Candidate, physician Rudolph Moise, left, answers a question during the debate. Candidates for Florida’s 24th Congressional District, including entrepreneur Te Mayonna Brown, arts director Marshall Davis, Miami-Dade Commissioner Oliver Gilbert, state Sen. Shevrin Jones, Kendrick Meek Jr., former commissioner Jean Monestime, physician Rudolph Moise and attorney Roderick Vereen, participate in a debate at the Little Haiti Cultural Complex, Monday, July 13, 2026, in Miami. The event was hosted by the Miami Herald, WLRN, NBC 6 and MIA Media Group, with questions from moderators Jawan Strader of NBC 6 and Amy Driscoll of the Miami Herald.
Carl Juste
cjuste@miamiherald
For a few days, my colleagues Claire Heddles and Marra X. Finkelstein drove around District 24 and asked residents what they wanted in their next Congressional representative. The asks ran the gamut of being accessible to the community, addressing affordability and helping extend Temporary Protected Status.
One thing is clear: Residents, even those appreciative for Congresswoman Frederica Wilson’s 15-year tenure, are ready for a change. They want someone who will take the Trump Administration on and not just push back on his policies, but also hold him and his cabinet accountable.
Read more about they wanted in this week’s newsletter. Early voting in Miami-Dade County is Aug. 3.
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INSIDE THE 305:
In Frederica Wilson’s district, residents want her successor to show up, listen and ‘be rebellious’’
Valencia Gunder, CEO of The Smile Trust and director of the Community Emergency Operations Center, speaks to participants during the Community Emergency Operations Center National Convening at the Charles Hadley Senior Center in Miami, Fla. on Saturday, July 11, 2026. A longtime Liberty City community leader, Gunder said she wants the district’s next representative to remain engaged with residents and address issues affecting historically underserved neighborhoods. Photo by Marra X. Finkelstein mfinkelstein@miamiherald.com
Residents spoke at length about what they want in Frederica Wilson’s successor. The requests come at a time when the district has seen vast changes due to redistricting.
Black Miami preservationist fought gentrification. Her home is now being flipped
Dr. Enid Pinkney, historian and preservationist, smiles during a ceremony to celebrate the street naming after Alexander C. Lightbourne at the Greater Bethel AME Church in the neighborhood of Overtown in Miami, Florida on Friday, February 10, 2023. SAM NAVARRO Special for the Miami Herald
The Brownsville home of late Miami civil rights activist Enid Pinkney, the historian and preservationist who was a fierce advocate for empowering and preserving Black communities, is being flipped.
OUTSIDE THE 305:
Artist Betye Saar, whose work reflected Black identity, has died at 99
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – JUNE 02: Betye Saar attends The Museum Of Modern Art’s 2026 Party In ‘The Garden’ at the Museum of Modern Art on June 02, 2026 in New York City. (Photo by Santiago Felipe/Getty Images) Santiago Felipe Getty Images
Betye Saar, whose work reflects Black identity, culture and spirituality, died in Los Angeles at 99, The Associated press reported. She would’ve been 100 today.
Urban League report: Trump administration is harming Black Americans’ chances at American Dream
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – JULY 04: Marc Morial speaks on the Global Black Economic Forum Stage during the 2026 ESSENCE Festival of CultureAE presented by Coca-ColaAE at Ernest N. Morial Convention Center on July 04, 2026 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Arturo Holmes/Getty Images for ESSENCE) Arturo Holmes Getty Images for ESSENCE
The National Urban League’s annual report “State of Black America” described a grim outlook for Black Americans under Trump’s policy changes, the Associated Press reported.
HIGH CULTURE:
With TPS expiring, Emancipation Day event honors more than just the end of slavery
The African American Research Library and Cultural Center in Fort Lauderdale is a hub for Black art, history and happenings. The Miami Herald Archives
On Saturday, Broward County Commissioner Hazelle P. Rogers, the African American Research Library and Cultural Center, and Island SPACE Caribbean Museum are hosting Emancipation Day: Freedom Across the Caribbean, an event that will honor the history of enslaved people across the British Empire.