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President Barack Obama, visiting with hard-hit family during the economic down turn, greets neighbors outside the home of William and Endia Eason in Cleveland, Ohio. The President visited the Easons, who almost lost their home after falling victim to a predatory lender, to discuss the need for a strong Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. PHOTO: Pete Souza/The White House

(TriceEdneyWire.com) – As a keen focus continues on what appears to be a recovering economy, but rising unemployment rate for African-Americans, President Obama last week announced a new strategy for bringing jobs back to America.

After a White House meeting with corporate leaders, the President called for businesses and corporations to reverse their outsourcing of jobs and contracts to other nations and press to find people to fill those jobs here at home.

“I could not have enjoyed more the meeting that I had this morning, because what these companies represent is a source of optimism and enormous potential for the future of America. What they have in common is that they’re part of a hopeful trend: They are bringing jobs back to America,” he said. “You’ve heard of outsourcing. Well, these companies are insourcing. These companies are choosing to invest in the one country with the most productive workers, the best universities, and the most creative and innovative entrepreneurs in the world, and that is the United States of America.”

President Obama’s remarks came on the heels of new unemployment numbers from the Bureau of Labor Statistics that showed an overall dip to 8.5 percent, the lowest since he took office. Yet, unemployment for African-Americans has crept up over the past three months to 15.8 percent.

He did not specifically mention the African-American jobless rate in the Jan. 11 speech, but he spoke of the suffering that results from job losses. The President recently visited 53 percent Black Cleveland, Ohio, where the economic downturn has hit especially hard. There, the unemployment rate is about 17 percent.

“All across this country, I meet folks who grew up with a faith that in America, hard work paid off and responsibility was rewarded, and anybody could make it if they tried -- no matter where you came from, no matter what you looked like, no matter how you started out. Those are the values that my grandparents and my mother taught me. Those are the values that built the best products and the strongest economy and the largest middle class that the world has ever known,” Obama said. “I think we understand that over the last few decades, that bargain has eroded for too many Americans. The economy has changed rapidly. And for many, that change has been painful. Factories where people thought they would retire packed up and went overseas, where labor costs were cheaper.”

President Obama stressed the reality that companies that find cheaper labor abroad are simply doing what they must in order to grow and make ends meet. But, he asked them to sacrifice for the moment due to the American jobs crisis.

“Right now, we’re at a unique moment, an inflection point, a period where we’ve got the opportunity for those jobs to come back,” he said.

He is also hoping to push legislation through Congress that will offer businesses incentives to insource and punish those that do not.

“In the next few weeks, we’re also going to put forward new tax proposals that reward companies that choose to bring jobs home and invest in America. And we’re going to eliminate tax breaks for companies that are moving jobs overseas,” Obama said.

Obama’s re-election bid is intensifying as the Republican selection process narrows down; therefore, the good news of the dropping unemployment rate was welcomed by the White House. But, the President is exuding confidence by pushing the envelope, casting his vision well past the 2012 election.

“There are workers ready to work, right now,” he said. “That’s why I set a goal of doubling our exports of goods and services by 2014 –- and it’s a goal, by the way, that we’re on track to meet; in fact, we’re a little ahead of schedule in meeting that goal.”

National Anti-Hazing/Anti-Violence Task Force Announced Death of Robert Champion Must Not be in Vain, Leaders Declare

Rev. Dr. R. B. Holmes, chair of the Anti-Hazing/Anti-Violence Task Force, announces its first conference to be held Feb. 24-25. Tallahassee Mayor John Marks, in the background, will also involve the National Conference of Black Mayors. PHOTO: Freddie Allen

Julian Coakley, SGA President of Florida Memorial University, flanked by Robert Champion Sr. and Dr. R.B. Holmes, says he is working to unite all HBCU student leaders against hazing. PHOTO: Freddie Allen

Lezli Baskerville, president/CEO of The National Association for Equal Opportunity in Higher Education (NAFEO), commits to work with the 105 HBCUs and 50 predominately Black colleges and universities to make them hazing-free. Behind her are Pam and Robert Champion Sr. PHOTO: Freddie Allen

(TriceEdneyWire.com) - A national coalition of educational, clerical and journalistic leaders have begun a movement to end hazing and other types of violence on historically Black college campuses across the nation – starting with a conference Feb. 24-25.

The Anti-Hazing/Anti-Violence Task Force Initiative and Conference was announced during a press conference held at the Washington, D.C.-based National Press Club Jan. 17, where a string of leading organizational representatives vowed they will not cease until hazing is eradicated. It is being birthed from the tragic death of drum major Robert Champion of Florida A&M University, who died after a beating from fellow band members Nov. 19.

“The untimely death of brother Robert Champion in a real sense has encouraged us to redouble our efforts to eliminate and eradicate hazing from our culture. We’ve selected a broad and diverse group of community stake holders to join this national anti-hazing, anti-violence task force. It includes our leading presidents of historically Black colleges and universities, faculty, staff and students, the faith-based community, elected officials, Greek and community organizations, educators, the Black Press and others to work together for the sole purpose of eliminating hazing from our community,” said Dr. R. B. Holmes, pastor of the Bethel Missionary Baptist Church in Tallahassee, Fla. and publisher of the Capital Outlook Newspaper, a member of the National Newspaper Publishers Association.

Holmes announced the conference to be held Feb. 24-25, at the South Carolina State University in Orangeburg, S.C.

“The purpose of this conference will be to share thoughts, ideas, and solutions from leading professionals, students and grassroots organizations to help us eradicate the culture of hazing,” he said. Flanked by HBCU presidents, and other clerical and fraternal representatives, Holmes pointed to 12-point three-year strategic plan of action that he believes will eradicate the violent induction practices for good.

The Strategic Plan of Action includes the Feb.24-25 conference; an Anti-Hazing/Anti-Violence Awareness Sunday on March 25; Anti-Hazing/Anti-Violence Engagement and Empowerment Rallies in 25 cities over the next three years; an Anti-Hazing/Anti-Violence Youth Summit in June 2012, in Atlanta, Georgia, in conjunction with the National Newspaper Publishers Association/NNPA Annual Conference; an Anti-Hazing/Anti-Violence Pre-K to High School Initiative, which will include an “Anti-Hazing Curriculum” to teach young people how to resist hazing and bullying; an Anti-Hazing/Anti-Violence Black Press Initiative to encourage Black-owned newspapers to carry monthly articles on “The Culture, Cause and Cure for Hazing” and encourage African-American broadcasters to develop talk Shows focused on the eradication of hazing from our culture.

Also, an Anti-Hazing/Anti-Violence Social Media Vision to inform the community of the effort to eradicate hazing; an Anti-Hazing/Anti-Violence Media Campaign to work with groups like BET, WORD Network, C-Span, TV One, and other media venues to develop a comprehensive plan of action to blitz their respective listening audiences on the topic of hazing; an Anti-Hazing/Anti-Violence HBCU Collaborative to join Historically Black Colleges and Universities/HBCU presidents, administrators and student leaders to spearhead workshops and conferences to eliminate hazing on and off campuses; a Theological/Psychological Response to collaborate with pastors and theologians in developing sermons and lectures on the dangers of hazing and strategies for its elimination. Psychologists and sociologists will also develop position papers on the subject.

Also, an Anti-Hazing/Anti-Violence Annual Recognition Program to recognize persons, groups, organizations, universities, colleges, businesses, media venues, and others who have developed exemplary programs to eradicate hazing from our culture and community; and Robert Champion Scholarships through the Robert Champion Foundation, which will encourage HBCUs to establish scholarships to spotlight the importance of the elimination of hazing on all campuses in general and HBCUs in particular.

Among the key organizations involved in the movement are The National Newspaper Publishers Association/NNPA; The National Save the Family Now Movement, Inc.; The Martin Luther King, Jr., Center for Nonviolent Social Change; and The National Association for Equal Opportunity in Higher Education (NAFEO).

A large part of the movement will be collaboration with groups that have historically engaged in the practice of hazing, such as sororities and fraternities.

James Crumble Sr., Southern Regional Vice President of the Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, says his region, the largest in the country for his fraternity, has established a three-point plan based on education, accountability and collaboration. He stressed accountability.

“In those rare instances where my beloved brothers make mistakes, we will hold them accountable. If that means expulsion, if that means de-chartering of a chapter, if that means providing information to local resources for criminal and civil liability, we will do that. It is time for our brothers in this house to realize that all life is precious and no tradition is worth anyone’s life,” he said.

Tallahassee Mayor John Marks, a member of the board of trustees of the National Conference of Black Mayors, noted that the subject of violence and hazing “has been an issue that has either been taboo to talk about, or a subject that is off limits.”

But, with this movement, that has changed, he said. “Never have I felt such a unified stance toward such an undignified act of violence and ignorance in our society. I am pleased to see such enthusiasm of the organizations.”

Marks said he will serve as a conduit for the 650 mayors that are members of the NCBM and a non-hazing task force will be created.

“Today marks the beginning of a new era in which we collectively engage in changing our culture and environment as we seek cross-cultural and multi-faceted solutions which will make a difference in eliminating hazing and all forms of violence from college campuses across America,” Marks said.

The difficulty of stopping the deeply entrenched behavior is evident to Julian Cokely, Student Government Association President at Florida Memorial University.

He spoke of the deaths of two women - 22 and 24 year old - from California State University who drowned blind-folded and tide together in the ocean while pledging a sorority. “When will this reckless behavior come to an end?” he asked.

Working with HBCUs across the country, Coakley says he believes in a radical approach to eradicate the behavior including removal of funds from organizations caught engaging in it.

NAFEO President & CEO Lezli Baskerville says she will help pull together the 105 Historically Black colleges and 50 predominately Black colleges and universities that are a part of NAFEO.

Unity will be the key, she says, will be “students with a sense of oneness.”

Robert Champion Sr., the father of the drum major said the most important aspect of this movement is now “urgency”.

“We can’t wait,” he stressed. “We need to give a sense of urgency so we can get rid of this thing. We’ve got a problem. It’s an urgency problem. We can’t wait. We’ve got to move now.”

His wife, Pam Champion, said the issue is now well beyond her son. “No more hiding, no more secrecy…It takes everybody. It’s not just a Champions thing. Everybody must get on board with it if we are going to end it.”

King Legacy Sets Action Agenda for 2012

Berry Gordy received the "King Lifetime Service Award" at the annual Martin Luther King Day Breakfast sponsored by the National Action Network. Said Sharpton, "The motel sound equalized America culturally more than anything in its time."

(TriceEdneyWire.com) – The packed ballroom filled with hundreds of people at the early morning breakfast in downtown D.C. was a strong indication that the nation is still in laborious pursuit of the dream of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

The event, packed with national civil rights figures and Washington insiders, was the annual National Action Network Martin Luther King Day Breakfast. To the clink of silverware, roaring applause and sometimes soul-stirring laughter, speaker after speaker articulated – not only the parts of the dream yet unrealized – but what must be done in order to achieve that goal.

Expounding on this year’s theme, “Don’t Just Celebrate, Emulate” the legendary Motown icon Berry Gordy, an honoree, pushed the audience to intensify the pursuit by adding the word “formulate”:

Gordy said, “We call for all of us to strive to embody the value of the purposeful living that was Dr. King. But is that enough? In my view, we must also formulate a chain of action to achieve the sustained changes that he lived for and died for. Each of us must strive every day to act from our higher selves to reach, to teach, and yes, Rev, to preach for it is the coming together of our ideals and our actions that form the basis of change.”

Rev. Al Sharpton, president/CEO and host at the D.C. breakfast had outlined activities for the coming months that he hopes will indeed affect change. Opening the breakfast remarks, he announced that during the remembrance of Bloody Sunday, beginning March 4th, he will lead a five-day March commemorating the historic 1965 Selma to Montgomery Voting Rights March.

According to a release, “the march will begin at the Edmund Pettus Bridge ending with a rally at the Alabama State Capitol on Friday, March 9. The March is in support of Voting Rights and to highlight the continuing efforts against Voter Suppression. This includes the efforts to defeat Voter Identification Laws and reverse anti-Immigration laws in the state of Alabama. Secondly, Rev. Sharpton announced that National Action Network will lead a rally on March 27th in Washington, DC, at the United States Supreme Court as arguments are heard on Obama Care.”

Sharpton said, “The effort to make the Health Care Act unconstitutional is not just a challenge to Health Care but a challenge to federal government superseding state government and protecting its citizens. We will be in mass marching and rallying on the day this is argued at the Supreme Court to demand in the name of Dr. King that we stop those that engage in interposing federal law with state law and nullifying federal rights to protect its citizens.”

President Obama’s health care plan was just one among his accomplishments lauded during the celebratory breakfast. As Gordy continued, he praised Obama’s Chief Advisor Valerie Jarrett, who had spoken earlier: “She’s working for the man who has the toughest job on the planet. And he’s doing just an incredible job fighting his way up from deep in a hole and he’s done some wonderful things and we hope for what he will do in the future.”

Reflecting on her work with the President, Jarrett said President Obama knew that change would be difficult.

“Dr. King reminds each of us that change depends on persistence, change requires determination,” she said. “Dr. King said, ‘The arc of the moral universe is long, but with all of us working together, it bends toward justice.’”

President Obama and First Lady Michelle honored King on the National Day of Service by participating in a community service project sponsored by the Corporation for National and Community Service in conjunction with Big Brothers Big Sisters and Greater DC Cares at the Browne Education Campus.

“Today, we celebrate the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. And we should honor that legacy by acting as drum majors for service and lifting up those less fortunate – not just today, but every day,” President Obama said. “All of us can find a way to give back to our communities, to gain new skills, and to pull together, even when times are hard. That’s what Dr. King believed in, and that’s what will make our country stronger.”

Not only person by person, but deed by deed is the way to accomplish the dream, agreed the former first Black Secretary of Labor Alexis Herman, also honored at the NAN breakfast.

“What we have to do is make Dr. King’s dream happen every day,” Herman said, quoting the late Dr. Dorothy I. Height. “‘It is just reward enough to know that I can be in the struggle and that I can continue to be of service to my people.’”

Gordy received the "King Lifetime Service Award."

"He was a talented producer and a talented arranger, but he was also talented as a corporate leader and built the first solid Black business that we know," said Sharpton. "It became the cultural transformative agent of this country because as Dr. King and others integrated lunch counters, Berry Gordy integrated the mentality of the American psyche. Young White kids, way before they went to school with us, learned how to dance with us and learned our music. The motel sound equalized America culturally more than anything in its time."

Herman received the "NAN Breaking Barriers Award." Other honorees included Maurice Cox, recipient of the "Corporate Achievement Award," and James Mitchell, who will received the "NAN Economic Justice Award."

The lineup of speakers – civic heavy weights from the inside and outside of politics – carry diverse responsibilities – all related to missions of equality. Lisa Jackson, the first African-American to head the Environmental Protection Agency, was keynote speaker. She stressed one Dr. King’s often-used words – “mutuality”.

“How can we have clean air if the air is dirty in one community? How can we have clean water if it’s okay to sacrifice the water over here not recognizing that – as any kindergartner will tell you - water flows downstream? How can we say it’s okay for hundreds of thousands of Americans to live at the risk of the peril of flooding because we decided that we should fill in the wetlands that surround their property?” she quizzed. “That’s what environmental justice is. We cannot have clean air unless we have clean air for everyone. We cannot have clean water if some community’s water is sacrificed. It’s just that simple…His legacy is an inspiration. But, his legacy is [also] a responsibility.”

Just his dream of equality and justice are so far from being fulfilled…We are in fact our brother’s and our sister’s keepers…We’ve been marching for jobs and economic justice for more than a century…Our priorities are misaligned in this nation when we spend more time developing smart phones and smart technology instead of smart children…We believe that we can’t rely on anybody to do anything for us that we are not prepared do for ourselves.

Closing out the breakfast, NAACP Chair Roslyn Brock reminded the audience of the noble mindset of a true leader:

“The true test of faithfulness and our commitment to Dr. King’s dream is not how we treat the man who holds a high position in society, but how we treat the man who has no position to hold,” she said. “It’s not how we respond to the call of the man who wields power, but it’s how we respond to the call of the man who has no power to command us.”

FBI Eyes Evil Acts Against Black Newspaper in Richmond, Va.

By Joey Matthews

RICHMOND, Va. (TriceEdneyWire.com) - The FBI has gotten involved in a stream of criminal acts against the Richmond Free Press — including the burning of copies of the newspaper in Henrico County and the blockage of reader access to Free Press boxes in the city of Richmond.

The Richmond office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation is “monitoring” the boxes to establish whether the acts amount to hate crimes, Raymond H. Boone, editor/publisher of the Richmond Free Press, said Wednesday.

Boone’s disclosure follows a meeting with Judy Sykes of the civil rights division of the Richmond FBI office. The editor/publisher met with Sykes Dec. 30 for more than two hours at the Free Press offices.

Boone quoted the special agent for the FBI as saying the Washington office of the FBI, responding to a National Public Radio interview with Boone, assigned her to investigate the attacks on the Free Press.

In response to Sykes’ request, Boone has couriered to the U.S. agency a 62-page list showing the addresses of each Free Press distribution box in the Richmond area.

The FBI has acknowledged the meeting between Boone and Sykes, but refused to give details.

“It’s my understanding that Ms. Sykes did come out and talk to Mr. Boone,” said FBI spokesperson Dee Rybiski. “It’s DOJ (Department of Justice) policy that the FBI not comment on whether or not we have an investigation.” Ms. Rybiski responded to a Free Press call placed to Sykes at the Richmond office of the FBI.

During the meeting, Sykes was provided documents, along with information showing how attempts have been made to snuff out the Free Press since it was established 20 years ago. The documents included photographs of burned copies of the Free Press at Willow Lawn in Henrico County and the use of construction netting in a City of Richmond sidewalk improvement project near Virginia Union University to block reader access to copies of the Free Press in one of its distribution boxes.

Other anti-Free Press acts include the placement of feces in distribution boxes, vandalism of the boxes and disappearance of boxes. Last month, stacks of copies of the Free Press were removed from a box and tossed out, littering the grounds near the McGuire Veterans Hospital on South Side.

Informed of the newspaper burning, Henrico County Fire Marshal David Seay said on Sept. 23 that his department is engaged in “an ongoing criminal investigation” and invited information in efforts to track down the newspaper burner(s).

In a Dec. 16 email to Mayor Dwight C. Jones informing him about the city’s inappropriate use of construction netting, Mr. Boone requested that the mayor identify the company that spread the netting that blocked access to the Free Press box.

He also requested the mayor’s reaction “to these criminal activities.”

In a meeting with Mr. Boone, the mayor opposed the vandalism of the Free Press boxes and said he would act to halt the vandalism.

Two Thousand Leaders Rally for Jobs and Affordable Housing

By Valencia Mohammed

Members of St. Mary’s Ethiopian Orthodox Church performed a ritual chant before more than 2,000 community leaders and activists gathered at the historic Metropolitan AME Church on Dec. 5 to discuss upcoming plans to fight for jobs and affordable housing in the nation’s capitol. PHOTO: Valencia Mohammed/Afro American Newspapers

(TriceEdneyWire.com) - It was an impressive gathering of spiritual leaders from denominations that rarely mingle together or remain separated by ideology. However, the Washington Interfaith Network (WIN) successfully collaborated with faith leaders from around the District to come together for a common cause – jobs and affordable housing.

Muslims, Jews, Orthodox Christians, Methodists, Baptists, Episcopalians, Catholics, Presbyterians and non-denominational leaders joined forces to address the District’s growing unemployment rate and insufficient units of affordable housing.

The gathering held on Dec. 5 at the historic Metropolitan AME Church was filled with residents eagerly waiting to receive directions for action. WIN members demand that $45 million from the city’s surplus be allocated towards employment and affordable housing by Jan. 17, 2012 or pressure for a citywide a moratorium on subsidies for major development projects will occur.

“This is reminiscent of the Civil Rights Movement,” said the Reverend Dr. E. Gail Anderson Holness, pastor of Christ Our Redeemer AME Church. “The energy was awesome. People are ready to do whatever it takes in a peaceful manner to demand jobs for DC residents and affordable housing from the companies and contractors controlling our great city.”

Youth swarmed the audience making film productions of the movement while a slide show captivated the viewers showing large city-sponsored construction projects instead of affordable housing.

“This is a more diverse gathering than ever before in our history,” said the Reverend Dr. Joseph Daniels, pastor of Emory United Methodist Church and WIN organizer.

“We have a brand new power base. This is evident that we’ve got to rise up. It’s time for us to take back our city.”

More than just a feel-good session, WIN hopes it longtime friends and new allies will support the endeavors so carefully laid out in the gathering.

The WIN agenda for 2012 includes:

• Full employment for 10,000 DC residents
• A workforce intermediary for all future DC assisted projects that requires the identification of the number and types of jobs that will be created; the hiring schedule; and job skills and certifications needed. The intermediary would also work with federal quasi government entities and private employers to identify upcoming vacancies and job growth areas.
• Accountability to ensure city dollars create jobs for all city contracts, subsidies, land deals, etc.. The city entering into binding agreements with money back guarantees that requires the contractors or developers to repay subsidies, with penalties and interests, if the company fails to create the quality of jobs and or affordable housing in the agreement.
• Expand affordable housing investment to a $43 million increase over the approved FY 2012 budget.
• Build 3,000 Nehemiah Homeownership housing units affordable to families earning $20 to $75 thousand annual income.
• Build and preserve 5,000 affordable rental housing units through new construction and renovation as well as expanding rental assistance, aggressive housing code enforcement, HUD Sect. 8 contract extensions and owner preservation incentives.
• End chronic homelessness by financing and developing 2,000 permanent supportive housing units.
• Expand emergency shelter beds for 3,000 homeless youth ages 16 to 24.
• Dedicate public land to affordable housing and continue to require 30 percent affordable housing on all city-owned land and financed projects.

Throughout the conference several council members nodded their heads in agreement. But many participants in the crowd weren’t buying the gestures.

“Jobs for Americans,” said Stevie Love, a videographer who believes that there are enough jobs in the District for all residents but businesses and contractors continue to hire immigrants over skilled American labor in all fields. “This movement should make the first criteria for hiring is that the workers are Americans. The second requirement should be that they are District residents or the unemployment rate among Americans will continue to rise.”

Black Unemployment Rates Higher Now than at Recession's Peak, Labor Experts Say

(TriceEdneyWire) - Researchers at the University of California at Berkeley Labor Center paint a grim picture for the African American segment of the U.S. economy: Black unemployment is worse now than it was two years ago.

According to the report, Black unemployment rates are higher now than they were at the official end of the recession in June 2009. The unemployment rate then was 14.9 percent. It stood at 15.8 percent at the end of last month.

Gerry Hudson, International Executive Vice President of the Service Employee International Union (SEIU) says that the country must continue to work hard to create more opportunities for African Americans.

"This report demonstrates once again that we need to take enormous steps forward to close the racial economic divide for African American workers struggling through our nation's jobs crisis,” Hudson said in a statement.

The report claims that the rate of unemployment grew faster for Whites during the recession, but Blacks have had a more difficult time bouncing back post-recession.

“Since the recession, the White male unemployment rate has decreased much more than the Black male unemployment rate and the White female unemployment rate fell slightly, in contrast to the increase in the Black female unemployment rate,” the report states.

Hudson says that gap must be closed. He says the rate of unemployment decrease should be the same for all Americans.

"We must make sure that this nearly 16 percent African American unemployment rate declines at the same rate as the rest of the nation,” he continued. “We must restore hope in the Dream for economic justice because America's hardest working men and women deserve nothing less."