Harlem recognition celebrates more than 30 years of media, advocacy and community leadership
(HARLEM, N.Y. — July 27, 2026) — New York State Senator Cordell Cleare, representing the 30th Senate District, presented Baltimore journalist, entrepreneur and BMORENews.com publisher Doni M. Glover with a New York State Senate proclamation on Saturday, July 25, 2026.
The surprise presentation took place during a Joe Manns Black Wall Street Awards ceremony hosted in Harlem by respected community leader Vito Jones and Harlem, Inc.
Glover traveled to New York intending to recognize a distinguished group of entrepreneurs, professionals, and community servants. Midway through the ceremony, however, Jones and Senator Cleare took the microphone and turned the celebration toward Glover.
“I went to Harlem to honor others. Harlem turned around and honored me,” Glover said. “The moment brought tears to my eyes. I have spent years using my platform to tell people, ‘We see you.’ On Saturday, Harlem said, ‘Doni, we see you, too.’”
The proclamation honors Glover for more than 30 years of media, advocacy, and community leadership. It recognizes his work as founder and publisher of BMORENews.com and BlackUSA.News, founder of DMGlobal Marketing & Public Relations, and creator of the Joe Manns Black Wall Street Awards.
A journalist since 1994, Glover has worked across radio, television, print and digital media. He launched BMORENews.com in 2002 to amplify stories, leaders and communities frequently overlooked by larger media organizations. Over more than two decades, the Baltimore-based platform has expanded its reach throughout Maryland and into national markets.
Glover is also the host of the Emmy-nominated Doni Glover Show, which features newsmakers, entrepreneurs, elected officials and community leaders engaged in shaping Baltimore and communities across the country.
The Meaning Behind the Awards
Glover established the Joe Manns Black Wall Street Awards in 2011 to recognize Black entrepreneurs, professionals, advocates and community leaders. The initiative has since honored hundreds of individuals in cities across the United States.
“The awards began, in part, as a marketing strategy, but my soul required them to become something more,” Glover said. “These are real people with real dreams, working in real time to build their empires. Every award says, ‘We see you. We see you working. We see you building. You can win. Just stay at it.’”
Glover credits his late father, Donald Edward “Doc” Glover, with inspiring the philosophy behind the awards.
“My father told me, ‘Doni, if you get out there and try, somebody might see you, and they might even help you. But you will never know if you never try,’” Glover said. “That lesson stayed with me. It is why I believe in recognizing people who have stepped forward and are doing the work.”
His father also taught him another lesson that has guided his entrepreneurial journey.
“He told me, ‘If you take a step toward God, God will take a step toward you—and His steps are bigger than yours,’” Glover said. “That has always been my faith. If God gives you the vision, God will give you the provision.”
Harlem, Inc. Set the Table
Glover was introduced to Jones approximately a decade ago by his longtime friend and supporter Odessa Hopkins. Since then, Jones and Harlem, Inc. have helped establish a home for the Black Wall Street movement in Harlem and created opportunities to recognize prominent community figures, including legendary Harlem Hospital administrator Sylvia L. White.
Glover described Jones as a respected Harlem leader, consummate professional and quintessential host.
“When I arrived, Vito had the chairs arranged, the podium in place and everything prepared,” Glover said. “He had set the table for us to honor Harlem. What I did not know was that he and Senator Cleare had also reserved a place at that table for me.”
Glover also praised Jones for his longstanding loyalty to Senator Cleare, which began before she was elected to the New York State Senate.
“Ever since I have known Vito, he has been ten toes down in his support of Cordell Cleare,” Glover said. “Politics can be the cruddiest game in the world. For an elected official to have a loyal friend and supporter like Vito Jones in their corner is priceless.”
Harlem, Inc. also provided Glover with accommodations at the Aloft Harlem, which opened in 2010 as the first new major hotel in the historic neighborhood in more than 40 years.
“They did not merely find me somewhere to sleep,” Glover said. “They received me with intention. I was not simply visiting the community to conduct an event. I was Harlem’s guest, and Harlem, Inc. treated me like one.”
A Love Letter to Harlem
The weekend carried special significance for Glover, whose relationship with New York stretches back more than 50 years.
During his visit, he photographed Harlem’s celebrated brownstones, the Apollo Theater and monuments honoring Adam Clayton Powell Jr., Frederick Douglass and Maryland-born freedom fighter Harriet Tubman.
Glover also visited Jacob Restaurant on Malcolm X Boulevard, also known as Lenox Avenue, where he enjoyed jerk chicken and beef short ribs. While walking toward the restaurant, he heard live jazz that appeared to be rising from the subway.
“That is Harlem,” Glover said. “Sometimes, you do not have to purchase a ticket or enter a nightclub to encounter the culture. The music finds you on the street.”
Glover said the neighborhood’s streets carry the names and history of Black leadership.
“Over the years, I have learned a little something about St. Nicholas Avenue, Frederick Douglass Boulevard, Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Boulevard and Malcolm X Boulevard,” he said. “I have spent time driving and walking those streets. I do not claim to know Harlem like a native, but I am no longer a complete stranger to its rhythm. In Harlem, even the directions carry history.”
Harriet Kissed Me—Until Next Time
As Glover left St. Nicholas Avenue and headed toward the George Washington Bridge, he unexpectedly passed the Harriet Tubman Memorial at West 122nd Street, St. Nicholas Avenue and Frederick Douglass Boulevard.
The encounter provided one final emotional moment during a weekend already filled with gratitude.
“Besides my mother and my two grandmothers, Harriet Tubman is my unquestioned hero,” Glover said. “She came straight out of Maryland, yet there she stood in Harlem. I had not planned to see her. I was simply driving out of the city when she appeared.”
“In that moment, it felt as though Harriet kissed me—until next time.”
Harlem Saw Me
Glover said the proclamation represented more than recognition of one event. It affirmed decades of work devoted to promoting other people and their accomplishments.
“I did not go to Harlem asking to be honored,” Glover said. “I arrived in my familiar role—the giver, the convener, the publisher and the person placing the spotlight on somebody else. Then Vito Jones and Senator Cordell Cleare interrupted that pattern. They made the giver receive.”
“The proclamation was visible evidence that the years had been witnessed,” he continued. “Harlem was saying, ‘We see what you have been doing. We recognize your consistency. Your work reached us. Your love did not disappear into the air.’”
Glover said the experience fulfilled another lesson from his father, who taught him that the greatest gifts cannot be purchased.
“I came to Harlem carrying awards,” Glover said. “Harlem sent me home carrying something my father told me they do not sell in stores: love.”
He expressed his appreciation to Senator Cleare, Jones, Harlem, Inc., Hopkins and the people of Harlem for the recognition and hospitality.
“First and foremost, I thank God for traveling mercies,” Glover said. “Thank you, Senator Cordell Cleare. Thank you, Vito Jones. Thank you, Odessa Hopkins. Thank you, Harlem, Inc. And thank you to the people of Harlem for seeing me.”
“DMX said it best: ‘Give me unconditional love, and I’ll give it right back.’”
About Doni Glover
Doni M. Glover is a journalist, author, broadcaster and entrepreneur with more than 30 years of experience in media and community advocacy. He is the founder and publisher of BMORENews.com and BlackUSA.News, founder of DMGlobal Marketing & Public Relations, creator of the Joe Manns Black Wall Street Awards and host of the Emmy-nominated Doni Glover Show.
Glover is the author of four books: Unapologetically Black, I Am Black Wall Street, Journapreneur, and Black Blueprint: From Baltimore to Burkina Faso.
About BMORENews.com
Founded in 2002, BMORENews.com is a Baltimore-based digital news platform committed to covering politics, business, community leadership, Black entrepreneurship and stories frequently overlooked by mainstream media. Its motto is “The News Before the News.”
