Mary Hill-Wagner
Apr 21 2011

Earth Day shines light on major concerns

“We want to build a green economy strong enough to lift people out of poverty,” Van Jones said in his best-selling book “The Green Collar Economy: How One Solution Can Fix Our Two Biggest Problems.”

“We want to create green pathways out of poverty and into great careers for American children. We want this ‘green wave’ to lift all boats. This country can save the polar bears and kids too.”
Jones could find a great starting place in South Los Angeles, and it may be happening at a local college.

Jan 27 2011

Enterprise Zone incentives on chopping block

Gov. Jerry Brown’s campaign pledge to “get California working again” may prove a hollow promise for African Americans, according to some state lawmakers. Many of the proposed cuts may actually be “devastating” to Black communities, resulting in a loss of jobs and businesses, some say.

Among his proposals, Brown wants to eliminate state tax benefits for Enterprise Zones. In addition, the governor has called on legislators to enact, by March 1, a budget that includes cutbacks to welfare and the state’s public universities.

Nov 4 2010

Where’s my class? Where’s my locker? Can I borrow a pencil? What’s a quadratic equation? Isn’t this my English class?

Questions for students may linger about what the new school year will bring, but local charities hope to at least provide the answer to questions about school supplies. School-age children can receive free school supplies, including backpacks, at the fifth annual Back to School Family Inclusion and Resource Fair on August 29 from noon to 4 p.m. at the Foundation for the Junior Blind, 5300 Angeles Vista Blvd., Los Angeles. Free health screenings are also being offered at the fair.
 

Oct 21 2010

Tea Party, hot button issues, Obama all in the mix

On November 2, California voters will go to the polls to determine, if the nation has shifted from the “yes, we can” rhetoric of the Obama campaign to the “no you cannot” bombast of the Tea Party, according to political analysts.

This election is particularly poignant for African Americans, because it will determine the nation’s direction on job creation and significant health care reform, these analysts say. Blacks have higher unemployment rates and less access to health care than many other groups.

Oct 14 2010

Young Blacks more likely to ‘end it all’

When Donna Barnes sought help to deal with her son’s death two decades ago, there were no services in the African American community for families coping with the suicide of a loved one, she said.

The stigma was too great, Barnes said. Also, it has been a popular notion that African Americans do not take their own lives, she added.

Jul 15 2010

LAPD pioneers several actions in search

The fact that the victims of the so-called “Grim Sleeper,” were African American may not have been the reason that it took the Los Angeles Police Department (L.A.P.D.) almost a quarter century to corral a suspect in the killings, according to Councilman Bernard C. Parks, who represents the eighth District, which includes South Los Angeles.

Across Black America

Here’s a look at African American people and issues making headlines throughout the country.

California
San Diego college students and volunteers will carry out their sixth home restoration project on Wednesday, July 10 through Sunday, July 14. as part of the “Healing our Heroes’ Homes” (H3) program created by the nonprofit Embrace. The five-day effort will take place at the home of medically retired Marine Corps Capt. Sarah Bettencourt. Bettencourt served with many different units across the country during the Global War on Terrorism and developed a rare neurological disorder in 2008. With a focus to restore the homes of disabled veteran homeowners, H3 falls in line with Embrace’s mission to mobilize college-student volunteers and community members to serve less fortunate members of civilian and veteran communities. The project for the Bettencourts’ home includes kitchen and bathroom remodeling, building ADA-compliant disability ramps, widening their driveway to ADA standards, widening doorways and landscaping.
 
District of Columbia
The 2013 Smithsonian Folklife Festival will showcase its five-year community research project on African American identity with the program “The Will to Adorn: African American Diversity, Style, and Identity.” This multicity collaboration examines the history and culture of the aesthetics of African Americans. The festival will be held June 26-30 and July 3-7, outdoors on the National Mall between Seventh and 14th streets. “Whether we realize it or not, we are all dress artists. The way we compose our look is a creative expression of our ideas about who we are and who we aspire to be,” said Diana N’Diaye, program curator. “This program explores the diversity of African American traditions of style, but also teaches young people the importance of documenting their own culture and saving that information for themselves and future generations.”