SPOKANE, Wash. — It was smiles all around on the third floor of the Steam Plant Wednesday afternoon. Dozens came out to support the re-launch of Spokane’s only Black newspaper, ‘The Black Lens.’
The paper is back in circulation for the first time since 2022.
“It’s exciting to have it in print and to see it in color. It’s back,” said Natasha Hill, the newest editor of the paper. “And I think that’s exciting and something all of Spokane can be proud of.”
The paper was founded by Sandy Williams in 2015, a trailblazer for the Black Community.
Williams hoped this new form of local journalism would bring the stories and voices of Black community members to the surface, who historically haven’t had one.
Its initial number of subscribers was small, but loyal, as Sandy’s daughter Renika remembers.
“There’s a picture of her on the Facebook page where it’s a picture of my mom holding a big box of papers and shoving it into her trunk,” said Renika. “And that was about 800 papers.”
After Sandy’s tragic death, the family took a step back. It was unclear whether the paper would continue.