A Beer for Your Thoughts

You can make fun of me for being a goody two shoes, but I've never finished a beer in my entire life. I am, however, willing to drink a beer with President Obama if that will open the door to an honest conversation on race relations in America.

President Obama's announcement that he will get together today with Dr. Henry Louis Gates and Sgt. James Crowley for a beer sounds, honestly, like a bit of political posturing from a man who is trying to reverse the stain of tremendous embarrassment. But like a political pro, the president is getting chummy with police departments across the nation, and this will help him recover from his own "George Bush moment," in which he attacked the Cambridge Police Department while admittedly not knowing all the facts.

Perhaps the first beer in the White House will turn into a second and a third. People let it all hang out when they get drunk, so maybe open bottles of beer will encourage the three parties involved to have an honest dialogue on race. In fact, why don't the rest of us drink a beer too? The American racial conversation should not only include three people behind closed doors, it should include all of us.

 

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President Barack Obama’s “Teachable Moment” What Should We Learn?

By

Dr. Wilmer J. Leon III

This afternoon, President Obama, Sgt. James Crowley, and Dr. Henry Louis Gates Jr. will sit down at the White House to “clear the air.” The President’s objective is to bring the parties together and through their personal interaction move the national dialogue on race forward. In the President’s “Teachable Moment” what should we learn? We should learn how one’s perceptions can color their reality. We should also learn the danger of trying to contort a non-race based issue into a dialog or valuable lesson on race.

In all of the accounts of Dr. Gates’ arrest there has never been any indication that Sgt. Crowley used racial slurs, epithets, gestures or any other means to inject “race” into the arrest. Even Dr. Gates’ attorney, Charles Ogletree, when asked about racial profiling during a CNN interview said, “I’ve never said anything about racial profiling; you’ve never heard those words from me, it’s a case of bad judgment…we won’t know about the race element until all of the facts are in.”

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Glenn Beck Thinks Obama Doesn't Like White People

 

NEW YORK (AP) — Fox News Channel commentator Glenn Beck said he believes President Obama is a racist. Beck made the statement during a guest appearance Tuesday on the Fox & Friends morning show. He said Obama has exposed himself as a person with "a deep-seated hatred for white people or the white culture."

His remarks came during a discussion of Obama's reaction to the arrest of Harvard University scholar Henry Louis Gates Jr. Gates is black and was arrested for disorderly conduct by a white policeman over a misunderstanding about a break-in at Gates' home.

An Obama spokesman, William Burton, said the White House had no comment on Beck.

Beck's statement was challenged on the air by Fox host Brian Kilmeade, who noted that most of the people who work for the nation's first black president are white.

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NCAA Finally Gets Sued For Exploitation

 

 

It's about time.

"I've written extensively about the NCAA and what I perceive to be its consistent effort to exploit the black community," writes by Boyce Watkins, PhD.  "It spends millions on public service announcements to protect its deception, but eventually the athletes and the public are going to wise up to what it is doing. The truth is that college athletes should be paid for the same reasons that any actor in a Hollywood blockbuster film would expect to receive compensation. The problem is that the families of athletes don't quite know how to organize and fight for their power."

Watkins, who teaches finance at Syracuse University, a school that earns millions off black families every year, analyzed the recent lawsuit against the NCAA for allegedly misusing the images of athletes for video games.

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Black Thinkers Speak on Obama and More

• 

  G'Ra Asim

  Writer & Novelist

  Young black voters came out for Obama, but may not return

  8:12 AM on 07/29/2009

  During last year's presidential campaign, the second-most talked about aspect of Barack Obama's historic candidacy was the fervor with which...

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• 

  Rashod D. Ollison

  Cultural Critic

  Brewski diplomacy won't wash down racism

  12:59 PM on 07/28/2009

  Unemployment among African Americans, which some may partly attribute to racism, is now at Depression-era levels. Racial profiling and police...

  > MORE

• Robert George

  We've learned enough from Obama's "teachable moment"

  8:00 AM on 07/28/2009

  (AP Photo/Seth Perlman, file) Despite (or perhaps because of) President Obama's rare White House press room visit Friday, the racial...

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• 

  Noel Anderson

  Associate Professor Political Science Department - City University of New York

  Sotomayor may pass ultimate one-size-fits-all test

  7:43 AM on 07/28/2009

  Judge Sonia Sotomayor admits she's an affirmative action baby. She stated in an interview that she did not have high...

News: Dr Boyce Watkins and Roland Martin going at it on CNN

Dr Boyce Watkins of Syracuse University speaks with Roland Martin and Rick Sanchez of CNN.  The conversation gets quite heated.  Click here to watch the video!

The Cause of the Deficit and Why it Matters

When George Bush took office at the beginning of 2001, the federal government was running a substantial budget surplus and projected rising surpluses "as far as the eye could see." Now, the United States is facing massive current deficits -- as a share of the economy, the largest since World War II -- and an increasingly dire and unsustainable outlook over the next 10 years and beyond.

How did we get into this fiscal mess? To quote a character in Ernest Hemingway's classic novel, "The Sun Also Rises," when asked by another how he lost his wealth, "Two ways. Gradually and then suddenly."

The gradual part was a series of policy actions adopted during the Bush administration. In 2001, the Congressional Budget Office projected that the 2008 budget would show a surplus equal to 4.5% of gross domestic product. The actual 2008 budget ran a deficit of 3.2% of GDP. Almost all of the reversal was the result of policy changes -- tax cuts and spending increases.

Then, in 2009, the bottom fell out.

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Michael Fauntroy and Boyce Watkins on CNN – 7/29/09

Click here to watch Dr Boyce Watkins of Syracuse University on CNN American Morning with Dr. Michael Fauntroy

What Needs to be Done to End Racial Profiling

In one week, President Obama covered the waterfront on racial politics. Although, in his address to the delegates at the NAACP's Centennial he said, "an African-American child is roughly five times as likely as a white child to see the inside of a jail," he also used the same "personal responsibility" rhetoric as he has every time he has spoken to African American audiences as candidate and president. Just days later, he would answer a question at a prime time press conference regarding the arrest of African American Harvard Professor Henry Louis Gates, Jr. that would place him in the middle of the debate on racial profiling.

"Personal responsibility," a Republican vocabulary word born in the Reagan era, plays politically well among moderate and conservative Whites, and even among some White liberals who, unfortunately, have a hard time distinguishing reality from the right-wing noise machine. The "personal responsibility" argument suggests that there is some inherent pathology within African Americans that is disabling. "Personal responsibility" is the modern day replacement for the antebellum term that endured through the middle of the 20th century -- "shiftlessness."

Today, Republicans argue "personal responsibility/shiftlessness" most frequently with the statistic that 70% of African American children are born to single mothers. But according to the Institute for Policy Studies, "the increase in the share of White children living in a single parent home has been much higher (229%) than for Black children (155%) since 1960." Yet Whites are never accused of lacking personal responsibility or preached to about the subject. And sometimes we Democrats, Lefties and Progressives are too quick to repeat what the Right has popularly propagandized without a careful analysis of this rhetoric's roots.

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The Ways Companies Profit off Prisoners

 

Dr. Byron Price is a black scholar with a mission. His book, "Merchandizing Prisoners" opens the door for a discussion on how the African American community is being financially pillaged by the prison industry. You may not know this, but private corporations earn money from inmate incarceration and have a direct financial incentive to house more inmates. This is a problem, since unfocused profit maximization does not make room for the dual-significance of social progress. Dr. Price is one of the leading scholars in America and he has taken it upon himself to help solve this problem.

1) What is your name and what do you do for a living?
Byron E. Price, Associate Professor, Political Science Department and Interim Director, Barbara Jordan Institute for Policy Research
2) Tell us about your book? What does it teach us?
According to National Union of Public and General Employees, "This book examines the steady growth of private, for-profit prison firms and the correctional-commercial complex that has developed tangentially with the private prison industry. It also details the strange bedfellows that have been brought together to expand this industry.

I underscore how these for-profit private prison companies have gone public and are trading on the stock exchanges and the inimical impact of prisons being publicly traded. The book debunks many of the claims as to why states seek prison privatization and demonstrates that incarceration is the new form of slavery....This work sets the record straight about the decision to privatize state prisons, revealing the political bias that often drives these policy choices."

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Black News from TheGrio.com

• 

  Deaf man tasered

  By theGrio

  7:45 PM on 07/28/2009

  Officers who used pepper spray and a Taser to remove a man from a store bathroom found out only later he was deaf and mentally disabled and didn't understand they wanted him to open the door, police said Tuesday...

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• 

  Houston fire captain apologizes for noose in locker

  By theGrio

  6:20 PM on 07/28/2009

  A senior Houston firefighter apologized Monday for keeping a rope that looked like hangman's noose in his locker, saying it was a memento from early in his career and not meant as a racist symbol...

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• 

  MLK statue defaced

  By theGrio

  4:14 PM on 07/28/2009

  The statue of America's foremost civil rights leader -- Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. -- has been defaced, painted white. Now Hollywood police are trying to determine whether this case is a hate crime or just vandalism. A homeless man...

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Colin Powell Criticizes Gate’s Actions

Former Secretary of State Colin Powell was mildly critical Tuesday of Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates Jr., whose angry response to a Cambridge, Mass., police officer touched off a national debate involving President Obama.

Powell, interviewed by CNN's Larry King, criticized the way Gates dealt with Sgt. James Crowley, a white officer who responded to reports of a possible break-in by arresting the black professor at his home on a charge of disorderly conduct. The charge was soon dropped.

Gates "might have waited a while, come outside, talked to the officer, and that might have been the end of it," said Powell, one of the nation's most prominent African Americans.

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CNN: Rick Sanchez and Boyce Watkins – 7/25/09

Syracuse University Professor Dr Boyce Watkins speaks with CNN’s Rick Sanchez about Obama’s Mistake.

Click here to watch the video.

Dr Boyce Watkins meets with Jackson, Sharpton, Ogletree

Click here to listen to Rev. Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton and Dr. Boyce Watkins (Syracuse University) talk with Harvard Law Professor, Charles Ogletree

Political News - Listen up: The Police Dispatch on the Gates Case

Just out.  Listen to the audio from the 911 call on Henry Louis Gates’ Arrest by clicking here.

Black News: Radio/TV Host Montel Williams Speaks with Dr Boyce Watkins

Dr Boyce Watkins of Syracuse University, NBC and AOL Black Voices spoke with TV and radio show host Montel Williams on Monday.  The conversation focused on race and racial profiling.  They are going to also speak on financial advice in the future.

News: Roland Martin, Boyce Watkins Talk Henry Louis Gates

Anderson COOPER: Professor Watkins, do you believe this is an issue about race, or do you think this is an issue of two people with -- with big egos or clashing egos?

WATKINS: I think that the answer is that we don't know.

And that is the problem, that we were making bandwagon assumptions based on things we didn't know. Look, either Sergeant Crowley violated procedure or he didn't. If he did violate procedure, he either violated it because Skip Gates was black or for some other reason.

But the truth is that we can't read this man's mind. And, so, the truth -- the reality is that this could have happened to someone of another ethnicity, potentially, particularly when you look throughout Sergeant Crowley's record.

And I assume that he wouldn't be teaching classes on racial sensitivity if he had a record of arresting black men for no reason. Now, I'm not trying to say that this did not happen in this case. I'm not anybody is a liar.

But what I'm saying is that we can't use this case as a -- some sort of poster child for racial-profiling issues across America, because there is real racial profiling that goes on, on places other than Harvard University, because I guarantee you this much.

MARTIN: Anderson...

WATKINS: Skip Gates is a guy who knows he is Skip Gates.

And being a black professor at Harvard, with all the money that Skip has, I guarantee you he has probably got more privilege than most white Americans have anyway.

(CROSSTALK)

MARTIN: Anderson, race -- race is involved, because you all -- look, when you step back and say, here, you have an African-American professor in his home. The cop comes there.

The black officer said, I think it may have been -- differently if it was an African-American cop with this actual black male here. What we have to learn here is, what is going through a black man's mind when this kind of thing is happening?

Again, people say, well, it needs to be overt. Well, people all self-perceive things differently. What is implied? What is inferred? And, so, here, he is standing here saying, this is how I am interpreting this.

We cannot dismiss that and say, well, that is not relevant. It is relevant, because it happens every day. People make assumptions. Women make assumptions based upon, well, is this happening to me because I am a woman? Is this happening to me because I am Hispanic? COOPER: But some assumptions are correct and some assumptions are not.

MARTIN: Absolutely. But that's why we can't...

WATKINS: Right. Absolutely.

Click to read more on the Dr Boyce Blog.

Black News: Huh? Parents blame 8-year old Child for her Rape

Just when you think you've heard all there is to hear about the horrors of child abuse and neglect in this country, there's this horrifying report: An eight-year-old girl is allegedly gang-raped by four boys -- one of them her cousin -- and then rejected by her parents for shaming them.
You heard me.

The victim hails from a Liberian enclave in Arizona, and all of the children involved are refugees. Her 23-year-old sister, who was supposedly babysitting when four boys attacked the youngster in a storage shed (pictured), told KTVK in Arizona, "She always bring trouble...I came to her and said it's not good for you to be following guys because you are still little." If the girl, who is now in foster care, were to come home, her sister says she would be scolded. "She's just bringing confusions among us," she said.

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Your Black News: Black Republicans Speak Out

 

• Watch black Republicans discuss the party's future

(AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Sarah Palin's resignation from her role as governor of Alaska has prompted new questions about the GOP's leadership and future. While Michael Steele made history by becoming the first black chairman of the Republican National Committee, where do African Americans stand in helping to redefine the party?

TheGrio sat down with a group of black Republicans to discuss their feeling on their political party and its future.

"What does it mean to be a black man that agrees with the Republican party's agenda, the Republican party's message?" said hiphoprepublican.com's Brandon Brice. "That is, reducing the size of government, giving people real opportunities to excel from any circumstance or situation."

According to a report released in May by the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press, Africans Americans make up two percent of the nation's Republican party, compared to 22 percent of the democratic party. The study also found that during the 2008 election, 95 percent of blacks voted for Barack Obama, while just four percent voted for Republican candidate John McCain.

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Dr Boyce Watkins: Players Finally Sue the NCAA

by Dr. Boyce Watkins

Syracuse University

I've written extensively about the NCAA and what I perceive to be their consistent efforts to exploit the black community. They spend millions on public service announcements to protect their deception, but eventually the athletes and the public are going to wise up to what they are doing. The truth is that college athletes should be paid for the same reasons that any actor in a Hollywood blockbuster film would expect to receive compensation. The problem is that the families of athletes don't quite know how to organize and fight for their power. So, when I read about the recentlawsuit against the NCAA for allegedly misusing the images of athletes for videogames, I was a very happy man.

Let me break it down for you:

Based on my 16-years of experience as a college professor (I currently teach atSyracuse University, a school that earns millions off black families every year), collegiate athletics is not, in my opinion, about amateurism and it's not about education. It's about making money. Period. Many athletes are admitted to college every year and they would not be granted admission were it not for their ability to play sports and make money for the campus. Making money is not a problem, but the problem comes with the fact that universities do not share this revenue with the families of the players.

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Wilmer Leon - When Is Racial Profiling Not Racial Profiling?

By Dr. Wilmer J. Leon III

When is racial profiling not racial profiling? When the facts or circumstances fail to fit the accepted definition.

In 1999, the Oxford American Dictionary (OAD) provided a definition of racial profiling for the first time. “Racial profiling: an alleged police policy of stopping and searching vehicles driven by people from particular racial groups.” In 2005 the ACLU provided the broader definition as follows, "Racial Profiling" refers to the discriminatory practice by law enforcement officials of targeting individuals for suspicion of crime based on the individual's race, ethnicity, religion or national origin. Criminal profiling, generally, as practiced by police, is the reliance on a group of characteristics they believe to be associated with crime… Racial profiling does not refer to the act of a law enforcement agent pursuing a suspect in which the specific description of the suspect includes race or ethnicity in combination with other identifying factors.” Intent is a key element in evaluating this circumstance. It does not appear by any of the facts as stated that Sgt. Crowley focused on, targeted or arrested Dr. Gates based upon his race (human), ethnicity, religion, or national origin.

One unfortunate outcome of the Dr. Henry Louis “Skip” Gates Jr. arrest in Cambridge, MA has been a rush to judgment by many who should know better. To immediately place Dr. Gates’ unfortunate arrest into the category of “racial profiling” does a great disservice to the volumes of cases that fit the accepted definition.

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Dr Boyce Watkins: Obama’s Pitch on Race and Healthcare

By Dr. Boyce Watkins

Syracuse University

10:00 PM on 07/22/2009

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Obama responds to questions during a news conference Wednesday, July 22, 2009.(AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

I found myself enjoying President Obama's Healthcare pitch to the nation on prime time television, as he explained (as most politicians do) why the world will come to an end if we don't adopt his policies. His arguments were strong and valid, and he made it clear that he was out to help the middle class by letting rich folks pay the bill. I'm all for that.

I noticed how the president used the words "middle class" about 20 times through the night, and allowed nine different reporters to ask questions, none of them African American. But then again, it might have been tough for President Obama to find black people in the room, since there sure as heck didn't seem to be very many around.

Less predictable was the racial bombshell that President Obama saved for last on Wednesday night. After being asked about the arrest of Henry Louis Gates, a prominent Harvard University professor, Obama spent just a few minutes reminding the world that he was not only a black man, but that that he was also an alumnus of Harvard University.

The man who some feel embodies the essence of a post-racial America was suddenly willing to candidly discuss race on behalf of his wealthy Harvard associate. What is incredibly ironic is that these were probably the most post-racial comments Obama has ever made, since they further opened the door to class warfare in America.

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Sometimes When You’re Right, You’re Wrong

By Wilmer Leon

On Thursday July 16, 2009 after returning from a trip to China, Harvard University scholar Dr. Henry Louis Gates Jr. had difficulty opening the front door of the home he leases from Harvard.  After he and his driver struggled with the front door Dr. Gates gained entry through the back door of the home, shut off the alarm, opened the front door, and the driver left.

According to Cambridge Police Department Incident Report #9005127, a neighbor called the police and reported a possible breaking and entering at the residence. The woman “…observed what appeared to be two black males with backpacks on the porch...”  Her suspicions were aroused when, “…she observed one of the men wedging his shoulder into the door as if he was trying to force entry.”  The uniformed police officer went to the front door, saw Dr. Gates standing in the foyer and asked him to step out onto the porch.  Dr. Gates refused.

According to the Incident Report, after identifying himself as Sgt. Crowly and explaining that he was “investigating a report of a break-in in progress” at the residence, Dr. Gates opened the front door and stated, “why, because I’m a black man in America?”  After supplying the officer with Harvard University identification, the officer radioed for Harvard University Police.

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Dr Boyce: Don’t Feel Sorry for Henry Louis Gates: Be Intelligent

by Dr. Boyce Watkins, Syracuse University

I am not Al Sharpton. In fact, I never could be and I don't want to try. I am also not Henry Louis Gates, a man with an undeniable contribution to the legacy of Black Scholarship in America. I am simply Boyce Watkins, the son of a 17-year-old mother and a father who happened to be a high-ranking police official for the past 28 years. I've argued with my father for decades, as his Bill Cosby-like views of the world have often made my face twist with confusion. But I listen to my father, because there is value in seeing other points of view.

When I hear about a Black man being mistreated by police, I take a moment of pause. I think about the horrific statistics on Black males in the criminal justice system, in which we are more likely to be arrested for the same crimes, more likely to be convicted, more likely to be incarcerated and expected to get more prison time than our White counterparts.

 

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“Being A Black Man – 101” Don’t Argue With the Police

By Dr. Wilmer J. Leon III

On Thursday July 16, 2009 after returning from a trip to China, Harvard University scholar Dr. Henry Louis Gates Jr.  had difficulty opening the front door of the home he leases from Harvard. After he and his driver struggled with the front door Dr. Gates gained entry through the back door of the home, shut off the alarm, opened the front door, and the driver left.

According to Cambridge Police Department Incident Report #9005127, a neighbor called the police and reported a possible breaking and entering at the residence. The woman “…observed what appeared to be two black males with backpacks on the porch...” Her suspicions were aroused when, “…she observed one of the men wedging his shoulder into the door as if he was trying to force entry.” The uniformed police officer went to the front door, saw Dr. Gates standing in the foyer and asked him to step out onto the porch. Dr. Gates refused.

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Consider this before crying "racial profiling"

by Boyce Watkins

I am not Al Sharpton. In fact, I never could be and I don't want to try. I am also not Henry Louis Gates, a man with an undeniable contribution to the legacy of Black Scholarship in America. I am simply Boyce Watkins, the son of a 17-year old mother and a father who happened to be a high-ranking police official for the past 28 years. I've argued with my father for decades, as his Bill Cosby-like views of the world have often made my face twist with confusion. But I listen to my father, because there is value in seeing other points of view.

When I hear about a Black man being mistreated by police, I take a moment of pause. I think about the horrific statistics on Black males in the criminal justice system, in which we are more likely to be arrested for the same crimes, more likely to be convicted, more likely to be incarcerated and expected to get more prison time than our White counterparts.

I think about my uncle, an older brother figure who was pressured into pleading guilty to a case that he wanted to fight, and who is psychologically damaged to this day from the trauma of going to prison as a 17-year old kid. I also think about my own graduate school experience in Kentucky, when I was rudely questioned by an officer after falling asleep in my office the night before a final exam.

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Dr. Marc Lamont Hill: Fox News Pundit Says No More No Homo

Fox News political contributor Dr. Marc Lamont Hill wants to put an end to the pop culture catchphrase "no homo."

"No homo" was originated by rap star Cam'ron, who had an affinity for wearing anything pink but didn't want it to be perceived as "gay."

Since being made popular by Cam'ron and his Dipset hip-hop crew, the expression has evolved into a ubiquitous slang term used to chase any phrase, action or idea that could be perceived as linguistically gay.

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Michael Steele Criticizes Obama Healthcare Plan

 

The chairman of the Republican Party on Monday called President Barack Obama's plan to overhaul health care "socialism," accusing the president of conducting a risky experiment that will hurt the economy and force millions to drop their current coverage.

Michael Steele, in remarks at the National Press Club, also said the president, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and key congressional committee chairmen are part of a "cabal" that wants to implement government-run health care.

"Obama-Pelosi want to start building a colossal, closed health care system where Washington decides. Republicans want and support an open health care system where patients and doctors make the decisions," Steele said.

Asked if Obama's health care plan represented socialism, Steele responded: "Yes. Next question."

 

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Your Black News: Harvard Prof Henry Louis Gates Arrested

Harvard University’s Henry Louis Gates Jr., director of the W.E.B. DuBois Institute for African & African American Studies, was arrested July 16 on a charge of disorderly conduct.

Gates, 58, a resident of Cambridge, Massachusetts, where Harvard’s main campus is located, was arrested after “exhibiting loud and tumultuous behavior,” according to a report on the Cambridge Police Department’s Web site. Cambridge police officials declined to comment and said the case was under investigation by Office of the Middlesex District Attorney. A call to the DA’s office wasn’t immediately returned.

 

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Marion Barry Works His Way Out of Another Pickle

Marion Barry, Washington's embattled city council member and former mayor, dodged another bullet last week when a District prosecutor declined to prosecute him on charges of stalking his ex-girlfriend. Barry was arrested and briefly detained by U.S. Park Service police July 4th after the woman, 40-year-old Donna Watts-Brighthaupt, complained that he was "bothering" her.

But Mr. Barry may not be completely out of the woods yet. The controversy kicked up by his arrest led reporters to dig out the fact that Mr. Barry had put Ms. Watts-Brighthaupt on his payroll by awarding her a $60,000 contract to study "poverty reduction," to be paid out of taxpayer dollars. That proved too much for current D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty and others, who demanded the city council open an ethics probe of Mr. Barry. On Friday, D.C. Council Chairman Vincent C. Gray announced the council would hire an independent law firm to look into the matter.

 

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President Obama Addresses Ghana

An American president who has "the blood of Africa within me" praised and scolded the continent of his ancestors Saturday, asserting forces of tyranny and corruption must yield if Africa is to achieve its promise.

"Yes you can," President Obama declared, brushing off his campaign slogan and adapting it for his foreign audience. Speaking to the Ghanaian Parliament, he called upon African societies to seize opportunities for peace, democracy and prosperity.

"This is a new moment of promise," he said. "To realize that promise, we must first recognize a fundamental truth that you have given life to in Ghana: Development depends upon good governance. That is the ingredient which has been missing in far too many places, for far too long. That is the change that can unlock Africa's potential."

MORE: Text of President Obama's speech in Ghana

The son of a white woman from Kansas and a black goat herder-turned-academic from Kenya, Obama delivered an unsentimental account of squandered opportunities in postcolonial Africa.

America's first black president spoke with a bluntness that perhaps could only come from a member of Africa's extended family.

"No country is going to create wealth if its leaders exploit the economy to enrich themselves, or police can be bought off by drug traffickers," he said.

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Black News: GOP Stands in the Way of Michael Jackson Resolution

Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee may have trouble keeping the promise she made at Michael Jackson’s public memorial for a House resolution that “forever” honors the late pop star.

Jackson Lee, a Texas Democrat, took the stage Tuesday at the Staples Center in Los Angeles and hoisted a framed copy of the resolution, embossed with a gold seal. The measure will be debated on the House floor, she said.

For that framed, embossed resolution to be completely legit, it must first get past some opposition.

Rep. Peter King, a New York Republican who called Jackson a “pervert, child molester, pedophile” in a video he posted on YouTube this week, vowed Tuesday to do “whatever I have to do” to oppose honoring Jackson.

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Black News: Kids Kept Out of Swimming Pool for Being Black?

WHEN YOU call The Valley Club, in Huntingdon Valley, a recorded message by a chipper-voiced man says, "Things are really starting to heat up here in July!"

Things are heating up, all right, but probably not in the way that the club's board would prefer. That's because families of minority children enrolled in Creative Steps Day Camp, located inside Carnell Elementary School, in Oxford Circle, are alleging that racism is the reason their kids have been kicked out of the overwhelmingly white club.

The accusations are ugly.

In early June, Alethea Wright, founder and director of 13-year-old Creative Steps, registered her 65 campers - online - to use the pool on Monday afternoons from 3:30 to 5. The special arrangement, a first for the club, was approved by its board and was to run from June 29th through Aug. 10th.

 

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Bill O’Reilly’s Dumb Comments about Michael Jackson

Bill O’reilly expressed confusion over why black people care so much about Michael Jackson.  Here is what the world’s most famous idiot had to say:

O’REILLY: Black Americans are much more engaged in watching this stuff than white Americans, even though Michael Jackson has white children — and he chose to have white children — and the face deal, don’t even want to get into… So what’s that racial thing all about?

Black News: Obama Getting Criticized for Stimulus Plan

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Nearly five months after President Obama signed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), a still-worsening economy has many wondering if stimulus is a bunch of baloney.

In February, the stimulus bill was passed with the promise that funds would be paid out quickly to save or create 750,000 jobs by early August. Without it, the Obama administration said, unemployment could rise to 9% in 2010.

With August quickly approaching, $56.3 billion, or 10% of stimulus funds have been paid out, and the unemployment rate has already risen to 9.5%.

As a result, there's debate about whether stimulus has put the economy on a path to recovery or is merely a broken promise. Some economists are already calling for a second stimulus bill as the economy continues to falter, arguing the stimulus wasn't strong enough and isn't being paid out fast enough.

On the other hand, many Republicans and even some Democrats are saying that parts of the plan were a waste of money.

Click to read.