Black Youth

Apr 18 2013

Hip Hop artist MC Lyte will be among speakers

Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority will hold its 61st western regional conference Friday, April 19, to Sunday, April 21, under the theme “Uniting Communities for Growth, Partnerships and Service.” The event will be held at the Torrance Marriott South Bay Hotel at 3635 Fashion Way in Torrance.

The community is invited to attend the free public meeting on Friday, April 19, 7:30 - 9 p.m., which will highlight the sorority’s activities around the world.

Apr 18 2013

Watts-Willowbrook Conservatory and Youth Orchestra

The Watts-Willowbrook Conservatory (WWC) and youth orchestra begins its fourth year, serving youngsters from the South Los Angeles/Watts/Compton area.

Beginners, intermediate and advanced students are welcome to participate in the program, and youth must be ages 7-18 to participate in the 10-week session. The cost is a $10 registration fee, and instruments are available for loan.

April 18 is the final day to sign up for the new session.

Enrollment applications available at The Watts-Willowbrook Boys and Girls Club.

Sikivu Hutchinson  |   OW Contributing Columnist
Sep 15 2011

Some see a ‘push-out’ mentality of Black students in effect

As an assistant principal with 29 years of experience in South L.A. schools, John Alvarez knows the drill. 

Sep 9 2011

The rate of teen pregnancy remains disproportionately high among African American teens

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Black youth report considerable pressure to have sex, according to a new survey of 1,500 Black youth ages 13-21 released by ESSENCE Magazine and The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy. Of those who have had sex, 47% of those 13-21 (including 21% of those 13-15) say they have been pressured to go further sexually than they wanted to. The groundbreaking results are featured in the October issue of ESSENCE magazine.

Mar 24 2011

Youth falsely accused of rape

On March 25, 1931, during the Depression, nine young men who had hitched a ride in a freight car to find work hauling logs on the river in Memphis, Tenn., were accused of rape, thus beginning a lifetime of trials and tragedy.

The boys, along with a group of White youth, were riding in a Southern Railroad freight car on its way from Chattanooga. 

Across Black America

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

Alabama
Freeman A. Hrabowski, president of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, will address the annual African American Business Council luncheon on June 28. Hrabowski, who is chairman of President Barack Obama’s Advisory Commission on Education Excellence for African Americans, has a national reputation for his work studying the performance of minority students in math and science. Hrabowski, named one of the 10 best college presidents in the country by Time magazine, was a child leader in the Civil Rights Movement in Birmingham in the 1960s.
 

Arkansas
The Liberty Counsel filed a motion and a brief in United States District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas seeking to intervene on behalf of a Concepts of Life crisis pregnancy center to defend against a suit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union and the Center for Reproductive Rights. The groups seek to impose a permanent injunction before the Human Heartbeat Protection Act goes into effect July 18. Liberty Counsel also filed a brief opposing the ACLU’s request for an injunction. The “Heartbeat” bill states that when a woman seeks an abortion at or after the 12th week, doctors must test for a fetal heartbeat before an abortion is performed and inform the pregnant mother that the child in her womb has a heartbeat. If a heartbeat is detected, a woman cannot have an abortion, except in cases of rape, incest, and if a mother’s life is in danger. “As we promised when the legislation was introduced, Liberty Counsel will defend this law without reservation for the people of Arkansas, born and pre-born,” said Matt Staver, founder and chairman of Liberty Counsel. “No right is more foundational than the right to life. Without life, all other rights are irrelevant,” concluded Staver.