Black News Across Black America

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

District of Columbia
The National Veterans Coalition recently added a twist to its 150th anniversary celebration of the start of the Civil War by honoring Black participation in the iconic battle with a presentation on African American service and a screening of the blockbuster movie, “Glory.” The event, held at the University of the District of Columbia, is part of an ongoing community outreach by the Coalition to publicize African American military involvement. The group’s key focus is obtaining an honorary posthumous promotion of Col. Charles Young to brigadier general. He was denied the honor because of the color of his skin and, at the time of his death in 1922, was the highest ranking Black man in the United States military. “It’s vital to recognize the contributions of Black soldiers in the defense of the nation; it’s a part of American history,” said Charles Blatcher III, chairman of the Veterans Coalition. “Our goal in sponsoring this event is threefold. First, we are acknowledging the occasion of African American participation in the Civil War. Second, the occasion offered the opportunity to introduce or re-introduce the importance of learning the facts and preserving our history. Third, this occasion was appropriate in providing us the opportunity to publicly embrace the National Museum of African American History and Culture.” The Coalition, along with the Congressional Black Caucus Veterans Brain Trust and the University of the District of Columbia, sponsored the event.

Georgia
The Joseph E. Lowery Institute for Justice and Human Rights recently held “His Words—Our Gift,” a musical and theatrical experience at Atlanta’s Symphony Hall, in celebration of the 90th birthday of legendary civil and human rights pioneer, Rev. Dr. Joseph E. Lowery. The event, which was hosted by CNN anchor Soledad O’Brien, and included performances by Stevie Wonder, the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, Jennifer Holliday, the Blind Boys of Alabama, was also attended by Cicely Tyson, Tramaine Hawkins, Peabo Bryson, Dawnn Lewis and other special guests.

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

Arkansas
Eleven-year-old Demias Jimerson, a sixth-grade student from Malvern, Ark., has emerged as such a dominant running back that the Wilson Intermediate Football League has reinstated a bylaw called the “Madre Hill rule,” which bars him from scoring a touchdown if he has already scored three times and his team has a lead of 14 points or more. The rule is named after former University of Arkansas star and Oakland Raider Madre Hill, who, like Jimerson, played youth football in the Malvern area. Hill proved so adept at getting the ball into the end zone that the league devised the rule to try and keep scores from getting too out of hand. Now it has brought the same statute back for Jimerson, saying that the rule isn’t meant to punish him, but rather to ensure that the other 21 players on the field stay involved. The rule is only applicable to fifth- and sixth-graders so Jimerson, who has been known to score seven touchdowns in a single game, will not be under restriction next year when he advances to the seventh grade.

California
Actors Hill Harper and Harry Lennix have teamed with Pathways to Your Future to host the 15th anniversary Frontline Soldiers Awards breakfast on Oct. 15 at the Proud Bird restaurant in Los Angeles. For more than 20 years Pathways to Your Future has been on the front line providing comprehensive health, education and human supportive services to Los Angeles County foster and homeless youth. This year, proceeds from the breakfast will go toward providing permanent supportive housing for transitional age homeless youth, ages 18-24. Pathways is inducting 17 people who have made remarkable contributions over the years to the community into the Frontline Soldiers Hall of Fame. Among them are Congresswoman Maxine Waters; Assemblyman Steve Bradford; Ted Watkins, CEO of the WLCAC; Marqueece Dawson of the Community Coalition; Percell Keeling & Apryl Sims, owners of Simply Wholesome Health Food Store and Restaurant, and several others. The community is invited to attend the breakfast, support the efforts of the organization and meet and greet other local leaders. For more information regarding the purchase of tickets, sponsorship opportunities or to make a donation, visit the website www.ptyf.org.

Georgia
The Medicare Diabetes Screening Project, in collaboration with the Atlanta Regional Commission’s Area Agency on Aging, and the Metro Atlanta YMCA launched a diabetes scholarship to enroll 200 adults, ages 65 or older, with prediabetes who are overweight in the YMCA’s Diabetes Prevention Program. The National Institutes of Health Diabetes Prevention Program research has shown that programs that help individuals lose a moderate amount of weight and increase their physical activity can reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes by 71 percent among older adults. In Georgia, approximately 794,000 older adults, or 72 percent of those 65 or older, have diabetes or prediabetes. In this Atlanta-based initiative, locally known as the Get a Jump on Diabetes campaign, Medicare-aged residents are eligible to participate in the program at Metro Atlanta YMCAs at no cost, thanks to scholarships provided by Novo Nordisk. In a classroom setting, a trained lifestyle coach helps older adults learn about improved eating habits, ways to increase physical activity and other changes that can lead to a healthier lifestyle.

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

California
The California State Legislature recently passed a bill, sponsored by Assemblyman Mike Davis, to end so-called prison-based gerrymandering in California, and Assembly Member Mike Davis sponsored the bill. This legislation will help bring California’s redistricting process in line with basic principles of democracy, and will serve as a model for other states in the effort to count incarcerated populations correctly in the next round of redistricting. The NAACP Legal Defense Fund consulted on drafting the legislation and advocated its adoption. During the current redistricting cycle, California counted prisoners where they are incarcerated, a practice known as “prison-based gerrymandering.” Prison-based gerrymandering artificially inflates population numbers, especially in outlying areas where most prisons are located—and thus, political influence—in those districts at the expense of mostly urban districts, where most inmates typically come from. With approximately 140,000 incarcerated persons in California, the proper counting of individuals is critical to ensuring fair representation throughout the state.

The Los Angeles Police Protective League’s (LAPPL) Eagle and Badge Foundation, which provides funding to families of Los Angeles police officers and children in the communities they serve, recently held its 10th anniversary gala honoring the new Los Angeles Lakers Coach Mike Brown at the JW Marriott at L.A. Live. Also honored were Warren Beatty and Annette Bening, and the Los Angeles Lakers. TheVoice finalist Frenchie Davis performed at the event.

District of Columbia
Registration for the 29th annual Minority Enterprise Development (MED) Week conference, which will bring business leaders and top minority business owners to Washington this month, is now open. The MED Week conference, hosted jointly by the Small Business Administration and the Department of Commerce’s Minority Business Development Agency takes place Sept. 27-30, at the Marriott Wardman Park Hotel. This year’s MED theme is “Emerging Industries & Markets: A Blueprint for Success,” and its focus will be on helping minority-owned small businesses expand their operations and establish a presence in the global marketplace while helping them weather the current economic climate. The conference also will include sessions on high-speed rail construction projects, public utilities and green business.

Illinois
The National Black MBA Association Entrepreneurial Institute, an all-day series of business development workshops and breakthrough training sessions, will be held Wednesday, Oct. 5, during the association’s 33rd annual conference and exposition, taking place at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta. The Entrepreneurial Institute was created to help aspiring, newly established, and seasoned business owners jump-start growth, collaborate with fellow entrepreneurs and generate new ideas. Designed to encourage and support entrepreneurship among Black professionals, the institute is divided into three tracks—Start-up, Growth, and Social—tailored specifically to address the unique needs of each entrepreneur and the different phases of their business.