Dr. Boyce Watkins: Barack Obama and Black Men – What has he done for us?

by Dr. Boyce Watkins, Syracuse University, Your Black World 

I did a recent CNN appearance along with the actor Hill Harper and Dr. Alvin Poussaint at Harvard University. The series was a one-year anniversary segment featuring political issues within the African American community. for the entire week, the primary focus was on the impact that President Barack Obama has had onAfrican American men. Given that I’ve been a black man for quite a while now, I found this conversation topic particularly interesting, so getting to speak to Richelle Carey again wasn’t the only perk of doing the job that day.

It must be made clear that the president should not be expected to save the entire world in one swoop. His job is difficult, and he can’t give everyone what they want all the time. But to the extent that President Obama has been positioned to trump pre-existing black leadership (remember that some say we now live in a post-racial America), one can argue that President Obama’s rantings in black churches come with some degree of accountability from the Oval Office. Obama has spoken at NAACP meetings, telling black men to take responsibility for our families (as if none of us do) and to engage in more personal responsibility (as if we don’t do that already). Such tough talk should be backed by meaningful policy, since structural incentives play a dominant role in the ultimate choice of the individual. For example, when companies get tax incentives to invest in new projects, they almost always do.

Click to read.

Dr Boyce Watkins: Does Obama Have to “Get Gangsta” to Win this Fight?

by Dr Boyce Watkins, Syracuse University 

I once saw a documentary by filmmaker Byron Hurt called, "Barack and Curtis," comparing President Obama to the rapper 50 Cent. Such a comparison might seem silly, given that one of these men is the leader of the free world and the other is a wealthy "gangsta" with more business sense than a Harvard Professor. But in this case, Barack might want to learn a bit from Curtis in order to get a little "gangsta" with the Republican Party, because the right wing has already gotten incredibly "thugged out" with him.

Through a web of lies, unfair attacks and orchestrated campaigns to discredit the president, the right wingers have been relatively successful in slowly eroding Obama’s base of support. While President Obama once rode the wave of 60% approval ratings and amazing popularity, the numbers are now hovering around 45% and morale within the Obama camp has been dramatically weakened. Let Obama lose an additional 10% of his supporters, and you’ve got another President Bush.
I’ve been critical of President Obama when he was wrong, and that won’t ever change. But I stand by my assertion that Barack Obama is the most intelligent and capable leader our nation has had in a very long time. He is certainly better than John McCain and Sarah Palin, whose intellectual and professional flaws make a mockery of our political system.

Click to read more.

Afghanistan/Pakistan, a New Vietnam? – Asks Wilmer Leon

By

Dr. Wilmer J. Leon III

Under the pretext of responding to the September 11, 2001 attacks in America, the United and States and Great Britain invaded Afghanistan on October 7, 2001 under the banner of Operation Enduring Freedom. President Bush 43’ told the American people that the US strikes were,

“…designed to disrupt the use of Afghanistan as a terrorist base of operations, and to attack the military capability of the Taliban regime… As we strike military targets, we will also drop food, medicine and supplies to the starving and suffering men and women and children of Afghanistan… ”

Read More

Rev. Al Sharpton Teams up with Dr. Boyce Watkins

Dr Boyce Watkins, Professor at Syracuse University and founder of the Your Black World Coalition is now slated for a weekly segment on "Keeping it Real with Al Sharpton."  The show is currently syndicated in 18 cities across the nation and adding new affiliates each week.  Every Monday from 1:15 – 2:15 pm EST, Dr. Watkins and Rev. Sharpton will discuss political issues of the day and matters affecting our nation.  To find out more about the show, please visit www.SharptonTalk.net or www.BoyceWatkins.com.

To see Dr. Watkins’ latest articles with MSNBC’s "TheGrio.com", please visit this link: http://www.thegrio.com/author/dr-boyce-watkins-1/

To see Dr. Watkins’ latest work with AOL Black Voices, please visit: http://blogs.blackvoices.com/bloggers/boyce-watkins-phd/

To listen to Dr. Watkins’ last conversation with Rev. Sharpton, please click here.

In light of President Obama’s recent announcement that African American education should be a top priority for Black leadership, Dr. Watkins will be speaking with Rev. Sharpton, Rev. Jesse Jackson, Dr. Marc Lamont Hill and other African Americans on ways to directly challenge the astronomical dropout rates for African American students.  Many of these issues are addressed in Dr. Watkins’ book, "Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About College."   To start the academic year, Dr. Watkins will be distributing free e-copies of this book to members of the Your Black World Coalition during the month of September, 2009.  We will also be reaching out to President Obama to offer support in solving this problem, for we firmly believe that managing the dropout rate is one of the keys to saving our great nation.

For more information, please visit www.BoyceWatkins.com.

Your Black Money: IMF Chief Says Economic Crisis is Complex, Slow to Recover

Olivier Blanchard, the IMF’s chief economist

August 19, 2009

(RFE/RL) — According to a new report by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the world has begun to recover from recession but the process will not be simple. And sustaining any recovery will require refocusing the United States toward exports and Asia toward imports.
The IMF’s chief economist, Olivier Blanchard, says the global recession had "left deep scars, which will affect both supply and demand for many years to come."
In a study released this week by the IMF, Blanchard describes the current economic difficulties as not a “run-of-the-mill recession.” He notes that models used to understand past recessions cannot be applied to this economic slowdown. 
Blanchard writes that there are two elements central to a sustained global economic recovery.
First, economies must move beyond their dependence on fiscal stimulus by national governments and inventory building by private firms. Such expenditures must sooner or later come to an end.
Second, international trade patterns should be rebalanced. The United States must export more and Asia must import more. This sought-for equilibrium would lower the enormous U.S. current-account deficit and the Asian current-account surplus. But rebalancing world trade flows is not going to be easy and will depend on a reordering of consumption patterns.

Click to read.

Health – Dr. Elaina George Analyzes the Healthcare Debate

 

by Dr. Elaina George

The debate on healthcare reform is in full swing, but no one is paying attention to the long term effects.

I am for universal healthcare in theory. As a physician, I believe that it is a fundamental right. Unfortunately, the way the debate and pending legislation has been crafted, the outcome will result in unintended consequences.

As a physician in solo practice, I am in a unique position to see the outcome if we continue on the path that Congress is proposing in HR 3200.

1. A single payer system that pays the same rate as Medicare or as the bill stipulates (5% above Medicare) will lead to LESS choice. People are overlooking the fact that most private physicians are currently NOT accepting new Medicare patients because they can’t afford to do so and stay open. There will be no reason for this to change if the reimbursement scale is adopted.

Unintended consequence: The network of private physicians would be smaller and more patients will be placed in a system of fewer physicians, less choice and longer waiting times to be seen. This would have the opposite effect – what is the point of universal healthcare if you don’t have quality physicians to provide it?

2. The proposed healthcare bill sets up a bureaucracy run by a National health insurance commissioner and sets up an insurance “self regulatory agency” – made up of national insurers, national agencies, and insurance producers. There are no physicians or patient advocates.

Click to read.

Dr. Wilmer Leon: The Post-Racial Problem – Is it Real?

Dr. Wilmer J. Leon III, Howard University

In 1903 W.E.B. DuBois wrote in The Souls of Black Folk, “The problem of the twentieth century is the problem of the color-line, –the relation of the darker to the lighter races of men in Asia and Africa, in America and the islands of the sea.” In 1968 the Kerner Commission determined "Our nation is moving toward two societies, one black, one white—-separate and unequal."

In 21^st Century so-called “post racial” America the problem is still race. African American’s like Derryl Jenkins are still being brutalized by the police in north Minneapolis, MN; shot in the back of the head while handcuffed like Oscar Grant in Oakland, CA; and mistaken for perpetrators and killed by fellow officers like Officer Omar Edwards in New York City.

Many questions still need to be answered about these latest tragedies. What leads these officers to perceive people of color as a threat? Why do the police feel the need to use excessive force first and ask questions later? This takes me to the continual discussion about racism (white supremacy), its perceptions, and emotional responses that people of color deal with all too often.

Click to read.

Health News: Basics of Healthcare Reform

Walter Gaines Jr., left, who supports health care reform, confronts a man who opposes health care reform in Alhambra, Calif. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

 

Dr Tyeese Gaines Reid – TheGrio.com.

 

With the bombardment of speeches, commentaries and rowdy town forums, many Americans are struggling to decipher the current state of health care reform. Understanding the ins and outs of over 1,600 pages of proposed law is daunting. Unfortunately, there is no politician or any crystal ball that can predict either plan’s success at this stage.

To date, two bills have been proposed – the 1,017-page House bill (H.R. 3200) and the 615-page Senate Health Committee bill. A third bipartisan bill is said to be in the works from the Senate Finance Committee. Until September, when Congress reconvenes, we will continue to wait and debate on the limited information we do have.

Here is a summary of those bills, commonly-raised concerns and the debate as it now stands.

1) Problem: The Uninsured
Millions are uninsured and falling ill without insurance can be financially catastrophic. Many of these are working people, or recently unemployed, who can’t afford to buy insurance plans. Others are self-employed or small business owners who also can’t afford insurance. Some are between the ages of 55 (retirement age) and 65 (Medicare-eligible age), and thus have no coverage. In 2008, the Kaiser Commission reported that 41 million were uninsured, while another 35.8 million people had no insurance during part of the year.

Proposed Solution: "Health care for all." Both bills have outlined strategies to include all Americans in some form of a health insurance plan – whether Medicaid, Medicare, the private or the public/community option.

2) Problem: Pre-existing conditions
People with any history of medical problems ("pre-existing conditions") can be denied coverage by certain insurance plans because their condition makes them too high-risk.

Proposed Solution: Ban the pre-existing condition clause for all health insurance companies, including those in the private option. The hope is that as more young and healthy Americans have insurance and pay their premiums, that money will offset the costs of taking care of the sicker Americans.

3) Problem: The under insured
Some people with health insurance have plans that don’t cover all basic health care needs (the "under-insured").

Proposed Solution: All health insurance plans will cover hospitalizations, outpatient hospital and clinic care, physician fees, equipment, prescription drugs, rehabilitation, maternity care, child care, preventive care, mental health, and marriage and family therapy. The addition of coverage for mental health and counseling is an added benefit not often covered currently.

 

Click to read.

Black News: Barack Obama Protestors Starting to Carry Guns

About a dozen people carrying guns, including one with a military-style rifle, milled among protesters outside the convention center where President Barack Obama was giving a speech Monday — the latest incident in which protesters have openly displayed firearms near the president.

Gun-rights advocates say they’re exercising their constitutional right to bear arms and protest, while those who argue for more gun control say it could be a disaster waiting to happen.

Phoenix police said the gun-toters at Monday’s event, including the man carrying an AR-15 semi-automatic rifle slung over his shoulder, didn’t need permits. No crimes were committed, and no one was arrested.

The man with the rifle declined to be identified but told The Arizona Republic that he was carrying the assault weapon because he could. "In Arizona, I still have some freedoms," he said.

Phoenix police Detective J. Oliver, who monitored the man at the downtown protest, said police also wanted to make sure no one decided to harm him.

 

Click to read.

Black News: Obama Pushes Healthcare on the Airwaves

Obama just bought a great deal of ad time to push his healthcare reform bill.  What do you think?

Click to watch the ad.

Your Black News: Obama Gets Push Back from Howard Dean

Former Democratic Party Chairman Howard Dean, a leading figure in the liberal wing of his party, said Monday he doubts there can be meaningful health care reform without a direct government role.

Dean urged the Obama administration to stand by statements made early on in the debate in which it steadfastly insisted that such a public option was indispensable to genuine change, saying that Medicare and the Veterans Administration are “two very good programs that have been around for a long time.”

Dean appeared on morning news shows Monday amid increasing indications the Obama White House is retreating from the public option in the face of vocal opposition from Republicans and some vocal participants at a town-hall-style meetings around the country.

The former Vermont governor was asked on NBC’s “Meet the Press” about President Barack Obama’s statement over the weekend that the public option for insurance coverage was “just a sliver” of the overall proposal. Obama’s health and human services secretary, Kathleen Sebelius, advanced that line, telling CNN Sunday that a direct government role in a system intended to provide virtually universal coverage was “not the essential element.”

Click to read.

News: Black Farmers are Losing their Land

Black Farmers are losing their land to interests that want to use the land for industrial purposes.

Dr Wilmer Leon interviews Monica Davis about the plight of Black Farmers“.  Click here to listen!

News: Dr. Wilmer Leon Speaks on Michael Vick

by Dr. Wilmer Leon

www.WilmerLeon.com

On December 10, 2007 suspended Atlanta Falcon’s quarterback Michael Vick was sentenced to 23 months in federal prison for his role in a dog fighting ring. He was also found to have been involved in killing pit bulls that did not demonstrate sufficient fighting prowess.

Michael Vick, once one of the highest paid players in the NFL with a 10 year $130 million contract that provided him with an $11.4 million salary in 2006 and $6 million salary in 2007 made 12 cents an hour in his job at the federal penitentiary in Leavenworth, Kan. He filed for bankruptcy; claiming assets of $16 million and liabilities of $20.4 million. Vick is on the hook for judgments of $2.4 million to the Royal Bank of Canada and $1.1 million to Wachovia Bank, both because of loan defaults, and $4.5 million for a sports agent who sued him and won.

On July 20, 2009, after serving 18 months of his 23 month sentence, Michael Vick was released from Leavenworth Federal Prison. After having served his time, on August 13, 2009 signed a two year contract with the Philadelphia Eagles.

Click to read.

Black Social Commentary from TheGrio – 8/15/09

• 

  Lola Adesioye

  Deputy Editor

  Is Clinton’s Africa visit about power or partnership?

  9:27 AM on 08/14/2009

  OPINION – As Secretary of State Hillary Clinton wraps up her tour of Africa, many in Africa are wondering about the real reason behind her visit… …

  > More

• 

  Courtney Young

  Writer

  Why do we need white faces to sell black books?

  8:01 AM on 08/14/2009

  OPINION — Controversy has erupted this week due to the cover image of Liar, a novel written by Australian author Justine Larbalestier. A piece of young adult fiction…

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• 

  Lenny McAllister

  Author of “Diary of a Mad Black PYC (Proud Young Conservative)"

  Liberal hypocrites should remember their own rage

  7:26 AM on 08/14/2009

  OPINION – Protests by conservatives are just as ferocious as the ones liberals put up against the Bush White House for ‘treasonous’ activities. These ‘acts against the country’ included……

  > More

• 

  Dr. Boyce Watkins

  Author and Finance Professor at Syracuse University

  The return of the prodigal quarterback

  6:40 AM on 08/14/2009

  OPINION — I was as shocked as the rest of America to hear that Michael Vick has been signed by the Philadelphia Eagles. Although I’ve always supported Vick’s human right to fairness……

  > More

• 

  Roland Laird

  Author of "Still I Rise: A Graphic History of African Americans"

  Congressional Black Caucus needs a new media face-lift

  8:05 AM on 08/13/2009

  As the Congressional Black Caucus holds its annual policy meeting this week, the group will undoubtedly face the question……

  > More

• 

  Cheo Tyehimba

  Author & Activist

  Townhall SmackDown!

  10:10 AM on 08/12/2009

  OPINION – What do well-intentioned town hall meetings on health care reform and the WWE’s "Friday Night SmackDown" have in common? Sadly, more than you might think….

  > More

• 

  Milton Kent

  Reporter & Commentator

  Black men can coach

  9:08 AM on 08/12/2009

  OPINION – Right about now, Mike Locksley and DeWayne Walker are handing out the helmets, dusting off the whistles……

  > More

• 

  Dr Pamela D. Reed

  Assistant Professor of English composition & African-American literature at Virginia State University

  A better look at the rift between black Americans and Africans

  7:55 AM on 08/12/2009

  …her sister "hated" African American women because they try to take their men. I was stunned….

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• 

  Dr. Rebecca Lee

  Director of the Texas Obesity Research Center

  Where you live can affect what you weigh

  3:00 PM on 08/10/2009

  No two communities are alike and it is unreasonable to approach the obesity epidemic with a one-size-fits all model focused entirely on personal dietary habits……

  > More

Black News: Former Agent Says Obama Gets Less Secret Service Protection Than other Presidents

As a journalist, I believe the unquestioned right to freedom of speech and expression is one of our most important gifts living in America.
But every now and then, I see something said or written that is so irresponsible and potentially dangerous, it gives me second thoughts on the whole freedom of speech thing.
The latest example is a new book by author Ronald Kessler, ‘In the President’s Secret Service,’ on the inner workings of the agency that paints a troubling picture of an overworked, underfunded agency assigned to protect our president. …
For the record, the Secret Service denies Kessler’s allegations that it is cutting corners in guarding the president. But the stakes are so high, its hard to dismiss this issue without further investigation.

 

Click to read.

Black News: Marion Barry Documentary Coming Out Soon

Try as he might, Marion Barry, 73, cannot erase the fact that most people know him as the mayor videotaped smoking crack in a 1990 sting operation – the same year DC had the dubious distinction of being the murder capital of the world.

Yet, today, and despite this humiliating and seemingly career-ending circumstance, Marion Barry is as beloved in chocolate city as ever, most recently elected as a city council member for DC’s poorest area, Ward 8. He also provokes a vehement vitriol in the city as well.

Barry’s phoenix like political career, and his fascinating and flawed personal life is chronicled in the documentary ‘The Nine Lives of Marion Barry’ which premieres tonight on HBO. It highlights not only a politician rocked by scandal but a brilliant young man who overcame bitter early circumstances to work in the civil rights movement and to serve in public office.

After several starts and stops filmmaker Dana Flor and her partner Toby Oppenheimer spent at least eight years on this project, and Flor belives that the film is not only about the history of DC but a spring to open up a very necessary dialogue about race and perception of reality based on race.

Click to read.

Dr Boyce Watkins: Michael Vick’s Return is Good for Animal Rights

by Dr. Boyce Watkins, Syracuse University 

He’s back. After a 2 year saga that kept my head spinning, the young man who made a terrible mistake is finally being allowed to make a living. I have supported Michael Vick all along, but not because I felt that he was innocent. I’ve supported him because I do not believe that dog fighting is the kind of crime that deserves a lifetime punishment. So, to the extremists at PETA who want to see Michael Vick burn in the hell of unemployment and incarceration for the rest of his life, I only have one thing to say: grow up.

Michael Vick’s reinstatement to the NFL and recent signing by the Philadelphia Eagles unleashed a plethora of thoughts within me. On some level, his return is a bit of an "Athletic Juneteenth" for those who tire of seeing our country make African American athletes into public enemy number one whenever they screw up. To this day, we act as if Marion Jones is the devil, Barry Bonds is a monster, and Terrell Owens is some kind of criminal. This treatment is nothing new, as black athletes have been getting villified for decades, and their molehills are consistently turned into mountains, ripe for high-tech lynchings. This is the tradition of America.

It only seems appropriate that Michael Vick sign his contract in a city like Philadelphia, the place that I love and fear at the same time. I love the city because they’ve supported me in my work with the great Wendy Williams, Dom Giordano andCharlamagne Tha God. But there is a dark side of "Killadelphia" that shows itself in the way they support their sports teams. They are the fans that cheered when it appeared that Michael Irvin may have broken his neck, so they sure as heck aren’t going to pay much attention to animal rights protestors blocking their path to a Super Bowl. In a city like Philly, the slogan is simple: "If you win, we forgive all sin." Vick will be right at home.

Click to read more.

The latest black news from thegrio – 8/13/09

• 
  

  Con-artist dupes 2 fiancées out of $400k

  By theGrio

  12:46 PM on 08/13/2009

  VIDEO – A Florida man is facing charges after allegedly bilking $400,000 from two women that he was engaged to at the same time.

  > MORE

• 
  

  Marriage eludes high-acheiving black women

  By theGrio

  10:56 AM on 08/13/2009

  Michelle Obama may have become an archetypal African-American female success story — law career, strong marriage, happy children — but the reality is often very different for other highly educated black women.

  > MORE

• 
  

  Police find disabled woman locked in van

  By theGrio

  8:11 AM on 08/13/2009

  VIDEO — Dallas police have found a mentally disabled woman locked in a van in 100-degree heat. They said she may have died if she was in the van for even one more minute.

  > MORE

• Judge defends school’s ban on Confederate threads

  By theGrio via AP

  8:10 AM on 08/13/2009

  KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — A federal judge says a Tennessee school’s ban on Confederate clothing was a reasonable attempt to prevent disruptions because of previous racial threats at the school.

  > MORE

• 
  

  Birmingham mayor backs refunds for Jim Crow fines

  By theGrio

  5:54 AM on 08/13/2009

  VIDEO – The mayor of Birmingham now wants the city to give refunds to people who paid fines for violating segregation laws decades ago. Civil rights leaders came out to speak on the decision…

  > MORE

• 
  

  Caught on tape: Off-duty officers encounter bar bandit at local pub

  By theGrio

  2:37 PM on 08/12/2009

  VIDEO – An alleged bar bandit was stopped in his tracks after attempting to rob a bar filled with off-duty police officers.

  > MORE

• 
  

  Caught on tape: Shoplifter maces security guard

  By theGrio

  2:30 PM on 08/12/2009

  VIDEO – Pennsylvania State Police are looking for a woman who maced a clerk at a Hempfield Township Target store when he tried to stop her from shoplifting DVDs.

  > MORE

• 
  

  1500 uninsured find free health care at makeshift hospital

  By theGrio

  1:41 PM on 08/12/2009

  VIDEO – A group of doctors who started out providing free services in third-world countries has also been working in this country, and they’re seeing record numbers of Americans needing their help.

  > MORE

Glenn Beck Loses Sponsors Over Obama

Glenn Beck has excused murderous rampages as an understandable result of ‘political correctness’ and joked about poisoning a United States senator.
And to top it all off, Beck diagnosed bi-racial President Obama as being infected with a psychological bias against white people: "This president has exposed himself as a guy over and over and over again who has a deep-seated hatred for white people … this guy is, I believe, a racist."
Many of us complained to Fox and nothing changed. Until now. …

Click to read.

Technorati Tags: black celebrity gossip,black gossip,black celebrities

Your Black News: Man with Gun Gets into Obama Event

Earlier today MSNBC aired a segment showing a man with a loaded gun waiting for President Barack Obama to arrive at a town hall on health care reform at a high school in Portsmouth, N.H., and reportedly the local chief of police had no problem with it.

The man is carrying a sign that says, "It Is Time to Water the Tree of Liberty." That’s a reference to a Thomas Jefferson quote: "The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time, with the blood of patriots and tyrants." It was a favorite slogan of Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh, who was wearing a T-shirt when he was arrested with a picture of Lincoln on the front and a tree dripping with blood on the back.

Click to read more.

Your Black News: Black Joblessness Not Getting Much Better

Unskilled labor jobs in the retail sector have been particularly hard hit. (Courtesy Photo/coastal.com)

(August 9, 2009) – President Barack Obama’s economic recovery plan to save or create thousands of jobs appeared to be working this summer when the country’s unemployment rate began to stabilize. Unemployment fell in July for the first time in more than a year, according to the latest national job data – an indication the weakened economy might be on the rebound. But because more data is needed to determine the economy’s path, how soon the recession ends remains to be seen.
Meanwhile, "We won’t rest until every American that is looking for work can find a job," President Obama said Friday in comments at the White House.
He added that, "The worst may be behind us," and that "we’re pointed in the right direction."
Overall, the labor market has shed 6.5 million jobs since the start of the recession nearly two years ago.
The U. S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) also reported the jobless rate plunged to 9.4 percent from 9.5 As a result, the economy lost 247,000 jobs in July rather than the 325,000 that had been expected. However, the jobless rate among African Americans stands at 14.5 percent compared to 8.6 percent for Whites and 12.3 percent for Hispanics.
In March, unemployment among Blacks was 13.4 percent.
Although some reports list college-educated African Americans as having been the hardest hit, David R. Jones, president of the Community Service Society in New York City – where Blacks have tended to suffer the heaviest unemployment – said he did not think the recession has played out equally.

Click to read.

Your Black News: President Barack Obama’s Approval Rating Drops

President Barack Obama’s approval rating is falling on concern unemployment is rising and the budget deficit will grow, a Quinnipiac University poll shows.

Exactly half of the registered voters surveyed from July 27 to Aug. 3 by Quinnipiac said they approve of the job Obama is doing, compared with 42 percent who disapprove. That’s down from 57 percent approval and 33 percent disapproval in a poll taken in late June, according to results released today.

Americans are upset about rising unemployment and worried that health-care plans making their way through Congress will add to the U.S. budget deficit, said Peter Brown, assistant director of the Hamden, Connecticut-based polling institute. The combination has helped drive down the president’s ratings.

 

Click to read.

Black News: Black Educators Plan to Challenge Obama

Leaders from the nation’s 105 historically black colleges have complained privately that President Barack Obama has allowed deep cuts in funding to black universities at a time when many of these institutions are struggling to survive.

At a meeting in Atlanta this summer, where presidents and senior administrators from more than 30 black colleges gathered, sources told BlackAmericaWeb.com that many participants grumbled about an $85 million reduction from the 2010 budget, funds that were specifically earmarked for historically black colleges.

The money is needed in large part to help keep some black colleges from possible foreclosures and others from considering staff layoffs, so representatives from black colleges say they will turn up the heat on Obama starting this month.

"They plan to lobby the White House in a more concerted effort," said one black educator who attended last month’s meeting of black college presidents.

 

Click to read.

Money: Finance Professor Boyce Watkins on Consumer Confidence

by Dr. Boyce Watkins, Syracuse University

Beyonce has a song about how she loves men with "big egos." This might imply that she likes men with confidence. Confidence matters a great deal in terms of male/female attraction, but believe it or not, it actually impacts our economy. Every month, the University of Michigan measures consumer confidence, to determine if Americans are willing to spend money and how they feel about their current and future economic security.

But you might ask, "Why would I care about confidence, since it’s only psychological and imaginary?" Good question. Actually, confidence is a psychological phenomenon which leads to very real impacts on our choices and behavior. A confident man who asks out every girl he meets will probably have more mating opportunities than a good looking guy who doesn’t open his mouth. A confident consumer is someone who feels good about his/her economic situation and therefore decides to spend money, which is always good for the economy. Confident companies make investments and hire new employees, but insecure companies put projects on hold and don’t hire anyone. Confident banks make loans, but nervous banks hold onto their capital, thus slowing down economic growth for the nation.

Click to read.

President Obama’s “Teachable Moment” What Should We Learn?

By

Dr. Wilmer J. Leon III

This afternoon, President Obama, Sgt. James Crowley, and Dr. Henry Louis Gates Jr. will sit down at the White House to “clear the air.” The President’s objective is to bring the parties together and through their personal interaction move the national dialogue on race forward. In the President’s “Teachable Moment” what should we learn? We should learn how one’s perceptions can color their reality. We should also learn the danger of trying to contort a non-race based issue into a dialog or valuable lesson on race.

In all of the accounts of Dr. Gates’ arrest there has never been any indication that Sgt. Crowley used racial slurs, epithets, gestures or any other means to inject “race” into the arrest. Even Dr. Gates’ attorney, Charles Ogletree, when asked about racial profiling during a CNN interview said, “I’ve never said anything about racial profiling; you’ve never heard those words from me, it’s a case of bad judgment…we won’t know about the race element until all of the facts are in.”

Read More

Black Thinkers Speak on Obama and More

• 

  G’Ra Asim

  Writer & Novelist

  Young black voters came out for Obama, but may not return

  8:12 AM on 07/29/2009

  During last year’s presidential campaign, the second-most talked about aspect of Barack Obama’s historic candidacy was the fervor with which…

  > MORE

• 

  Rashod D. Ollison

  Cultural Critic

  Brewski diplomacy won’t wash down racism

  12:59 PM on 07/28/2009

  Unemployment among African Americans, which some may partly attribute to racism, is now at Depression-era levels. Racial profiling and police…

  > MORE

• Robert George

  We’ve learned enough from Obama’s "teachable moment"

  8:00 AM on 07/28/2009

  (AP Photo/Seth Perlman, file) Despite (or perhaps because of) President Obama’s rare White House press room visit Friday, the racial…

  > MORE

• 

  Noel Anderson

  Associate Professor Political Science Department – City University of New York

  Sotomayor may pass ultimate one-size-fits-all test

  7:43 AM on 07/28/2009

  Judge Sonia Sotomayor admits she’s an affirmative action baby. She stated in an interview that she did not have high…

News: Dr Boyce Watkins and Roland Martin going at it on CNN

Dr Boyce Watkins of Syracuse University speaks with Roland Martin and Rick Sanchez of CNN.  The conversation gets quite heated.  Click here to watch the video!

News: Michael Fauntroy and Boyce Watkins on CNN – 7/29/09

Click here to watch Dr Boyce Watkins of Syracuse University on CNN American Morning with Dr. Michael Fauntroy

Black News: Radio/TV Host Montel Williams Speaks with Dr Boyce Watkins

Dr Boyce Watkins of Syracuse University, NBC and AOL Black Voices spoke with TV and radio show host Montel Williams on Monday.  The conversation focused on race and racial profiling.  They are going to also speak on financial advice in the future.

News: Roland Martin, Boyce Watkins, Anderson Cooper Talk Henry Louis Gates

Anderson COOPER: Professor Watkins, do you believe this is an issue about race, or do you think this is an issue of two people with — with big egos or clashing egos?

WATKINS: I think that the answer is that we don’t know.

And that is the problem, that we were making bandwagon assumptions based on things we didn’t know. Look, either Sergeant Crowley violated procedure or he didn’t. If he did violate procedure, he either violated it because Skip Gates was black or for some other reason.

But the truth is that we can’t read this man’s mind. And, so, the truth — the reality is that this could have happened to someone of another ethnicity, potentially, particularly when you look throughout Sergeant Crowley’s record.

And I assume that he wouldn’t be teaching classes on racial sensitivity if he had a record of arresting black men for no reason. Now, I’m not trying to say that this did not happen in this case. I’m not anybody is a liar.

But what I’m saying is that we can’t use this case as a — some sort of poster child for racial-profiling issues across America, because there is real racial profiling that goes on, on places other than Harvard University, because I guarantee you this much.

MARTIN: Anderson…

WATKINS: Skip Gates is a guy who knows he is Skip Gates.

And being a black professor at Harvard, with all the money that Skip has, I guarantee you he has probably got more privilege than most white Americans have anyway.

(CROSSTALK)

MARTIN: Anderson, race — race is involved, because you all — look, when you step back and say, here, you have an African-American professor in his home. The cop comes there.

The black officer said, I think it may have been — differently if it was an African-American cop with this actual black male here. What we have to learn here is, what is going through a black man’s mind when this kind of thing is happening?

Again, people say, well, it needs to be overt. Well, people all self-perceive things differently. What is implied? What is inferred? And, so, here, he is standing here saying, this is how I am interpreting this.

We cannot dismiss that and say, well, that is not relevant. It is relevant, because it happens every day. People make assumptions. Women make assumptions based upon, well, is this happening to me because I am a woman? Is this happening to me because I am Hispanic? COOPER: But some assumptions are correct and some assumptions are not.

MARTIN: Absolutely. But that’s why we can’t…

WATKINS: Right. Absolutely.

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Black News: Huh? Parents blame 8-year old Child for her Rape

Just when you think you’ve heard all there is to hear about the horrors of child abuse and neglect in this country, there’s this horrifying report: An eight-year-old girl is allegedly gang-raped by four boys — one of them her cousin — and then rejected by her parents for shaming them.
You heard me.

The victim hails from a Liberian enclave in Arizona, and all of the children involved are refugees. Her 23-year-old sister, who was supposedly babysitting when four boys attacked the youngster in a storage shed (pictured), told KTVK in Arizona, "She always bring trouble…I came to her and said it’s not good for you to be following guys because you are still little." If the girl, who is now in foster care, were to come home, her sister says she would be scolded. "She’s just bringing confusions among us," she said.

Click to read.

Your Black News: Black Republicans Speak Out

 

• Watch black Republicans discuss the party’s future

(AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Sarah Palin’s resignation from her role as governor of Alaska has prompted new questions about the GOP’s leadership and future. While Michael Steele made history by becoming the first black chairman of the Republican National Committee, where do African Americans stand in helping to redefine the party?

TheGrio sat down with a group of black Republicans to discuss their feeling on their political party and its future.

"What does it mean to be a black man that agrees with the Republican party’s agenda, the Republican party’s message?" said hiphoprepublican.com’s Brandon Brice. "That is, reducing the size of government, giving people real opportunities to excel from any circumstance or situation."

According to a report released in May by the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press, Africans Americans make up two percent of the nation’s Republican party, compared to 22 percent of the democratic party. The study also found that during the 2008 election, 95 percent of blacks voted for Barack Obama, while just four percent voted for Republican candidate John McCain.

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Players Sue the NCAA Over Illegal Use of Images

by Dr. Boyce Watkins

Syracuse University

I’ve written extensively about the NCAA and what I perceive to be their consistent efforts to exploit the black community. They spend millions on public service announcements to protect their deception, but eventually the athletes and the public are going to wise up to what they are doing. The truth is that college athletes should be paid for the same reasons that any actor in a Hollywood blockbuster film would expect to receive compensation. The problem is that the families of athletes don’t quite know how to organize and fight for their power. So, when I read about the recentlawsuit against the NCAA for allegedly misusing the images of athletes for videogames, I was a very happy man.

Let me break it down for you:

Based on my 16-years of experience as a college professor (I currently teach atSyracuse University, a school that earns millions off black families every year), collegiate athletics is not, in my opinion, about amateurism and it’s not about education. It’s about making money. Period. Many athletes are admitted to college every year and they would not be granted admission were it not for their ability to play sports and make money for the campus. Making money is not a problem, but the problem comes with the fact that universities do not share this revenue with the families of the players.

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Wilmer Leon Asks: When Is Racial Profiling Not Racial Profiling?

By Dr. Wilmer J. Leon III

When is racial profiling not racial profiling? When the facts or circumstances fail to fit the accepted definition.

In 1999, the Oxford American Dictionary (OAD) provided a definition of racial profiling for the first time. “Racial profiling: an alleged police policy of stopping and searching vehicles driven by people from particular racial groups.” In 2005 the ACLU provided the broader definition as follows, "Racial Profiling" refers to the discriminatory practice by law enforcement officials of targeting individuals for suspicion of crime based on the individual’s race, ethnicity, religion or national origin. Criminal profiling, generally, as practiced by police, is the reliance on a group of characteristics they believe to be associated with crime… Racial profiling does not refer to the act of a law enforcement agent pursuing a suspect in which the specific description of the suspect includes race or ethnicity in combination with other identifying factors.” Intent is a key element in evaluating this circumstance. It does not appear by any of the facts as stated that Sgt. Crowley focused on, targeted or arrested Dr. Gates based upon his race (human), ethnicity, religion, or national origin.

One unfortunate outcome of the Dr. Henry Louis “Skip” Gates Jr. arrest in Cambridge, MA has been a rush to judgment by many who should know better. To immediately place Dr. Gates’ unfortunate arrest into the category of “racial profiling” does a great disservice to the volumes of cases that fit the accepted definition.

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Even When You’re Right, You’re Wrong

By Wilmer Leon

On Thursday July 16, 2009 after returning from a trip to China, Harvard University scholar Dr. Henry Louis Gates Jr. had difficulty opening the front door of the home he leases from Harvard.  After he and his driver struggled with the front door Dr. Gates gained entry through the back door of the home, shut off the alarm, opened the front door, and the driver left.

According to Cambridge Police Department Incident Report #9005127, a neighbor called the police and reported a possible breaking and entering at the residence. The woman “…observed what appeared to be two black males with backpacks on the porch…”  Her suspicions were aroused when, “…she observed one of the men wedging his shoulder into the door as if he was trying to force entry.”  The uniformed police officer went to the front door, saw Dr. Gates standing in the foyer and asked him to step out onto the porch.  Dr. Gates refused.

According to the Incident Report, after identifying himself as Sgt. Crowly and explaining that he was “investigating a report of a break-in in progress” at the residence, Dr. Gates opened the front door and stated, “why, because I’m a black man in America?”  After supplying the officer with Harvard University identification, the officer radioed for Harvard University Police.

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“Being A Black Man – 101” Don’t Argue With the Police

By Dr. Wilmer J. Leon III

On Thursday July 16, 2009 after returning from a trip to China, Harvard University scholar Dr. Henry Louis Gates Jr.  had difficulty opening the front door of the home he leases from Harvard. After he and his driver struggled with the front door Dr. Gates gained entry through the back door of the home, shut off the alarm, opened the front door, and the driver left.

According to Cambridge Police Department Incident Report #9005127, a neighbor called the police and reported a possible breaking and entering at the residence. The woman “…observed what appeared to be two black males with backpacks on the porch…” Her suspicions were aroused when, “…she observed one of the men wedging his shoulder into the door as if he was trying to force entry.” The uniformed police officer went to the front door, saw Dr. Gates standing in the foyer and asked him to step out onto the porch. Dr. Gates refused.

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Marion Barry Works His Way Out of Another Pickle

Marion Barry, Washington’s embattled city council member and former mayor, dodged another bullet last week when a District prosecutor declined to prosecute him on charges of stalking his ex-girlfriend. Barry was arrested and briefly detained by U.S. Park Service police July 4th after the woman, 40-year-old Donna Watts-Brighthaupt, complained that he was "bothering" her.

But Mr. Barry may not be completely out of the woods yet. The controversy kicked up by his arrest led reporters to dig out the fact that Mr. Barry had put Ms. Watts-Brighthaupt on his payroll by awarding her a $60,000 contract to study "poverty reduction," to be paid out of taxpayer dollars. That proved too much for current D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty and others, who demanded the city council open an ethics probe of Mr. Barry. On Friday, D.C. Council Chairman Vincent C. Gray announced the council would hire an independent law firm to look into the matter.

 

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Black News: GOP Stands in the Way of Michael Jackson Resolution

Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee may have trouble keeping the promise she made at Michael Jackson’s public memorial for a House resolution that “forever” honors the late pop star.

Jackson Lee, a Texas Democrat, took the stage Tuesday at the Staples Center in Los Angeles and hoisted a framed copy of the resolution, embossed with a gold seal. The measure will be debated on the House floor, she said.

For that framed, embossed resolution to be completely legit, it must first get past some opposition.

Rep. Peter King, a New York Republican who called Jackson a “pervert, child molester, pedophile” in a video he posted on YouTube this week, vowed Tuesday to do “whatever I have to do” to oppose honoring Jackson.

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Black News: Kids Kept Out of Swimming Pool for Being Black?

WHEN YOU call The Valley Club, in Huntingdon Valley, a recorded message by a chipper-voiced man says, "Things are really starting to heat up here in July!"

Things are heating up, all right, but probably not in the way that the club’s board would prefer. That’s because families of minority children enrolled in Creative Steps Day Camp, located inside Carnell Elementary School, in Oxford Circle, are alleging that racism is the reason their kids have been kicked out of the overwhelmingly white club.

The accusations are ugly.

In early June, Alethea Wright, founder and director of 13-year-old Creative Steps, registered her 65 campers – online – to use the pool on Monday afternoons from 3:30 to 5. The special arrangement, a first for the club, was approved by its board and was to run from June 29th through Aug. 10th.

 

Click to read.

Obama Getting Criticized for Stimulus Plan

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — Nearly five months after President Obama signed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), a still-worsening economy has many wondering if stimulus is a bunch of baloney.

In February, the stimulus bill was passed with the promise that funds would be paid out quickly to save or create 750,000 jobs by early August. Without it, the Obama administration said, unemployment could rise to 9% in 2010.

With August quickly approaching, $56.3 billion, or 10% of stimulus funds have been paid out, and the unemployment rate has already risen to 9.5%.

As a result, there’s debate about whether stimulus has put the economy on a path to recovery or is merely a broken promise. Some economists are already calling for a second stimulus bill as the economy continues to falter, arguing the stimulus wasn’t strong enough and isn’t being paid out fast enough.

On the other hand, many Republicans and even some Democrats are saying that parts of the plan were a waste of money.

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John Conyers’ Wife Admits to Bribery

Prosecutors say there is no suggestion that U.S. Rep. John Conyers, D-Mich., is connected to his wife’s bribery plea, but questions remain, analysts say.

Detroit City Councilwoman Monica Conyers last month pleaded guilty to accepting a bribe from a prospective city contractor, and could face up to five years in prison. But even though investigators who probed the case say her 80-year-old husband is not facing any allegations, questions about what he may have known about his spouse’s illegal income continue to swirl, The Washington Post reported Sunday.

 

Click to read.

President Obama Finally Acknowledges Michael Jackson

Loeb/Getty

President Barack Obama had kind words to say about the late Michael Jackson, who died last week at the age of 50.

The King of Pop is getting some love from the Leader of the Free World.

During an interview with the Associated Press on Thursday, President Barack Obama revealed he was a fan of the late Michael Jackson.

He even has his songs on his iPod.

"I grew up on his music," Obama said, speaking personally about the legendary performer’s death for the first time. "Still have all his stuff on my iPod."

Obama had kind words for the music legend, who died last week at the age of 50. "I think that his brilliance as a performer also was paired with a tragic and, in many ways, sad personal life," he said. "I’m glad to see that he is being remembered primarily for the great joy that he brought to a lot of people through his extraordinary gifts as an entertainer."

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“Family Values” Republicans from 1994 and their Sex Scandals

AP – South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford talks during an interview with The Associated Press about his relationship …

• The sex scandals that have tarnished Sen. John Ensign (R-Nev.) and Gov. Mark Sanford (R-S.C.) don’t appear to have much in common. Yet there is one thread that binds them together: Both Ensign and Sanford were members of the famed Republican House class of 1994, as well as its latest casualties.

As it turns out, the pressures and demands of political life have inflicted devastating damage not only on the Ensign and Sanford families, but on the families of many of the 71 other freshmen who formed the vanguard of the Republican Revolution.

In the 14 years since that star-crossed class arrived in Washington espousing an agenda that placed family values at its core, no less than a dozen of its members have been caught up in affairs, sex scandals or in messy separations and divorces from their spouses that, in more than a few instances, led to their political downfalls.

The problems started almost as soon as they took office, and by the end of their first year in Congress, the marriages of at least four Republican freshmen had collapsed.

One of the first to see his marriage unravel was Rep. Jim Bunn (R-Ore.) who, not long after taking office in 1995, divorced his wife, married one of his political aides, and later elevated her to chief of staff. Bunn lost his 1996 reelection bid.

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Black Global News: Many Nigerians Dislike Foreign Oil Companies

LONDON (Reuters) — Oil rose to $70 a barrel on Monday after Nigeria’s main militant group said it attacked a Royal Dutch Shell oil platform, outweighing a fairly bearish report from the International Energy Agency (IEA).

The Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) said its fighters struck the Shell Forcados platform in the Delta state.

There was no immediate independent confirmation but Shell said it shut in some oil production at its western operations in the Delta while it investigated reports of attacks.

U.S. crude for August delivery rose to a high of $70.06 per barrel, up 90 cents, before slipping back slightly to $69.75.

"The Nigerian supply disruptions brought in some buying," said Christopher Bellew, broker at Bache Commodities in London.

 

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Your Black Gospel: Getting to Know Dr Jeremiah Wright

Rather than letting Fox News sound bites define Jeremiah Wright for you, take a look at his bio.

Life, Love and Legacy

Rev. Dr. Jeremiah A. Wright, Jr.

The Rev. Dr. Jeremiah A. Wright, Jr. is a man of faith, a homiletic genius, a theological scholar and a pastor’s pastor. He is a family man who enjoys spending quality time with his wife, children, grandchildren, extended family and friends.

Steeped in Family Tradition and Educational Achievements

Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Dr. Wright is a son of the parsonage and hails from a family steeped in educational achievements. A third generation family member to matriculate at Virginia Union University, Dr. Wright followed in the footsteps of his maternal grandfather, Dr. Hamilton Martin Henderson who graduated from Virginia Union with a Bachelor of Arts degree in the late 1800s and finished seminary at Virginia Union in 1902. His father, Dr. Jeremiah A. Wright, Sr., also graduated from Virginia Union with two undergraduate degrees and from the seminary with a Master of Divinity degree in 1938. The senior Wright also received a Master of Sacred Theology degree (S.T.M.) from the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia.

Dr. Wright’s mother, Dr. Mary Henderson Wright, also graduated from Virginia Union and earned her first master’s degree before age 19 from the University of Chicago. She also earned a second master’s degree and her doctorate in education from the University of Pennsylvania.

Foundational Strengths

With four earned degrees, a Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts in English from Howard University, a Master of Divinity from the University of Chicago Divinity School and a Doctor of Ministry from the United Theological Seminary, Dr. Jeremiah A. Wright, Jr. grew up in a home where reading books was a daily way of life. Wright read a wide range of sources from the Greek philosophers and Shakespeare to African American authors such as Carter G. Woodson (the Father of African American History) to Sterling Brown (one of the Harlem Renaissance artists), as well as one of Dr. Wright’s college professors.

Click to read more about Jeremiah Wright

Black News: President Obama Says Nothing about Jackson’s Death

Al Sharpton said it best: "Michael Jackson made culture accept a person of color. Way before Tiger Woods, way before Oprah Winfrey, way before Barack Obama, Michael did with music what they later did in sports, in politics and in television."

If there is such a thing as ‘post-racial’, Jackson was probably the first and most visible international post-racial figure that this country has ever produced. He made history uniting not only Americans, but the world through his music, much in the same way Obama has done with his campaign.

It’s surprising therefore, that a day after the news of Michael Jackson’s death and with the nation deep in mourning, President Obama has not personally acknowledged a man who helped paved the way for his election.

Although the president released a brief statement through his press secretary Robert Gibbs on Friday afternoon, much was left unsaid. He was characteristically cautious, aiming to strike a political balance when he called Michael Jackson a "spectacular performer" whose life was "sad and tragic."

 

Click to read.

Black News: ACLU To Deal with Michigan’s Expulsion of Black Children

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Schools are not using enough discretion under Michigan’s zero-tolerance expulsion law and are disproportionately kicking out black students who ultimately end up behind bars, according to a report from the American Civil Liberties Union.

The study by the ACLU of Michigan was released Wednesday. It identifies a school-to-prison pipeline it says has been created by suspension policies, cultural stereotypes, referrals to law enforcement for school fights and factors such as not requiring expelled students to get an alternative education.

Michigan’s 1995 zero-tolerance law requires an expulsion for possessing any "dangerous weapon," and the ACLU says it is broader than required by federal law. The ACLU wants state law to be eased so only firearms possession is subject to mandatory expulsion.

The ACLU’s report says students were disciplined for bringing a toy gun, novelty lighter and eyebrow archer to school.

 

Click to read.

The Disrespect of Black Fathers Across America: Why it needs to stop

by Santita Jackson

To paraphrase Caesar, as he stood over the gallant Marc Antony, I come not to bury our Fathers, but to praise them, on this "Father’s Day." Now, more than ever before, it is time to tell the truth about African American fathers.

I think of my own my father, who in my worst moments always made me feel as if I were the best thing that ever happened to him. He said it. I felt it.

I arrived in my parents’ lives when they were college coeds and, although little more than children themselves, they made the very adult sacrifice and decision to marry and have me as well as my two brothers who arrived less than two years later. Still a student our father waited tables, stood in the food line at our church—in short, he did all that he could to provide for his growing family. And he and Mother took us everywhere.
I can recall one morning, before my father stepped into the pulpit to preach, being beckoned from my seat to sit with him and, as he scribbled the final touches on his sermon, he leaned over and said, "I love you, Sandy Boogie." I smiled as he kissed me and waited for…well, something else. I could not wait to get back to my seat as I was mortified to be before the entire congregation. I looked at him and said, rather quizzically, "Daddy, is that all you wanted to tell me?" His reply, as he smiled was, "Baby, saying ‘I love you’ says an awful lot." I nearly cried, having felt ashamed of my own insensitivity, and he simply smiled, kissed me again and had the usher lead me back to my seat.

His expression, even in that most public of venues was no surprise—it was a given in my life. My experience, though, is not unique. It has been replicated countless times in the African American community. Yet, every day we are fed a laundry list of the shortcomings of African American men; rarely, however, do we tell the society, or each other, of their triumphs.

We are told from the loftiest perches and the lowliest assignations that they must "Step up!" and "take up their responsibilities as men." All the while these critics ignore the myriad ways in which they must and do swim upstream against the strongest of currents. Currents which threaten and, too often, do sweep them into the undertow of our society. By ignoring their reality we turn our backs on a history, which has treated them with contempt. They are incarcerated more frequently, fight longer odds and live shorter lives; and yet and still, they remain strong, willing to love, survive and thrive. And so, on this "Father’s Day", I’d like to expound upon their triumphs and contextualize their struggles. Any discussion which does neither, fails us all.

 

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Why The Troy Davis Case Must Be Studied

by Elliot Milner, JD.

" I have faced execution and the torment of saying goodbye to my family three times in the last two years and I may experience that trauma yet again; I would not wish this on my worst enemy and to know I am innocent only compounds the injustice I am facing."- Troy Davis, from Georgia’s death row, on facing a fourth possible execution date.

For those who are unaware, Troy Davis has been on Georgia’s death row for about 18 years, after being convicted of murdering police officer Mark McPhail(Mr. Davis has maintained his innocence from the very beginning).

It would take pages to give all of the details of Troy Davis’ case, however I will say that there was no physical evidence found(including a murder weapon) connecting Troy Davis to the killing of Officer McPhail; he was convicted largely on the basis of inconsistent and often contradictory eyewitness testimony. The vast majority of those prosecution eyewitnesses have since recanted or changed their testimony implicating Mr. Davis, and one of those who hasn’t is Sylvester Coles, the main alternative suspect presented by the defense during Troy Davis’ trial. In addition, there have been multiple allegations of police coercion and the usage of unethical interrogation techniques.

(For additional information on Troy Davis’ case, or to get information on how to act, check out www.amnestyusa.org/death-penalty/troy-davis and http://www.troyanthonydavis.org/.).

 

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Dr Boyce Watkins on Dyson vs. Obama: Why We need to Listen

by Dr. Boyce Watkins

When I heard the controversial and heated comments about President Obama that were made by my respected colleague Michael Eric Dyson, I felt like a 2nd grader running outside to see the fight between two middle school kids. Both Barack and Michael are men I’ve grown to appreciate, and I love them for their strengths as well as their imperfections. Michael was the reason I became a public scholar during graduate school, as I would watch the words flow out of him like an MC in the booth dropping his hottest album. The man is good, damn good.

Barack Obama needs to listen to the words of Michael Eric Dyson. In fact, he should give Dyson as much, or more respect than he gives me or any other black public intellectual in America. Dr. Dyson, no matter how you perceive his critique of President Obama, represents a form of insight that you are not going to find in politics, the pulpit or anywhere else. At the same time, I will confess that his words may also come from an impure place that lies within the darkest part of our souls. In other words, Dyson, Tavis, Barack, Jesse and every other ambitious man in America is always going to be tempted by the "Demon of Playerhaterology". Men are naturally competitive, and no man likes to be disrespected. Obama, as a condition for his employment, is often asked to disrespect other leaders across America who represent the essence of meaningful black thought. That’s going to create a long list of enemies.

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Al Sharpton Gets Sued

Kaczmarek/AP

Rev. Al Sharpton’s non-profit civil rights group National Action Network is being sued by the Peabody Hotel in Memphis.

Southern hospitality only goes so far.

A grand Memphis hotel slapped theRev. Al Sharpton’s group with an $88,000 suit charging the nonprofit didn’t pay bills from its national convention.

The famed Peabody Hotel is suing the National Action Network for $70,300 and $17,000 in attorney’s costs and other fees, stemming from the April 2008 conference.

A complaint filed by the hotel in Shelby County Circuit Court did not clarify whether the charges relate to an unpaid final tab or other charges, according to the Memphis Daily News. The contract between Peabody and the National Action Network included a clause that the group would be charged for space it booked but didn’t use, the newspaper reported.

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Congressman William Jefferson Now on Trial

Prosecutors say a Louisiana congressman was more than $60,000 in debt during the time he is accused of concocting a series of bribery schemes.

Opening statements started Tuesday in the trial of William Jefferson, a Democrat who represented parts of New Orleans. Federal agents found $90,000 in cash in his freezer, and he is charged with soliciting bribes, money laundering and other crimes.

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Michelle Obama Gets Insulted by GOP Leader

GOP activist Rusty DePass is in hot water over comments about First Lady Michelle Obama.

Would you accept the apology from Rusty DePass after he likened First Lady Michelle Obama to an escaped gorilla?

Yes. He seemed sincere and contrite.

No. His comments were racist and unforgivable, and his explanation didn’t make any sense.

A prominent South Carolina Republican killed his Facebook page Sunday after being caught likening the First Lady to an escaped gorilla.

Commenting on a report posted to Facebook about a gorilla escape at a zoo in Columbia, S.C., Friday, longtime GOP activist Rusty DePass wrote, "I’m sure it’s just one of Michelle’s ancestors – probably harmless."

Busted by South Carolina political blogger Will Folks on his FITNEWS blog, DePass told WIS-TV in Columbia, "I am as sorry as I can be if I offended anyone. The comment was clearly in jest."

Then he added, "The comment was hers, not mine," claiming Michelle Obama made a recent remark about humans descending from apes. The Daily News could find no such comment.

"’Humor’ like this is nothing new for South Carolina Republicans – even as the party claims to be focusing on ‘outreach’ efforts to minorities," said Folks, a former gubernatorial spokesman and widely read blogger. "The fact that Palmetto [State] Republicans don’t get that this is a serious problem for them baffles us."

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Georgetown Professor Chris Metzler Breaks down Sotomayor

Dr. Christopher Metzler

President Obama’s nomination of Sonia Sotomayor to be a Justice on the United States Supreme Court has brought to the surface the lingering resentment that so many White men in America have harbored since the end of slavery. Moreover, it has denuded the souls of white folks who have now become part of a race. It has also revived White men as victims and given voice to the intellectually dishonest rhetoric of "reverse" racism while also race-baiting the White House, albeit one headed by a Black man.

Of course, we understand that race is a social construction. That is, there is no biological basis for race. Rather, in the context of the United States, race has been formulated and given meaning by society and the courts who wished to connote difference and the privileges and insults thereto appertaining. That formulation for so much of our history defined Whites as superior and numerical racial minorities as inferior thus justifying different treatment.

First, it is not an understatement to say that many White men in America have opted out of the conversation on race. In fact, in most conversations about race, racial minorities are the ones who are presumed to be affected by racism because of America’s toxic relationship with race. White men in particular enjoy the visible and invisible privilege of being both White and male and thus, until now, have seen no reason to be considered part of a "race." 

The White men of whom I write have decided that they will pick the carbuncle of race in an attempt to protect their white privilege at all costs. Hoisting the White man’s burden are Rush, Tancredo, Hannity, Dobbs and Gingrich; the "unelected" leaders of the party. The elected leaders (especially those with significant Latino voters) and the languid "head of the party" (Michael Steele) will collude with them by saying nothing.

Click to read more on the Dr Boyce Black Scholar’s Blog.

Dr. Christopher J. Metzler is associate dean at Georgetown University and the author of The Construction and Rearticulation of Race in a Post-Racial America.

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Dr. Jeremiah Wright Has Tough Words for Obama

Jeremiah Wright says that the Jews won’t let him talk to Obama.  Click the image to watch.

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Your Black News: Tavis Smiley’s Sponsor Accused of Discriminatory Lending Practices

As she describes it, Beth Jacobson and her fellow loan officers at Wells Fargo Bank “rode the stagecoach from hell” for a decade, systematically singling out blacks in Baltimore and suburban Maryland for high-interest subprime mortgages.

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Matt Roth for The New York Times

A foreclosed home on Barclay Street in Baltimore. The city is suing Wells Fargo Bank over its mortgage lending practices in black neighborhoods.

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Matt Roth for The New York Times

Another foreclosed house on Baltimore’s North Brice Street, which shares a downed fence with a house still lived in.

These loans, Baltimore officials have claimed in a federal lawsuit againstWells Fargo, tipped hundreds of homeowners into foreclosure and cost the city tens of millions of dollars in taxes and city services.

Wells Fargo, Ms. Jacobson said in an interview, saw the black community as fertile ground for subprime mortgages, as working-class blacks were hungry to be a part of the nation’s home-owning mania. Loan officers, she said, pushed customers who could have qualified for prime loans into subprime mortgages. Another loan officer stated in an affidavit filed last week that employees had referred to blacks as “mud people” and to subprime lending as “ghetto loans.”

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Black Politics: Obama and Sharpton Team Up on Education

It might be the oddest political pairing of the year. Barack Obama, whose campaign for president carefully avoided race-based political appeals, is teaming up with the man who practically perfected them: the Rev. Al Sharpton.

This double-take moment camelast month, with Sharpton holding court with reporters at the White House, fresh out of an Oval Office meeting with Obama in his role as co-founder of the bipartisan Education Equality Project.

So far, Sharpton has been to the White House more times, and for more close-up conversations with Obama, than the leaders of other long-established civil rights organizations like the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and theUrban League.

And in April, Vice President Joe Biden addressed the annualconventionof Sharpton’s group, the National Action Network, in New York.

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Cheney vs. Powell: Roland Martin

 

Roland Martin says Colin Powell should back up his words with action to reshape the GOP.

(CNN) — The back-and-forth between former Secretary of State Colin Powell, former Vice President Dick Cheney, and radio entertainer Rush Limbaugh, has been, well, entertaining and fascinating.

You have these enormous personalities and egos slamming into each other over what it means to be a Republican and the course the party should be on, as it is in desperate need of a vision.

Yet while folks like me in the media love the brouhaha, and TV and radio producers salivate at the chance to book any one of these three on their programs, the inevitable question has to be asked: What now?

And this is where former House Speaker Newt Gingrich is correct. Powell must go beyond commenting on the state of the party and what it needs, and work to help rebuild, reshape and revitalize the GOP in the form he thinks is appropriate for the 21st century.

Let’s be clear: Powell is under no obligation to hit the road campaigning for candidates, raising funds, participating in strategy sessions, and the dirty work necessary to make his vision a reality. But unless a leader such as Powell champions the cause of a moderate Republican Party, what he has been saying lately will be merely words.

 

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Black News – 6/3/09

When Lebron James lost, Nike created a new nightmare

The Urban League says Obama must do more for African Americans

Actor Tyrese prepares for new Transformers movie

Dr. Christopher Metzler breaks down Obama’s new appointee

Rapper Nas tells Kelis that she should get nothing

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Black News: Obama’s Date Night Criticized by the RNC

 

The RNC criticized the Obamas for taking a day off to visit New York city for a date night.  Read some of what they had to say:

 

Obama Says He Understands Americans’ Economic Troubles

Obama: "There Are Still Too Many Americans Out Of Work, And Too Many Who Still Worry That Their Job May Be Next. There Are Still Too Many Families Struggling To Pay The Bills, And Too Many Businesses Struggling To Keep Their Doors Open." (President Barack Obama, Remarks At Nellis Air Force Base, Las Vegas, NV, 5/27/09)

Obama Said He Carried Stories Of Struggling Workers With Him To The White House. "We’re talking about people who’ve lost their livelihood and don’t know what will take its place. We’re talking about parents who’ve lost their health care and lie awake at night praying their kids don’t get sick. We’re talking about families who’ve lost the home that was the corner, their foundation for their American dream, young people who put that college acceptance letter back in the envelope because they just can’t afford it. That’s what those numbers and statistics mean. That is the true measure of this economic crisis. Those are the stories I heard when I came to Elkhart six months ago, and those are the stories that I carried with me to the White House." (President Barack Obama, Remarks On The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, Elkhart, IN, 2/9/09)

 

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Sotomayor’s Controversial Comments

Obama’s nominee to the Supreme Court, Sonia Sotomayor, is catching heat for seeming to imply that judges are supposed to make the law.  Click the image to listen to her words.

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Your Black News: Xerox Puts a Black Woman in Charge – a Corporate First

Xerox named Ursula Burns to succeed Chief Executive Anne Mulcahy, in a move that makes Burns one of the most prominent African-Americans to head a Fortune 500 company.

Mulcahy, 56, an economic advisor to Barack Obama during the U.S. presidential transition, will retire as CEO on July 1. She is a 33-year veteran of Xerox, where she became CEO in 2001.

An avid biker, Burns, 50, will join a list about 15 women CEOs of a Fortune 500 company and become one of only a handful of African American CEOs. She joined Xerox in 1980 as an engineering intern, was named president in 2007, and had been groomed as the next CEO by Mulcahy. [ID:nN19438536]

Mulcahy, who has been credited with revitalizing the world’s top supplier of digital printers and document management services, and also serves on Citibank’s (C.N) board of directors, will remain as the company’s chairman.

 

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Dr Boyce Watkins: Obama Needs to Peep Out Black Unemployment Numbers

by Dr Boyce Watkins

www.BoyceWatkins.com

About a week ago, I received a call from a radio show host who was practically screaming through the phone. I wasn’t sure if she was in labor with her first child, running from a mass murderer, or had just seen Denzel Washington in her bathroom shower. I figured that whatever she was screaming about, it had to be important.

When the radio show host informed me of the source of her discomfort, I was ready to scream myself. The black unemployment numbers, while typically absurd, had reached (in TSA language) threat level orange. During the month of April, while white unemployment nation-wide rose by only .1% (to 8.0%), black unemployment rose by a shocking 1.7% (to 15%). This means that black unemployment grew by 17 times more than white unemployment and is nearly double the rate of white America. Yes, it’s time to be alarmed.

Unemployment has dropped in 21 states. The US is starting to see scant signs of an economic recovery (I’ll admit that my stock portfolio is no longer on life support). The stock market has risen dramatically over the past 2 months and could be even more bullish after this week. Yet, black America is getting hammered relentlessly by the economic downturn. Not trying to bother you President Barack Obama (I know you’re kind of busy with that whole North Korea thing), but do you have anything to say about this?

Continue reading Dr Boyce Money: Barack Obama and Alarming Black Unemployment

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Rush Limbaugh Speaks on “Withdrawal” – I guess he knows something about that

Don’t say it: Conservative radio talk-show host Rush Limbaugh has issued a unique challenge to cable network MSNBC. On his radio show Tuesday, the ever-modest Limbaugh said that the cable network is trying to "build its ratings on my back." From his website:

"I challenge you, MSNBC! Thirty days without anything mentioning me. No video of me, no guests commenting on me. See if you can do it … Let’s see if you can do Rush withdrawal. Let’s see if you can run your little TV network for 30 days without doing a single story on me, and then let’s take a look at your ratings during those 30 days and see what happens.

Since the election, Limbaugh has emerged as the defacto "voice" of the GOP — or at least, the loudest one. In January, Limbaugh made his infamous "I hope Obama fails" comment, and was featured in aVanity Fair article titled "The Man Who Ate the GOP." Earlier this month, Limbaugh took aim at former Secretary of State Colin Powell, telling him to "become a Democrat, instead of claiming to be a Republican." Cheney joined the fray, remarking (on Limbaugh’s radio show, of all places):

 

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Obama’s Help Needed: Black People Getting Slammed in the Recession

To cross the Edmund Pettus Bridge into Selma is to share a stage with history. And these days, it is to come face-to-face with a bleak present.

Storefront after storefront is closed, and many of the buildings in the famous photos from the days of the historic March 1965 events have fallen into disrepair.

"It is very depressing," Selma Mayor George P. Evans tells us during an evening walk down Broad Street in downtown. "People are not buying. People are not spending. Businesses are going out of business."

This is the heart of Alabama’s "Black Belt," and Selma is a reminder that a recession that has punished so many across America has hit hardest in places that were already struggling.

"A double whammy," Evans says. "It does seem to be those cities with the largest population of minorities that has taken the biggest hit."

 

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Wanda Sykes Called a “Black Dyke”

Buried at the end of Chris Rovzar and Jada Yuan’s fantastic White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner party report is an incendiary quote from Christopher Hitchens about the evening’s entertainment, comedienne Wanda Sykes:

"The president should be squirming in his seat. Not smiling," he said. "The black dyke got it wrong. No one told her the rules."

Rovzar and Yuan note that Hitchens was the "last man (barely) standing" of the evening.

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Kenyan Man Sues Over Sex Boycott

A Kenyan man has sued activists who called on women to boycott sex to protest the growing divide in the nation’s coalition government.

James Kimondo said the seven-day sex ban, which ended this week, resulted in stress, mental anguish, backaches and lack of sleep, his lawyer told the state-run Kenya Broadcasting Corp.

The lawsuit filed Friday claims lack of conjugal rights affected Kimondo’s marriage and seeks undisclosed damages from the G-10, an umbrella group for women’s activists, KBC said.

The women’s caucus caused a national debate when it urged women to withhold sex to protest increasingly frosty relations between President Mwai Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga.

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Jesse Jackson to Visit Iran to Free Journalist

KUALA LUMPUR, April 22 (Bernama) — Prominent American civil rights and political activist Reverend Jesse Louis Jackson, Sr plans to lead a delegation to Iran to appeal for and secure the release of Iranian-American journalist Roxana Saberi who had been sentenced to eight years jail for allegedly spying for the United States.

Jackson, who is the president and founder of the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition, an organisation fighting for social change, said visas had been applied for and he hoped that they would get the necessary approval to undertake the mission to Tehran.

"I hope our appeal to release her (Saberi) will be heard and we will be allowed into Tehran to make the appeal and gain her freedom," he told reporters after delivering a talk on "Building A Culture of Peace and Development in a Globalised World", here today.

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Pres Barack Obama Gets Minority Support without Doing Anything for them

Two nights before his inauguration, Barack Obama got a lesson in managing the expectations of minority groups critical to his election as the first African-American president.

Hundreds of exultant revelers — including Latino pop stars and leaders of Hispanic organizations — packed into Washington’s Union Station for a pre-inauguration ball. But neither the president-elect nor a surrogate appeared onstage.

Speakers and performers vented their frustration at the perceived snub to a cardboard cutout of Mr. Obama placed on stage — and sharply warned that he had to deliver on a list of issues, such as easing the legalization of undocumented workers.

"It was a bit surprising that there wasn’t a representative," said Maria Teresa Petersen, executive director of Voto Latino, whose get-out-the-vote campaign helped increase Hispanic turnout — giving a boost to Mr. Obama. "There was disappointment."

Since then, the president and his advisers, who declined to comment about the January event, have pursued a quietly nuanced agenda on race. Mr. Obama rarely speaks publicly of race or his historic election. But aides have maintained a behind-closed-doors dialogue with black and Hispanic leaders that has reassured them their key issues will be addressed, according to Ms. Petersen and others. The approach appears, based on his broad popularity in polling, to have assuaged pre-election anxieties of some white voters that he would be disproportionately focused on minority issues.

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Black News: The Legal Profession Needs Diversity

Glance at the Daily Business Review’s annual yearbook of new partners at South Florida law firms and the dearth of minorities and women is quickly obvious. Only three black lawyers were promoted to partner by area firms who responded to the DBR’s survey.

One black woman was promoted to partner at Holland & Knight and another two at Greenberg Traurig.

Undeterred by the economy and the racial and gender barriers, minority and women lawyers press on.

Detra Shaw-Wilder, a black litigation shareholder at Coral Gables-based Kozyak Tropin & Throckmorton, says she can see progress in the representation of women and minorities in the partnership ranks at South Florida law firms — but it has been gradual.

When Shaw-Wilder was vice president of what is now the Wilkie D. Ferguson Bar Association in 2001, she observed 18 black partners at large and mid-sized law firms in Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties. There are now 31.

"From one perspective you can say surely there is progress," she said. "But it is slow going. There’s a long ways to go. There’s definitely work to be done and more progress to be made.

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Black Politics: Somalia’s Prime Minister Asks for Weapons Embargo to be Lifted

Somalia’s prime minister told CNN Thursday that the international naval patrols in the Gulf of Aden are not solving the problem of piracy in the region.

Somalia’s prime minister says the international naval patrols are having little effect on the piracy problem.

Prime Minister Omar Abdirashid Ali Sharmarke pointed to the recent increase in pirate attacks as evidence, and called for the U.N. arms embargo on Somalia to be lifted so the government can fight back against the pirates and local militant Islamist groups.

"One of our biggest problems is that al-Shabaab has AK-47s, and the pirates have AK-47s, and the government has AK-47s," the prime minister told CNN’s David McKenzie in Nairobi, Kenya.

 

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Your Black President: The Mixed Message of Obama’s Boycott of the Racism Conference

by Dr. Ronald Walters, University of Maryland

I am missing something here.  President Barack Obama just went to Europe and Iraq and made speeches saying that he would be deferential to Communist China,  that he would meet without conditions with the leadership of Iran and that he wanted to open up a new relationship with the Islamic world.  Then he went to the Conference of the Americas in Trinidad and shook the hand of Hugo Chavez of Venezuela who has said some devilish things about America and the Bush administration.  But the key issue that took the conference over was the American overture to Cuba to talk, in response to Raul Castro’s statement that he would talk with the U. S. and that everything would be on the table.  Moreover, the Obama administration has said that it wanted to open up a new chapter in its relationship with the United Nations.  To that end, it has appointed an African American  Ambassador and put in its application for a seat on the Human Rights Commission.  Against this background, the decision of the Obama administration not to go to the United Nations Conference On Racism in Geneva, Switzerland April 20-24 would appear to be a powerful refutation of this relatively liberal approach to the international community it has established.

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Pastor Pay Leads to Major Lawsuit

Dr Boyce Watkins

www.BoyceWatkins.com

I read today about the financial compensation package of pastor Brad Braxton of the New Riverside Church in Manhattan.  Here is the breakdown of Braxton’s compensation:

$250,000 in salary.

$11,500 monthly housing allowance.

Private school tuition for his child.

A full-time maid.

Entertainment, travel and "professional development" allowances.

Pension and life insurance benefits.

An equity allowance for Braxton to save up to buy a home.

On top of that, Braxton immediately hired a new second in command at more than $300,000 a year.

The total value of the package is estimated to be $600,000 per year. 

All I can say is “wow”.  No disrespect to this man or his congregation, but he would NOT be preaching at my church.  What was most problematic about the church’s decision to give Braxton such a ridiculous compensation package was that they didn’t seem to clear it with the membership, many of whom are filing suit over Braxton’s pay. As a Finance Professor, I must admit that I personally become uncomfortable hearing men and women of God talking about money more than I do.  I must disagree with Rev. TD Jakes, who said that “Jesus is a product”.  Sorry brother, Nikes are a product.  Cheeseburgers are a product.  Jesus is a spirit that should lead us to pursue a good that is greater than our bank accounts.  I am not sure how many pastors agree with that assessment. 

Black Politics and Obama’s Racism Boycott

by Dr. Christopher Metzler, Georgetown University

As President Obama shook hands with Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, he was willing to take the political heat. He said that he was not concerned about the politics of the hand shake and more concerned about extending an open hand to nations hostile to the U.S. The open hand, it seems, is not so open after all. The President announced that, like the Bush Administration, the United States will boycott the world anti-racism conference (Durban II), which opens in Geneva today. According to the President, "I would love to be involved in a useful conference that addressed continuing issues of racism and discrimination around the globe. We expressed in the run-up to this conference our concerns that if you adopted all of the language from 2001, that’s not something we can sign up for. "Hopefully some concrete steps come out of the conference that we can partner with other countries on to actually reduce discrimination around the globe, but this wasn’t an opportunity to do it."

He is not willing to take the political heat in this case because there is language criticizing Israel and the West in the final document. As the world celebrates the election of the first Black President, the United States boycotts the world conference against racism. Symbolism, it seems has met political reality.

On this issue, it is difficult to reconcile the President’s rhetoric with his actions. The President has repeatedly said that his policy is to talk with those with whom he disagrees. He is talking to Chavez, to Ahmadinejad, to Medvedev and Kim but cannot talk to human rights defenders about the best way to address the continuing significance of racism world wide? Surely the message cannot be that the United States does not believe that the right to be free from racism is not a basic human right.

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Black News: Ex-CIA Chief Accuses Obama of National Security Risks

A former head of the CIA slammed President Obama on Sunday for releasing four Bush-era memos, saying the new president has compromised national security.

Former CIA chief Michael Hayden said Sunday it is wrong to make interrogation methods public.

Michael Hayden, who served as former President Bush’s last CIA director from 2006 to 2009, said releasing the memos outlining terror interrogation methods emboldened terrorist groups such as al Qaeda.

"What we have described for our enemies in the midst of a war are the outer limits that any American would ever go to in terms of interrogating an al Qaeda terrorist. That’s very valuable information," Hayden said during an appearance on "Fox News Sunday."

"By taking [certain] techniques off the table, we have made it more difficult — in a whole host of circumstances I can imagine — for CIA officers to defend the nation," he said.

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Condi Asks for the Same Speaking Fee As Bush

Former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is charging the same fee — $150,000 — per speech as does former President George W. Bush.
So, as Bush emerges again into the public eye — he threw out the first pitch of the season at the Texas Rangers’ home opener — he’s finding that he’s not the biggest star of his own administration.

Information about the speech fees Rice and Bush charge comes from a corporate political adviser who asked the Washington Speakers Bureau about their speaking fees.
Bush spoke last month in Calgary at a private event hosted by tinePublic Inc. He is scheduled to speak before the Economic Club of Southwestern Michigan on May 28, his first domestic post-presidency speech.

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Pres. Obama Boycotts UN Conference on Racism

The Obama administration will boycott "with regret" a U.N. conference on racism next week over objectionable language in the meeting’s final document that could single out Israel for criticism and restrict free speech, the State Department said Saturday.

The decision follows weeks of furious internal debate and will likely please Israel and Jewish groups that lobbied against U.S. participation. But the move upset human rights advocates and some in the African-American community who had hoped that President Obama, the nation’s first black president, would send an official delegation.

The administration had wanted to attend the April 20-25 meeting in Geneva, although it warned in late February it would not go unless significant changes were made to the draft text.

 

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Genma Holmes: Where do Fox News Tea Parties Come from?

Genma Holmes, YourBlackWorld.com

I attended several tea parties yesterday. An informed consumer makes a better a tax payer in my book. Paying taxes is not a Democrat or Republican issue to me. It is an issue that everyone in this country should be paying attention to, especially during this time of economic chaos. As I listened to the crowds yelling about the President, I think the message of why they were gathering in the first place was lost in the screaming.

One of the top grievances of the organizers was the hundreds of billions of dollars in recent taxpayer subsidies to automakers, banks and Wall Street investment giants. This was a grass roots movement that started in Tennessee. Many concerned citizens, black and white, red and yellow, were disgusted by executive bonuses and the lack of accountability to the taxpayers who are now "investors" in these global companies. Being investors in companies that many Americans do not consider good investments should have been a time for not only educating taxpayers but elected officials as well.

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Your Black Money: Study Finds that Black Male Unemployment is out of control

A recent study indicates that of the major ethnic groups impacted by unemployment during the current U.S. recession, Black men have experienced the greatest job losses since the crisis officially began in November 2007.

"What’s missing from national media coverage of this recession is plainly a great deal of [honesty] about who’s losing their jobs. This is overwhelmingly a blue-collar, retail sales, low-level recession," said Andrew Sum, professor of economics and director of the Center for Labor Market Studies at Northeastern University in Boston, Mass., which published the study.

"The Impacts of the 2007-2009 National Recession on Male Employment in the U.S. through January 2009; The Massive Concentration of Job Losses Among Males Especially Black Men and Blue Collar Workers" tracked employment losses in the recession across gender groups of workers overall, and in the four major ethnicities— Asian, Black, Hispanic and White. Thestudy found that:

 

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Dear Mr. President: What are you going to do for Black Males?

Dr. Henrie M. Treadwell

I applaud your recent creation of the White House Council on Women and Girls to help ensure we are treated equally in public policies, by employers and in every other aspect of American society. I must also urge, however, that you place a similar emphasis on men and boys, particularly young men of color, who face some of the steepest hurdles in American society.

The reasons cited in forming the new council are just — throughout our nation’s history women have often been treated as second-class citizens when it comes to earning a livelihood, climbing the corporate ladder and even exercising the delayed right to vote. Let us not forget that the Equal Rights Amendment was first drafted in 1923–and has yet to be ratified.

To be sure, the new council will focus attention on continuing the progress that has been made through the decades as women have crashed through the glass ceiling.

But I would argue that young men of color face even more daunting circumstances. Young men of color face challenges ranging from a justice system that disproportionately incarcerates them to media and entertainment industries quick to portray them as worthless, violent and criminal. Even before the recession, our young men of color faced a bleak job market where discrimination, globalization and structural change made it difficult for them to find good jobs and succeed in life. With the nation’s economy in a tailspin, the unemployment of young men of color has been spiraling out of control.

Consider this sampling of data:

* High school graduation rates for males of color–African Americans (42.8 percent), Native American/Alaska Natives (47 percent) and Hispanics (48 percent)–are far lower than for whites (70.8 percent).
* Minority youths are disproportionately in the juvenile justice system: African Americans (1,004 per 100,000), American Indians (632 per 100,000) and Latinos (485 per 100,000) compared with whites (212 per 100,000).
* More than 29 percent of African-American boys who are 15-years-old today are likely to go to prison at some point in their lives, compared with 4.4 percent of white boys the same age.
* The mortality rate from homicide for African-American boys ages 15-17 is 34.4 per 100,000, compared with 2.4 per 100,000 for non-Hispanic white boys.

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Why Did Barack Obama Choose to work with Lawrence Summers? We’re Not Quite Sure

Frank Rich, The New York Times

"I am pronouncing the depression over!" declared CNBC’s irrepressible Jim Cramer on April 2. The next day the unemployment rate, already at the highest level in 25 years, jumped yet again, but Cramer wasn’t thinking about the 663,000 jobs that disappeared in March. He was thinking about the market. Mad money. Fast money. Big money. The Dow, after all, has rallied in the weeks since Timothy Geithner announced his bank bailout 2.0. Par-tay! On Wednesday, Cramer rang the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange, in celebration of the 1,000th broadcast of his nightly stock-tip jamboree.

Given Cramer’s track record on those tips, there’s no reason to believe he’s right this time. But for the sake of argument, let’s say he is. (And let’s hope he is.) The question then arises: What, if anything, have we learned from this decade’s man-made economic disaster? It wasn’t just trillions of dollars of wealth that went poof in the bubble. Certain American values also crumbled and vanished. Making quick killings by reckless gambling in the markets – rather than by investing long-term in new products, innovations, technologies or services that might grow and benefit America and the world – became the holy grail in the upper echelons of finance.

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Texas Governor Rick Perry: Obama May Make us Secede from the Union

Per the New York Post, "Tens of thousands of protesters — some dressed in colonial wigs with tea bags hanging from their eyeglasses — staged boisterous protests modeled after the Boston Tea Party all around the country yesterday, rallying against financial bailouts and the Obama administration’s tax and spending plans."
“The hundreds of grassroots events staged around the nation to protest America’s tax burden showcased successful efforts by conservatives to mobilize thousands of participants via Facebook, Twitter and other social media outlets. Liberals once dominated that realm,” the Washington Times adds.

The New York Times: “It was hard to determine from the moderate turnout just how effective the parties would be. In Philadelphia, a rally in Center City drew about 200 rain-soaked participants… In Pensacola, Fla., about 500 protesters lined a busy street, some waving ‘Don’t Tread on Me’ flags and carrying signs reading ‘Got Pork?’ and ‘D.C.: District of Corruption.’ In Austin, Tex., Gov. Rick Perry energized a crowd of about 1,000 by accusing the Obama administration of restricting states’ rights and vaguely suggesting that Texas might want to secede from the union.”

The AP has more on what Perry said. “Later, answering news reporters’ questions, Perry suggested Texans might at some point get so fed up they would want to secede from the union, though he said he sees no reason why Texas should do that. ‘There’s a lot of different scenarios,’ Perry said. ‘We’ve got a great union. There’s absolutely no reason to dissolve it. But if Washington continues to thumb their nose at the American people, you know, who knows what might come out of that. But Texas is a very unique place, and we’re a pretty independent lot to boot.’”

 

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Black Political news: Drop in Black Male Drug incarcerations

For the first time since the war on drugs became a national law enforcement obsession in the mid-1980s, the number of African-Americans in state prisons for drug offenses has declined, a criminal justice reform organization said.

The number of whites in state prison for drugs rose 42.6 percent since 1999, while blacks dropped 21.6 percent.

A study released Tuesday by the Sentencing Project found a 21.6 percent drop in the number of blacks incarcerated for drug offenses, a decline of 31,000 people, from 1999 to 2005.

The corresponding number of whites in state prisons for drug offenses rose 42.6 percent, or by more than 21,000 people, while the number of Hispanics was virtually unchanged, according to "The Changing Racial Dynamics of the War on Drugs."

The study, authored by Executive Director Marc Mauer, found that the differences between black and white imprisonments for drug crimes are partly because of how police target suspects and court sentencing guidelines, which vary by state.

Also, there has been a decrease in the use of crack cocaine in predominantly minority urban neighborhoods and an increase in methamphetamine abuse in many primarily white rural areas, Mauer said Wednesday.

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Black News: Fed Chairman Bernanke Says Blacks Lack Financial Literacy

American minorities need to "strengthen their financial literacy," Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke told students and faculty at Atlanta’s historically black Morehouse College in Atlanta today.

On a day when President Obama delivered an Economic Crisis 101 lecture to students and faculty at Georgetown University, Bernanke was doing the same thing in Atlanta.

During an expansive Q-and-A session with Morehouse students after his speech, Bernanke was asked about the household wealth gap between whites and blacks in America.

"It’s absolutely right the difference between minority and white wealth is very significant, and part of that is related to income levels where whites have a higher average income," Bernanke said. "But even if you control for income level, you find minorities have gathered less wealth."

 

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Black News: Can Obama Help with Black Predatory Lending?

After writing his commentary on the Rushcard issued by Russell Simmons, Dr. Boyce appears on BBC World News again to discuss the card, predatory lending and whether Simmons is doing a good or bad thing for the Black community.

He also speaks on whether the Obama Administration can step in to improve access to basic services for the Black banking community.

Dr Watkins is one of the world’s leading financial experts and a Finance Professor at Syracuse University and also a financial writer for America Online.   For more information, visit www.BoyceWatkins.com. Click the image to listen!

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Global Finance: Zimbabwe Will No Longer Use its own currency

Zimbabwe will not use its own local currency for at least a year, a state newspaper reported on Sunday, while it tries to repair an economy which critics say was destroyed by President Robert Mugabe.

The southern African state has allowed the use of multiple foreign currencies since January to stem hyperinflation which had rocketed to over 230 million percent and left the Zimbabwe dollar almost worthless.

The state-controlled Sunday Mail said the unity government of Mugabe and opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai decided the Zimbabwe dollar should only be reintroduced when industrial output reaches about 60 percent of capacity from the current 20 percent average.

"The Zimbabwe dollar will be out for at least a year. We resolved that there will be no immediate plans to (re)introduce the money because there is nothing to support and hold its value," the newspaper quoted Economic Planning and Development Minister Elton Mangoma as saying.

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More on the Somalia Situation

The rescue of an American ship captain held at gunpoint in a daring operation that left three pirates dead and ended a five-day standoff drew threats of retaliation from angry pirates Monday.

Those threats raised fears for the safety of some 230 foreign sailors still held hostage in more than a dozen ships anchored off the coast of lawless Somalia.

"From now on, if we capture foreign ships and their respective countries try to attack us, we will kill them (the hostages)," Jamac Habeb, a 30-year-old pirate, said from one of Somalia’s piracy hubs, Eyl. "(U.S. forces have) become our No. 1 enemy."

A Mogadishu airport staff member said mortar shells were fired toward the airport as a plane carrying U.S. Rep. Donald Payne, D-N.J., took off safely from the Somali capital on Monday.

 

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Black News: African Americans Less Likely to get Proper Cancer Treatment

Black patients with lung cancer are less likely than white patients to receive recommended chemotherapy and surgery, a new study finds.

Disparities in lung cancer treatments were as large in 2002 as they were back in the early 1990s, even though there have been efforts to decrease those inequalities in treatment, the study said.

"This study shows what most of the previous research has shown — that disparities in treatment patterns [still exist] between blacks and whites," said Katherine S. Virgo, director of health services research the American Cancer Society, who was not involved in the study.

The findings were published online April 13 in the journalCancer.

For the study, Dale Hardy, of the University of Texas School of Public Health, and colleagues collected data on 83,101 people 65 and older with non-small cell lung cancer — the most common form of lung cancer — between 1991 and 2002.

 

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Genma Holmes Discusses Nancy Grace’s Obsession with Caylee Anthony

by Genma Holmes, YourBlackWorld

In today’s world, many individuals can deliver the news. News anchors, reporters, journalists, bloggers and talent disguised as cable hosts and then there is Nancy Grace. Nancy Grace is in a genre by herself. She is the only person on television that covers missing kids with some facts and any rumor that can be found on the streets. I am convinced that CNN’s Nancy Grace is obsessed with Caylee Anthony and needs psychiatric counseling immediately. With little objectivity and even less professionalism, Nancy conducts interviews equivalent to face offs. Nancy Grace, a former prosecutor, makes me wonder if she believes she can bypass the courts and send anyone straight to jail via her TV show.

Nancy Grace has a special way of making you hate to watch her and hate to miss the next show. Since July, her acid tongue has been fixated on the Anthony family complete with swirling pictures and videos on the TV screen. As a self professed news junkie, I can watch any show on any network with an open mind. But I can only watch Nancy Grace in short intervals. Nancy has become as creepy as a pedophile showing the pictures of Caylee throughout her show. Speaking of perverts, she closes the show to Michael Jackson’s song “Gone Too Soon”. The irony of that is too long to discuss in this posting. I often find myself begging my TV screen to show a child of color missing as if it would answer back.

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Black Prof Marc Lamont Hill: Lawrence Summers, Obama’s Advisor – is he on the Take?

Dr. Marc Lamont Hill, Columbia University

Matt Tabibi wrote an interesting piece on Larry Summers, President Obama’s chief economic adviser. One of the main critiques is that he accepted major payoffs speaking fees from corporations that would soon demand billions of taxpayer dollars. He writes:

So I guess that $45,000 speaking fee from Merrill Lynch wasn’t technically a bribe because Summers wasn’t named to Obama’s economic transition team until Nov. 24 — a full 12 days later. I’m sure Larry Summers had absolutely no inkling whatsoever that he was going to be one of the key advisers to the new administration on Nov. 12.

It likewise makes perfect sense that Merrill Lynch, a company just months removed from having to be rescued from bankruptcy by an 11th-hour, pseudo-state-subsidized buyout by Bank of America, would decide to spend $45,000 on a speaking appearance by Summers because, well, they really valued his economic expertise and his proven ability to rally the troops with his stirring rhetoric.

It certainly had nothing to do with the fact that a) it was eight days after a Democrat was elected to the presidency; b) Summers had a long history of being one of the key policymakers in Democratic Party politics; and c) Merrill was absolutely not going to survive more than a few more months unless taxpayers forked over another 20 billion or so to cover the giant hole in Merrill’s balance sheet that was, at that time, still being hidden from Bank of America and its shareholders.

And how about that $135,000 appearance for Goldman Sachs in April, when Summers was already involved with Democratic Party politics again? That wasn’t a surreptitious campaign contribution at all!

For the rest of the story, click here.

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Fox News Gets Heat for their Racism

Fox News is not off the hook just yet.  A video criticizing Fox News’ portrayal of African Americans has received tens of thousands of views on Youtube.  Click the image to watch!

 

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The Obamas Get Their Dog

Who let the dog out?

That’s the Washington mystery du jour.

The identity of the first puppy — the one that the Washington press corps has been yelping about for months, the one President Obama has seemed to delight in dropping hints about — leaked out yesterday. This despite White House efforts to delay the news until the big debut planned for Tuesday afternoon.

The little guy is a 6-month-old Portuguese water dog given to the Obama girls as a gift by that Portuguese water dog-lovin’ senator himself, Edward M. Kennedy of Massachusetts. The girls named it Bo — and let it be noted that you learned that here first. Malia and Sasha chose the name, because their cousins have a cat named Bo and because first lady Michelle Obama’s father was nicknamed Diddley, a source said. (Get it? Bo . . . Diddley?)

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Black Political Commentary: Our Broken Prisons and How They Affect Black Men

Harry C. Alford

There is one serious fault that America has yet to actually address: the medieval prison system that we have implemented and have actually enlarged over the last few decades.

No other nation imprisons its citizens the way America does. For a free democratic nation we have a system that belongs with some sort of tyranny or oppressive order. It is oppressive and targets people of color – particularly African-Americans.

There are more African-American males in prisons than in college institutions. That is not the stuff that makes a nation great.

I have a degree in Correctional Administration from the University of Wisconsin. It was during internships that I noticed the actual prison systems did not match the scholarly material I was studying.

There was no direct attempt to address recidivism or actually rehabilitate offenders. The prisons were warehouses that eventually developed into “cash cows” by the manipulative and greedy. US prisons for the most part have become predators on the general population.

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Who are the top 10 Black Professors in America?

by Dr. Boyce Watkins

www.BoyceWatkins.com

I wake up with strange thoughts on my brain.  This morning, I woke up thinking about which Black scholars I feel have given the most to the Black community.  My respect and appreciation for all Black scholars (even those who do not have PhDs) is without limit.  But there are some that I feel have gone out of their way to be progressive enough to think outside the box and to have a true and real impact on the Black community.

I do not believe that scholarly contributions to the Black community are defined by writing a bunch of research papers that no one ever reads (although I’ve done plenty of that in my own career as part of my job description).  I don’t think your contribution is captured by whether or not you have a chair at Harvard University (interacting with 4 or 5 privileged Black students a year) – although it’s okay to have a chaired position at Harvard.  Much of the elitism of academia has always been a turnoff to me, since I believe the proof is in the potato salad.  If your work is affecting real Black people and changing real Black lives, then you have my respect.  If you are sitting in the ivory tower, claiming the masters house and hiding behind artificially constructed, racially-biased historical privilege which allows you to presume that you are better than everyone else, then you will have to be on someone else’s list.  My belief is that a scholar should have SCHOLARLY IMPACT – which can be measured by the breadth and depth of impact your work has had on your target audience, as well as the size and scope of that audience.  A journal with 50 readers per year does not possess sufficient breadth, depth or quality of impact to merit a meaningful career, in my opinion.  Sure, it’s fun to publish in those journals, but after that, you may want to get out here and make a difference in that scary place called “the real world”.

Of course my opinion is not the only one out there.  But I must confess that I was shocked at how many of our intellectual leaders aren’t leading anyone: many of us are quick to follow and promote the questionable norms created by our academic predecessors.  We in academia are not much different from politicians who forget to serve their constituents, or pastors who, in their own quest for personal power, neglect to serve their Lord.  Such small thinking is incredibly dangerous in Black America, since we really need our scholars to solve vital problems in our communities.  We must accompany our capacity with sufficient courage to speak openly and honestly about the issues that affect those we love.  In physics, force equals mass times acceleration, which means that we must connect our scholarly mass with social acceleration to create the necessary force to solve real and meaningful problems.

My dissertation chair (Rene Stulz at Ohio State University), is one of the leading 3 non-Black Financial scholars in the world (as measured by the number of publications in our so-called premier academic journals).  He thought I was insane for choosing the career path that I picked, especially since he seemed to believe that he’d laid out the golden path for me as a Financial scholar (you know, all that Ivy League professor, top journal stuff that makes a small group of people think you’re special).  But what I had to explain to Rene was that God has given me a different path: one in which I had to disengage from the pettiness of academia and pursue a more powerful purpose.  The challenges of Black America call for active, interdisciplinary thought that is not afraid to challenge ideas created on an undeniably skewed racial foundation….we can’t afford be like everybody else – the waste is just too great.  Rene still looks at me like I’m crazy when we see one another, but I respect his choices and I think he respects mine. 

Now, onto the list of my favorite Black scholars – the list is in no particular order and if a certain scholar is not in the top 10, that doesn’t mean I don’t respect that individual.  But there are some prominent names missing from the list, and I’ll let you guess why they aren’t there:

1) Dr. Marc Lamont Hill (Columbia University) – Marc impresses me as the brightest young mind of the 21st century.  Marc is not just as sharp as a butcher knife, he is also a true brother who really understands the problems of the Black community.  I cannot tell you how much Marc struggled to build his career, it was tough to watch.  But Marc is not just brilliant, he represents the essence of that concept called “Survival of the fittest”.  The best is yet to come.

2) Peniel Joseph (Harvard University/Brandeis University) – Peniel, who wrote a book on Barack Obama recently, is not just a brilliant scholar, but a great person.  His work is second to none and his analysis on PBS is right on point.

3) Cornel West (Princeton) – Who can forget Cornel?  Our great academic father deserves respect for opening the door to the possibility of pursuing true Black scholarship that is relevant to the world around us.  Cornel’s battles at Harvard prepared me for the challenges I would encounter here at Syracuse.  This man will be in the history books and he deserves to be there.

4) Michael Eric Dyson (Georgetown University) – Michael (we call him “Mike”) was the reason I became a publicly engaged scholar in the first place.  I remember watching him on BET in the 90s with my jaws dropped, saying, “Damn, I wanna be like that guy!”  While I eventually developed my own style (Mike and I differ in many ways), I can say that Michael’s commitment to hip hop culture and his amazing swagger simply cannot be stolen or emulated.

5) Dr. Fritz Polite (U. Tennessee) – Fritz is one of the leading advocates for Black male athletes in America.  He also carries the kind of strong and assertive style that should embody all progressive Black male intellectuals.  Many of us have the ability to be strong, but we choose to walk in fear and silence.  Fritz does no such thing.

6) Dr. Billy Hawkins (U. Georgia) – Billy’s recent commentary about Black male athletes was one of the most powerful and poignant statements I’ve seen in a while.  I love it when Black men attack an issue head-on, instead of skirting around it for fear of losing our jobs.  In order for their to be progress, men must be willing to take the lead.  The fight is not with our muscles, it is with our minds.  Intellectual athletes like Billy Hawkins are far more impactful than Black male professional athletes,  who have unfortunately relegated themselves to psychological and financial slavery. 

7) Dr. Juan Gilbert (U. Auburn/Clemson University) – President of the Brothers of the Academy (the largest group of Black male PhDs in America), Juan is an amazing visionary and a powerful guide to young Black students.  He is also one of the premier computer scientists in the world and a highly impactful scholar.

Dr. Julianne Malveaux (President – Bennett College) – The only thing you can say about Julianne is “deeyamm”.  She, along with Michael Eric Dyson, were the two greatest reasons for my becoming a publicly engaged scholar.  Also, as the only other publicly engaged scholar who deals with Financial issues, I have learned a lot from Julianne as a mentor, colleague and friend.  

9) Dr. Wilmer Leon (Howard University) – Wilmer is the host of “On with Leon”, an XM satellite radio show.  As an expert in Black Political History, Wilmer has been highly impactful when it comes to educating the Black community on critical socio-political issues.  His meticulous, educational style of information sharing should be given a larger platform.

10) Dr. Christopher Metzler (Georgetown University) – Chris wrote an article about Academic Imperialism that simply knocked my socks off.  I called Chris on the phone to talk with him, and found him to be the kind of Black scholar we need in America today.  Educated at Oxford, Chris has exactly the type of global perspective that we need from African American intellectuals.

Ok, that’s “Boyce’s Top Ten”.  I put together this list based on the scholarly impact of my colleagues, rather than how many publications they have in specific journals or the university with which they are affiliated.  This is the kind of list that is built on courage.  In my opinion, if you’re not out there doing YOUR thing, then you’re not out there doing ANY thing.  We’ve spent all of our time doing THEIR thing, and now it’s time to start doing OUR thing.

Dr. Boyce Watkins is a Finance Professor at Syracuse University and author of “What if George Bush were a Black Man?”  For more information, please visit www.BoyceWatkins.com.

Did Obama Bow or Pick something off the floor?

Pres. Obama is catching a great deal of flack for allegedly bowing to King Abdullah in Saudi Arabia.  This is a no-no in the eyes of some, as it indicates submission.  Click the image to watch the video and judge for yourself.

 

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Dr. Billy Hawkins’ New Book: Are Black Male Athletes Driving Ms. Daisy?

Dr. Billy Hawkins, University of Georgia

Excerpts from the forthcoming book – The New Plantation: The Internal Colonization of Black Male Athletes

It should not take a long stretch of the imagination to see how Black male athletes contribute significantly to the athletic labor class at predominantly White National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I Institutions (PWI’s); thus, to the overall bottom-line of the revenue generated. Their presence as starters and their representation on the top football and basketball programs in the country speak volumes to PWI’s need for Black male athletes. Tables 1 &2 illustrate the contribution Black male athletes make for some of the top athletic programs in the nation.

Within this current economic configuration, another area to consider is the contribution Black male athletes are making towards “Title IX sports”[1]: those sports that are added to meet gender equity requirements, which undoubtedly are played mostly by White women (e.g. rifle, golf, equestrian, rowing, bowling, and lacrosse). According to Welch Suggs:

…Only 2.7 percent of women receiving scholarships to play all other sports at predominantly white colleges in Division I are black. Yet those are precisely the sports – golf, lacrosse, and soccer, as well as rowing – that colleges have been adding to comply with Title IX.[2]

Therefore, since Title IX has provided very limited opportunity for Black females but additional opportunities for White women to compete and Black male athletes make-up the greater percentage of the revenue generating sports that contribute to athletic departments’ revenue, and thus their ability to support these additional sports, a reoccurring historical relationship between the White female and Black male has been resurrected. I refer to this contribution and connection as the “Driving Miss Daisy” syndrome.

 

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Black Political News: Kwame Kilpatrick Might Be in Trouble AGAIN

 

Former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick used his re-election fund to pay lawyers nearly $1 million for their ultimately futile efforts to keep him out of jail — a move that possibly violates state campaign finance laws.

Kilpatrick’s lead attorney, James Thomas, defended tapping the campaign account but Maurice Kelman, a retired Wayne State University law professor, said it was improper. Kelman has been calling on Kilpatrick to disclose his spending.

A spokesman for state Attorney General Mike Cox said Wednesday that such matters are typically referred to local prosecutors.

Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy’s spokeswoman Maria Miller declined comment on the legality of tapping the fund but said prosecutors will look at the $215,000 that Kilpatrick said he had left in the fund at the end of 2008.

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The President Offers Help for the Unemployed

For millions of jobless people dependent on unemployment benefits, the wait for help may be getting shorter.

After computer system crashes and overwhelmed phone lines at state unemployment offices inundated with record claims, federal funds are starting to ease the jam, says Richard Hobbie of the National Association of State Workforce Agencies. The $500 million from the economic stimulus package President Obama signed Feb. 17 began flowing into state coffers in mid-March.

The aid is separate from the package’s $7 billion for enhanced employment benefits, which some Republican governors, including those of South Carolina, Louisiana, Texas, Alaska and Mississippi, have rejected because they say it would lead to higher business taxes when the federal funds end. The administrative funds are meant to improve claims processing and help the jobless find work.

"Now it’s a matter of getting the money and spending it on the right things," Hobbie says. He predicts those filing for unemployment benefits "will see more reliable and faster service and more help at finding a new job."

 

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Technorati Tags: black money,black wealth,african american money,african american wealth

Your Black News: Somalia Government Has Collapsed

Warlords and militias terrorizing villages. No functioning government, courts or police. Drought and hunger afflicting half the country.

That’s the situation in Somalia driving the epidemic of piracy off its coast, experts say. The chaos means there are no easy military or diplomatic solutions for the U.S. and allies to prevent attacks such as the one on the Maersk Alabama on Wednesday.

"There are not any straightforward or obvious answers," said Chris Albin-Lackey, a senior Africa researcher at Human Rights Watch. Piracy "is, at the end of the day, a symptom of state collapse."

Jendayi Frazer, who was assistant secretary of State for African Affairs in George W. Bush’s administration, said, "The idea that we could police that area through ships is not working. The problem is not in the sea — it’s on the shore."

But international efforts to establish stability in Somalia have foundered.

The African Union has about 3,000 peacekeepers in Somalia tasked with keeping order in the capital, Mogadishu, but they are ineffective, said Jennifer Cooke, who directs the Africa program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a think tank. Regular U.S. troops haven’t been on the ground in the country since just after the Battle of Mogadishu in 1993, in which 18 Americans died. That battle, immortalized in the filmBlack Hawk Down, left Americans with "psychic scars" about putting troops in Africa, Cooke said.

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Black Political News: Cynthia McKinney Has More to Say after the Election

Hello!!!

First of all, I’d like to announce that I’ll be on www.wpfw.org radio in the morning at 7:00 on Hodari’s show. I’ll be on live from Haiti. I hope those of you who can will tune in.

Of late, I’m been approached by four types of voters: one voter type knew about our Power to the People campaign and enthusiastically supported it. They find themselves in the position of not wanting to say, "I told you so" too loudly, but certainly say it among themselves and to each other.

Increasingly, though, there’s another type of voter that is contacting me, expressing "Buyer’s Remorse" for having supported candidate Barack Obama. These voters can be futher subdivided into three categories: those who voted for Obama, not knowing very much about our Power to the People campaign; those who voted for Obama, knowing a lot about Rosa, me, and the Power to the People campaign, but who chose instead to vote for Obama out of fear of a McCain/Palin White House; and finally, those who knew about our Power to the People campaign and were hostile to it because they were suspicious that our campaign was designed to deny the White House to candidate Obama–the spoiler campaign. Fortunately and hopefully, because of the integrity with which we ran our campaign, those in this latter category are few in terms of their numbers in communication with me.

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