Trice Edney Wire
May 12 2011

Birther logic finds its equivalent in South Africa

I am glad that President Barack Obama has a sense of humor about the birthers. I don’t, and I am disgusted that Donald Trump, lacking both sense and scruples, was able to push the president to releasing his “long form” birth certificate.

Apr 28 2011

Black incarceration tops 838 percent

There are more than 200,000 women who are currently incarcerated; 115,000 in federal or state prisons and 99,000 in local jails. Nearly 1 million women are on probation—representing 26 percent of those on probation, and 98,000 are on parole.

Women’s incarceration has grown by more than 800 percent in the last three decades, while men’s incarceration has grown as rapidly. African American women’s incarceration—at 838 percent—has grown even more quickly than the incarceration of other women.

Apr 21 2011

Jobs not cuts are needed

President Barack Obama is adept at walking a tightrope. That’s what he did last week when he talked about the budget, chastising both Democrats and Republicans. He spoke to the need for government to stand in the gap for the needy, even as he understood the ramifications of the Ryan budget.

Apr 21 2011

Urban League declares war on unemployment

Economists say the recession is over. Recent national job reports illustrate an upward climb to the recovery. Yet these accomplishments have not effectively reached the urban communities of color—neither Black nor Hispanic.

This is according to the National Urban League’s 2011 “State of Black America” (SOBA) released recently. To combat this painful State of Black America in 2011, the NUL has declared a war on unemployment.

Apr 18 2011

Obama to visit country next month

Rev. Jesse Jackson last month met with Ireland Prime Minister Enda Kenny at the Office of the Taoiseach (Prime Minister's Office) in Leinster House. Rev. Jackson met with the Prime Minister for a wide ranging discussion on both domestic and international affairs. They discussed the reconciliation efforts in Northern Ireland, following on Rev. Jackson's visit to Belfast and Derry; and the plight of Ireland's Traveller's community—indigenous people who face discrimination in all aspects of Ireland's life.

Apr 17 2011

Police union action infuriates family of victim

The family of a Black Pace University student is infuriated after the police officer responsible for his death was recently named “officer of the year” by his union.
 
According to The New York Post, Officer Aaron Hess of Pleasantville in Westchester County, N.Y. received the honor in early April. But the relatives of slain 20-year-old Danroy “DJ” Henry say the award is an insult, after Hess fatally shot the Pace junior and defensive back outside a bar last October.
 

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.”