Michael Paul Williams (born 1958) is an American journalist and a regular columnist at the ''

Richmond Times-Dispatch The ''Richmond Times-Dispatch'' (''RTD'' or ''TD'' for short) is the primary daily newspaper in Richmond, Virginia, Richmond, the capital of Virginia, and the primary newspaper of record for the state of Virginia. Circulation The ''Times-Dispatc ...

.'' Williams joined the ''Times-Dispatch'' in 1982 and became a columnist for the paper in 1992, becoming the first African-American to hold this position. In 2021, Williams was awarded the

Pulitzer Prize for Commentary The Pulitzer Prize for Commentary is an award administered by the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism "for distinguished commentary, using any available journalistic tool". It is one of the fourteen American Pulitzer Prizes that are ...

for his writing about the protest movements in Richmond in the wake of the murder of

George Floyd George Perry Floyd Jr. (October 14, 1973 – May 25, 2020) was an African-American man who was murdered by a police officer in Minneapolis, Minnesota, during an arrest made after a store clerk suspected Floyd may have used a counterfeit twe ...

leading to the removal of many Confederate monuments. Williams is a graduate of Virginia Union University in Richmond. He earned a graduate degree from the Medill School of Journalism at

Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Charte ...

. While at Northwestern, Williams contemplated a career in sports journalism, but ultimately pursued hard news. He worked for 10 years as a news reporter at the ''Times-Dispatch,'' but stated in an interview that he "did not really find my true sense of mission until I started writing opinion."Field Studio, "Michael Paul Williams on finding his voice," excerpt from 2021 documentary film, "How the Monuments Came Down," filmed July 22, 2020 in Richmond, Virginia. https://vimeo.com/fieldstudiofilms/review/744582251/4ada37345d From 1999 to 2000, he was Neiman Fellow at

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

. He has won several Virginia Press Association awards for his journalism. Williams spent his early years in the

Byrd Park Byrd Park, also known as William Byrd Park, is a public park located in Richmond, Virginia, United States, north of the James River and adjacent to Maymont. The park includes a mile-long trail with exercise stops, monuments, an amphitheatre, an ...

area of Richmond and attended Hermitage High School. He lives in

Richmond, Virginia (Thus do we reach the stars) , image_map = , mapsize = 250 px , map_caption = Location within Virginia , pushpin_map = Virginia#USA , pushpin_label = Richmond , pushpin_m ...

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* Living people American male journalists Journalists from Virginia Pulitzer Prize for Commentary winners 1958 births Writers from Virginia Writers from Richmond, Virginia {{US-journalist-1950s-stub