Hey CNN “Reliable Sources,” looking for diversity?
Well look at this! Here are 100 possible black figures to choose from for the black averse Sunday media show.
On Thursday night The Root recognized “exceptional African Americans” at Espace in Manhattan.
CNN’s own Van Jones and Sunny Hostin played hosts.
Jones even spiced things up with prayer when the Rev. Michael Walrond of Harlem’s First Corinthian Baptist Church was late because he had to attend another event. Jones and Hostin acknowledged they were no substitute for the pastor, but Van said he could offer the scripture his kids used when asked for prayer: “Jesus wept.” (Apparently it’s so easy even a child can memorize it.)
Pastor Walrond did arrive in time to bless the dinner, and apparently offered “a powerful prayer” about leadership and sacrifice.
After he spoke, Hostin said it was good, but joked that it probably wouldn’t have been quite so well received if they hadn’t already set the bar so low.
Honorees included David Johns (executive director of the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for African Americans), Bread for the World lobbyist Eric Mitchell, Stacey Abrams (House Minority Leader, Georgia General Assembly), and Randall Jackson (not the youngest of the Jackson bros, but instead Assistant U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York). Other honorees that attended are: NBC and MSNBC’s Tamron Hall, Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, Bozoma Saint John (SVP Beats Music), Claudia L. Gordon (first deaf African American female attorney) Rashad Robinson (Executive Director of ColorofChange.org), Twitter’s manager of news Mark Luckie and Ebony Editor-in-Chief Mitzi Miller.