Brooklyn, N.Y. – Congresswoman Yvette D. Clarke released the following statement on the passing of Jonathan P. Hicks, who in a distinguished career in journalism reported for the New York Times, wrote a column for the New York Amsterdam News, and was Senior National Correspondent for BET.com and a senior fellow at the DuBois Bunche Center for Public Policy at Medgar Evers College.

“On behalf of the people of the Ninth Congressional District of New York, my prayers are with the entire family of Jonathan Hicks, including his devoted wife, Christy DeBoe Hicks, and his daughter, Lindsay. He was a man of honor whose contributions to the profession of journalism will remain an example to the men and women who follow him. I am grateful to have known him as a leader in our community and as a friend,” said Congresswoman Clarke. “In addition to his brilliant reporting about politics and public policy in New York City and his perceptive commentary on social justice, Jonathan Hicks and his wife demonstrated their commitment to the future of the profession by supporting aspiring journalists who want to attend the University of Liberia with the J.P. Hicks Family Mass Communication Scholarship. The careers of each of these young journalists will extend his legacy to the benefit of the students themselves and the Nation of Liberia.”