but I do ask to do what you can today to support the Emerald as a Rainmaker, or sustaining donor, during their 8th anniversary campaign, Ripples & Sparks at Home, April 20–28. Become a Rainmaker today by choosing the “recurring donor” option on the donation page!

—Cynthia “Mama” Green, The Publisher’s Mama & Rainmaker

So, another year has gone by. I am so grateful that the South Seattle Emerald is still here to serve our community due to the dedicated leadership team, writers, photographers, board, and community. I’m also grateful that I have had the opportunity to see and experience something rare during my lifetime, largely because of the Emerald’s coverage. 

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Voices

My Emerald Story: 8 Years Into the Dream

In celebration of the South Seattle Emerald’s 8th Anniversary, we asked community members to share moments in our publication’s history that remain special to them. 

by Reagan Jackson

The Emerald community has been creating ripples with its creativity and genius for 8 magnificent years! Those ripples are felt far beyond South Seattle — community, after all, is not a place but its people. And home can be a place, people, or both. The energy our people generate at home and beyond ignites sparks that prove perennially that even the tiniest of sparks illuminates dark places in all directions and can guide us to wherever we need to go.

Please help us continue to serve our community by becoming a recurring donor during our 8th anniversary campaign, Ripples & Sparks at Home, April 20–28. Become a Rainmaker today by choosing the “recurring donor” option on our donation page! 

—The Emerald Team

Marcus Harrison Green and I met shortly before the birth of the South Seattle Emerald. What started out as my giving him writing lessons turned into a lot of laughter, knocking back rum and cokes at Jude’s, talking shit about local politics, and reading each other’s writing. Inevitably, our conversations would return to the big gaping hole in Seattle’s media scene and Marcus would wax poetic about the need for a news outlet where the South End could curate its own story rather than being continuously villainized in news told by strangers from outside the community. 

Continue reading My Emerald Story: 8 Years Into the Dream →