And it has facilitated discussion between people of different backgrounds, giving them a pretense to meet each other and something to begin the conversation with. It has also been a consistent source of positive images for people of color and indeed the entire Madison area. People of color could always count on The Hues for positive inspiration every two weeks. And with the constant barrage of voices and images, I feel it has been a deterrent for racist stereotypes to gather traction in this community because the constant presence of The Hues exposes those stereotypes as a lie.

The Hues has also been a place where some future leaders of color have gotten their first real public exposure. Through the stories, that have had a say in the initial development of their public image, making it harder for other writers to write negative articles about them that could kill their careers in public service in their infancy. The Hues has made no one’s career, but we helped nurture them in their infancy.

In an age of electronic media and social media, I know people wonder why we still publish a free, physical newspaper that is more costly to produce and distribute, especially since the same exact newspaper is posted on our website 1-2 weeks later. Well, there ain’t nothing like the realt thing baby.

I have always been concerned about the imagery that young children of color are exposed to. As the late Betty Franklin-Hammonds, my friend and the person who established The Madison Times as a force in this community in the 1990s, would say, ‘You only find Black people on the crime page and the sports page.’ It was important back then — there has been a wonderful evolution of the media in the Madison area — to give people a fuller understanding of what the Black community and communities of color in general were all about.

And in my view, what better way to give children — and adults — exposure to positive images than to have a person of color featured in a big, beautiful photo on the cover of a newspaper that they would see in the grocery store, libraries, school libraries other public places. It has always been my hope that they would get a positive vibe through osmosis, through constant, long-term exposure.

And the pictures and photos have been very important to people for as the saying goes, a picture tells a thousand words.

Back when I was the editor of The Madison Times, about 1-2 weeks before 9/11 happened, Shree and Lakshmi Sridharan invited Heidi Pascual and I to the marriage of their daughter Anjali to John Krejcarek at Monona Terrace. It was a 2-3 day traditional Indian marriage ceremony, the first time that one had been performed in Madison. We created a beautiful, colorful middle spread that sought to express this traditional and extravagant marriage ceremony.

Here we are almost 25 years later and I was taking the photo of three generations of Sridharans who have attended or will attend UW-Madison on Bascom Hill for the cover of this week’s issue. The marriage ceremony was brought up and one of the daughters of Anjali and John talked about how that middle spread had been preserved and still hangs in the family home. I was honored.

And there have been other instances of me being in people’s homes for some reason and seeing something from The Hues on their wall or taped to their refrigerator. A printed edition allows people to do that. It is something real and not some electronic impulses surging through their brains before they dissipate.

A subscriber of the paper, Francis Powers, recently renewed his subscription. He is in his 90s and his eyesight isn’t what it used to be. But he renewed because he enjoys the photos and again, they tell a thousand words.

Jim Danky, a journalist who has played a big part in the Wisconsin Historical Society amassing one of the world’s largest collections of African American newspapers, sent me an email that showed that The Capital City Hues is listed along with other books and articles as a resource for students and researchers. The Hues is being preserved for posterity so that hopefully people 50-100 years from now can gain an understanding of what Madison’s communities of color were all about.

In a world where everything seems to change with the blink of an eye, The Capital City Hues remains pretty much unchanged. In a sea of turbulence, The Hues has been a lighthouse for people to find their way. Even if you don’t agree with us, it can still help you find or keep your bearings. We all need constants in our lives.

And so, I am grateful to God that I am still able to publish The Hues. I am also grateful that it has had a positive impact on our community. I thank you all!