It was just two years after Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated.
In 1970, when Bea Hines was hired as a reporter at the Miami Herald, she was the first Black female journalist in that position.
That time is often cited as the end of the Civil Rights Movement.
First, the Civil Rights Act was passed — which, on paper banned discrimination. Followed by the voting rights and fair housing acts.
But it was only the beginning of change. And for Hines, her dream of being a journalist was coming true. It’s one she still lives to this day.
At 85, she continues to write her column — and still goes out in the field.
She recently went on a history tour to Rosewood, Florida.
She visited the grave sites of Black Floridians who were the victims of racial violence. Some of those tragedies happened just a few generations ago. One of her most recent columns was about that experience.
On the March 23 episode of Sundial, Hines tells us about the dreams that were encouraged — and discouraged — as she was coming of age, as well as her early experiences as a Black reporter for the Miami Herald.
You can hear more of Hines' stories on March 30 during an online panel for Women’s History Month.
On Sundial's previous episode, we talked about poetry. O, Miami founder P. Scott Cunningham joined Carlos Frías to talk about the guerrilla poetry set to appear on billboards, ice cream and parking tickets around South Florida during National Poetry Month in April.
Listen to Sundial Monday through Thursday on WLRN, 91.3 FM, live at 1 p.m., rebroadcast at 8 p.m. Missed a show? Find every episode of Sundial on your favorite podcast app, such as Apple Podcasts, Stitcher and Spotify.
Stay in touch with us by emailing us at sundial@wlrnnews.org.
