Across Black America

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

California
Major progress toward the creation of the new Martin Luther King Jr. Community Hospital occurred recently when the MLK hospital board named Dr. Elaine Batchlor as the institution’s new chief executive officer. Now as the hospital, still under construction, is built, Batchlor will begin to assemble its staff—physicians, personnel and also oversee the equipping of the new facility. Scheduled for completion in 2014, the hospital will have 130 beds, including a 21-bed emergency department and a critical-care unit. It also will provide a range of healthcare and social services. Batchlor, a doctor of internal medicine and rheumatology, previously served as chief medical officer for L.A. Care, the largest public health plan in the United States.


District of Columbia
A new class is opening up its doors to teach Hip Hop as an after-school activity. A Plus Kids, a nonprofit agency, has added the curriculum to a variety of other courses that include radio broadcasting, music, dance, acting, fashion and photography. The multi-faceted music and arts school, which also has a Spanish division, is designed to cultivate young talent for a future in the entertainment industry. The class, taught by renown Hip Hop historian and Rap artist Sean XLG, teaches kids, teens and young adults how to rap. The class begins with an overview of Hip Hop history to educate students on how the art form was created. “In learning the origins, students will develop an appreciation and respect for the craft and the pioneers who developed Hip Hop culture,” stated Sean XLG. The class will focus on the disciplines of songwriting, vocal performance and recording.

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

California
Lisa Williams is a mom and former professor, and has always wanted to inspire the best in young people. In 2003, the World of Entertainment, Publishing and Inspiration (World of EPI) was formed with the mission of expressing joy by providing children with access to dolls that encourage dreams, promote intelligence, challenge perceptions, and open their hearts to all types of beauty. World of EPI just released its newest doll line, the Positively Perfect Diva Collection. “Having already created an infant and toddler line of multicultural dolls, the concept for this new line started with my desire to target girls in a slightly older age group,” said Williams. “I wanted young ladies to know that they are dignified, intelligent, vivacious and attractive—and the Diva Collection materialized.”
 

District of Columbia
In their continuing effort to make Black women’s issues a top priority and remind elected officials and candidates of the voting power of Black women, the National Coalition on Black Civic Participation’s Black Women’s Roundtable co-hosted nonpartisan roundtable discussions in conjunction with the Republican National Convention (RNC) in Tampa, and the Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Charlotte. At the Charlotte Convention Center, Black Women’s Roundtable joined with Higher Heights for America to co-host, “Harnessing Black Women’s Political Power: The Chisholm Effect 40 Years in the Making,” a celebration and discussion about the power of the sister vote.

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

California
Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa recently announced the creation of the city of Los Angeles’ first Poet Laureate Program in collaboration with the Los Angeles City Council, the Mayor’s Office of Strategic Partnerships (OSP), and the Department of Cultural Affairs. The Los Angeles Poet Laureate will serve as the official ambassador of Los Angeles’ vibrant poetry and literary culture. The Poet Laureate will use the position as a platform to promote the city’s greatest writers and the transformative qualities of poetry and the written word throughout all parts of the community. Nominations will be accepted until 5 p.m. Oct. 10. The Poet Laureate announcement will be made in October. Los Angeles’ Poet Laureate will serve for a term of two years. The first Poet Laureate honored with this distinction will serve from November 2012 to October 2014 and receive a $10,000 annual grant from the Department of Cultural Affairs.

District of Columbia
The Library of Congress exhibition commemorating the 150th anniversary of the Civil War will feature more than 200 unique items, many never before on public view. “The Civil War in America” will be free and open to the public, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Saturday, from Nov. 12, 2012, to May 23, 2013, in the Southwest Exhibition Gallery of the Thomas Jefferson Building at 10 First Street S.E., Washington, D.C. The exhibition will reveal the complexity of the Civil War through those who experienced it firsthand. Never-before-seen items in the library’s collections offer a human perspective on the war and shed new light on the many ways that the terrible conflict helped shape the American people and the nation. The Library of Congress blog (blogs.loc.gov/loc/) will begin a special series of posts on Wednesday, Sept. 17, to complement “The Civil War in America” exhibition. Every Wednesday until the exhibition opens, the blog will spotlight a never-before-seen item of interest, offering an in-depth look into the documents and other artifacts that tell the story of the nation’s greatest military and political upheaval.