HR 56 Summary

• Commemorates the death of Ms. Cleretta Arizana Thomas-Blackmon, who died on February 2, 2022, at age 82.

• Honors her role as editor and publisher of The Mobile Beacon, Alabama's oldest family-owned African American newspaper founded by her parents.

• Recognizes her decades of service with the National Newspaper Publishers Association, Black Press of America, Alabama Press Association, and leadership roles with the National Council of Negro Women, NAACP, and Epilepsy Foundation of Alabama.

• Acknowledges her deep faith and active membership at Hillsdale Presbyterian Church, where she contributed spiritual content to her newspaper.

• Extends sympathy to her surviving family members: son Hjordis Blackmon, daughter Merina Blackmon, grandson Justin Bankston, and other relatives and friends.