Ernie Suggs spearheads a month’s worth of Black history content every February for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. That means at least 28 stories. He just finished Year 11.
And yet, he manages to be surprised and inspired anew every time. Particularly this year — thanks to a stunning collaboration that gives new life to 126-year photos.
ART CAN ARGUE AND IMAGES CAN INSIST ON DIGNITY
W.E.B. Du Bois boarded a ship to Paris in 1900 aiming to prove that Black Americans, newly freed and fiercely determined, could be measured not by caricature but by data, dignity, beauty and achievement. The result was his pioneering “Exhibit of American Negroes.”
This week, the AJC reimagined his landmark project with new photographs and data visualizations.
In it, photographer Natrice Miller and business reporter Mirtha Donastorg ask, as Du Bois did, what it means to present Black life with clarity and intention.
🗄️ The piece: “Atlanta in Black and white: A century of becoming,” is built around an effort from longtime AJC archivist Sandi West, who combed through thousands of photographs searching for rare and overlooked images.
📸 What makes it so powerful? “It fully takes our history and reimagines it through a modern lens — not only with the stunning photographs, but with contemporary data,” Suggs said.
🌹 There’s also its simple beauty: “Du Bois set out in 1900 to show the world that the ‘American Negro,’ was a beautiful thing to behold. This package shows that this is still true.”
I must insist that you take a look at the work yourself. Then, head to Clark Atlanta University, which on Friday unveiled “W.E.B. Du Bois Revisited: Re-imagining Du Bois’ work from ‘The Exhibit of American Negroes,’” at the university’s museum.
But please don’t stop there. The last day of Black History Month does not mean the end of anything:
- Rooted in resilience: From produce to cattle, farm owners share how generations past and present inspire them (by Miguel Martinez and Gavin Godfrey).
- How Hamilton Holmes Jr., grandson of golfer Alfred “Tup” Holmes, empowers youth with golf and STEM in Atlanta (Christopher A. Daniel).
- Atlanta in Black and white: Newly surfaced photographs reveal protest and pageantry, terror and triumph, showing how 100 years of Black history shaped the city’s conscience and character (Suggs and Nedra Rhone).
- How Black gospel changed my white life (Sweet Tea’s own AJ Willingham).
- From the archives: Moving on Up, The story of how a sitcom theme song still inspires Black greatness (Suggs).
THAT’S A GOOD BOY
Real-life Lassie alert.
Police in Louisville, Kentucky, were searching for a missing 3-year-old when a neighborhood dog arrived and led them to the front passenger seat of an SUV.
“I don’t know where the dog came from, but it was a blessing from God that day,” Louisville Metro Police Department 7th Division officer Josh Thompson told ABC News.
🔍 Watch the bodycam footage here
A PUNCH NEAR YOU
You’ve probably heard about Punch. Or seen him. And if that’s the case, you are certainly in love.
For those who aren’t caught up, Punch is a 6-month-old Japanese macaque who was abandoned by his mom, bullied and … captured the hearts of millions in viral videos as he cuddles and drags around an orange stuffed orangutan from Ikea for comfort. (Catch up here)
🐵 He isn’t the only primate with an emotional support plushie. In fact, plenty of the chimpanzees at Project Chimps, a sanctuary in North Georgia that cares for former research chimpanzees, grow attached to toys or blankets, executive director Ali Crumpacker told the AJC.
New chimps are offered lots of toys when they arrive at the facility, Crumpacker said. Some gravitate toward balls, blankets or stuffed animals, but for Lizzy, a 36-year-old female chimpanzee, the Grinch stole her heart.
🗣️ Crumpacker: “She just grabbed the Grinch doll and has never let it go. So we’ve had to get replacement Grinch dolls, and when one gets dirty, she won’t give it to us unless we have a clean one to swap it out.”
🔍 Read more: Georgia chimp center has a plushie-loving resident like Punch the monkey
SIPS FROM AROUND THE SOUTH
🎶 Louisville, KY: Time to dust off the old stage fright and put together a band. Then, prep for the 2026 Louder Than Life festival, which is putting on a battle of the bands to perform at the rock and metal music festival. Submissions are being accepted through March 31 for the event, which is set for Sept. 17-20 at the Kentucky Fair and Exposition Center. Among the headliners: Iron Maiden, My Chemical Romance, Limp Bizkit, Sublime and Tool. (More from the Courier Journal)
🎶 Hilton Head Island, SC: I’m no birder, but the shorebird with a “comically long” bill spotted on Harbor Island is a silly sight. The long-billed curlew, a rare sight in coastal South Carolina, was chased off by an unleashed dog. Don’t worry, buddy, I’d have done the same thing. (More from The Island Packet)
⚾ Grenada, MS: Who needs lottery tickets? David Aven, a former card collector, decided to purchase a few packs of baseball cards from a nearby GameStop and opened a highly coveted piece of cardboard. He sold it for nearly $59,000. (More from SuperTalk MississippiMedia)
🥂 Birmingham, AL: If you’re considering a road trip, here’s a weekend guide to visiting the storied Civil Rights city. It starts with a meal that forces you to slow down, at The Essential. (More from the AJC)
TELL US SOMETHING GOOD
Is there a cool event we need to know about? Something great happening in your town? Let us know. This is your space, too. SweetTea@ajc.com.
SOUTHERN WISDOM
“We didn't have a bus that we could go on a field trip, but wasn't nothing wrong with our legs."
Ellis was reminiscing on 1955, when his second grade teachers at the segregated Paulsen Street School would walk students on a 2-mile round trip to Savannah’s historic Carnegie Library several times a year. It was the only library available to Black Savannahians until the region’s libraries were consolidated and integrated in 1963.
For the next 110 years the Carnegie Library served as a cornerstone of African American achievement and education, and fueled the imaginations of Savannah’s future Black leaders. It also endured the ravages of time and neglect, plus repeated flooding that ultimately shut the library down in 2024, when Tropical Storm Debby’s inundation caused the downstairs floor to cave in and the building to shift.
It reopened last week as a special collections library and research center.
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About the Author
Eric Mandel is a Milwaukee, Wisconsin, native and University of Iowa alumnus. The award-winning journalist moved from Seattle in 2017 to Atlanta, working as a writer and editor for American City Business Journals. He joined the AJC in June 2024.
