STATE OF THE BLACK UNION 2009 Webcast

SOBU WEBCAST....

Los Alamitos Mayor to Quit After Email Furor

By: Associated Press and BlackAmericaWeb.com

LOS ALAMITOS, Calif. - The mayor of a small Southern California city says he will resign after being criticized for sharing an e-mail picture depicting the White House lawn planted with watermelons under the title "No Easter egg hunt this year."

Los Alamitos Mayor Dean Grose issued a statement Thursday saying he is sorry and will step down as mayor at Monday's City Council meeting.

Grose came under fire for sending the picture to what he called "a small group of friends." One of the recipients, Keyanus Price, a local businesswoman and city volunteer, publicly scolded the mayor for his actions.

A smashed watermelon was found at Grose's office door Thursday, an obvious reference to the White House watermelon patch email he sent to Price.

Los Alamitos Mayor to Quit After Email Furor....

State of Black Union Celebrates its 10th Year

By: Jackie Jones

This year marks the 10th anniversary of Tavis Smiley’s "State of the Black Union," an annual forum designed to help empower the black community.

Previous forums and a trilogy of books focused on a covenant with black America that calls on self-help and commitments from elected officials, community leaders, corporations and American citizens themselves - particularly African-Americans - to improve the quality of life.

"Accountable: Making America As Good As Its Promise," the third book of the "Covenant" trilogy, co-authored by Smiley and "Tom Joyner Morning Show" commentator Stephanie Robinson, president and CEO of the Jamestown Project, a national think tank that focuses on democracy, features statistics and real-life anecdotes that explain how the nation’s current economic crisis is playing out.

“'The Covenant with Black America' was the what - the 10 things we wanted done. This book lays out the what before President Barack Obama was a candidate. The second book, 'The Covenant In Action,' was the how-do-we-tackle-this part, and the third book is the whether - the yardstick to measure whether we’re holding people to that agenda,” Smiley told BlackAmericaWeb.com.

“Equally as important,” Smiley said, “we lay out what we can do to help (Obama) achieve that agenda. I want Barack Obama to be a great president.”

Although Smiley took heat from a number of quarters last year for raising questions about what then-candidate Obama was committed to doing to help the black condition, he said he was simply raising the questions that he believed black people needed to ask to ensure their issues would be addressed.

Some of the heat, he said, was based on a fear by some black people that to say anything that could be construed as negative about Obama would diminish his chances for becoming president.

State of Black Union Celebrates its 10th Year....

2/28/09: Your Weekly Address

President Obama explains how the budget he sent to Congress will fulfill the promises he made as a candidate, and assures special interests that he is ready for the fight.

Approaching the Whites-Only Bench- The most cowardly thing about our justice system.

By: Ciara Torres-Spelliscy

For state court watchers, last month provided a rare and historic moment to savor: A black governor was tasked with replacing the most powerful judge in the state, who happened to be a woman. Another small chance to make history, perhaps?

But when New York Gov. David Paterson looked at the short list of candidates presented to him to succeed Judith Kaye, the trailblazing Court of Appeals chief judge, all were male, and six of the seven candidates were white.

His hands tied by legal precedent, Paterson nominated a white man. But at the time, he publicly lamented the limited pool of candidates: “I firmly believe that we must revise the process for future judicial nominations to ensure that those under consideration represent all New Yorkers.”

The problem is the same across the country where many state courthouses still seem to have a “Whites Only” sign on display when it comes to the appointment of judges. Even in racially diverse states, racial diversity of the courts is either nonexistent or far from reflective of the general population. Today, white males are overrepresented by nearly 2-to-1 on state appellate benches compared with the general population.

Why does this matter? Because, as we are often reminded, we are a nation of laws. We resolve or differences in courtrooms ans most legal disputes in America are decided in state courts, so when those courts don't reflect the broad range of constituencies that come before them, they have less credibility when it comes to fairly resolving our conflicts.

Approaching the Whites-Only Bench....

Defenders of Post Cartoon Prove That Eric Holder Was Right

By: Tonyaa Weathersbee

So now, it seems the defenders of the New York Post’s despicable chimpanzee cartoon have veered way off the path of common sense and context to find a scapegoat.

They did some reaching and came up with … Eric Holder.

The nation’s new attorney general recently shook the realm of right-wing punditry and denial-ridden citizens by saying, during a Black History Month speech to Justice Department employees, that Americans needed to have more honest dialogue with each other regarding race and to understand the history of black folks in the United States.

“Though this nation has proudly thought of itself as an ethnic melting pot, in things racial, we have always been and continue to be, in too many ways, essentially a nation of cowards," Holder said.

Holder should have known better.

He should have known that calling Americans cowards on the unfinished business of racial equality and on the frank discussion of racial matters, especially when so many of them voted for President Barack Obama and literally believe this county is the “home of the brave,” would set off a lot of folks.

For many people, historical truth is no match for patriotic hype.

But now, some pundits are using Holder’s bluntness to defend what amounted to a racial slur splashed on the New York Post’s editorial page. Cartoonist Sean Delonas recently drew a cartoon of two police officers who had filled a chimpanzee full of bullets – with a caption saying that “They'll have to find someone else to write the next stimulus bill.”

The Post initially issued a half-hearted apology, and defended the chimpanzee as symbolic of Congress, not Obama. The Post’s owner, News Corp magnate Rupert Murdoch, today issued a stronger apology.

But scores of black people, many of whom remember a time when some whites thought they had monkey tails and how even today, know that police use slurs such as “porch monkeys,” and “gorillas in the midst,” to denigrate them, aren’t buying the Post’s explanation.

And, for that matter, neither are a lot of whites.

So the Post has been inundated with complaints and picketers. The NAACP has demanded the firings of the editor and Delonas, and the Rev. Al Sharpton is calling for a boycott.

And the commotion over that, say the cartoon’s defenders, is precisely why the country will never be able to speak frankly about race. If white folks say the wrong thing, some pundits argue, they will be labeled as racists. The way they see it, if white folks are cowards, it’s only because black folks are bad sports.

What hooey.

Defenders of Post Cartoon Prove That Eric Holder Was Right....

Tyler Perry Wants Madea Dead

Though Tyler Perry's 'Madea Goes to Jail' recently topped the U.S. box office, the actor-writer-producer-director says he wouldn't mind if the foul-tempered, pistol-packin' granny was dead.

Jindal's Speech Didn't Cut It- Gov. Bobby Jindal is trying to show America that he’s got a lot in common with President Barack Obama

By: Shiwani Srivastava

Bobby Jindal was supposed to be the GOP’s response to Barack Obama in more ways than one. But the Louisiana governor’s highly anticipated rebuttal to the president’s congressional address Tuesday, raised more questions than it answered.

The choice of Jindal for the high-profile role was further evidence, to some, that despite his own strenuous denials, the Republican Party is grooming him for a run against Obama in 2012. But the very uneven nature of his performance seemed to seriously diminish that possibility. Instead of serving as the prime-time unveiling of a bright new political superstar, Jindal’s speech left him decidedly overshadowed.

Maybe it was nerves, or maybe he intentionally reined himself in knowing what he was up against. Either way, there was no hint of the dynamic young politician who first piqued the media’s interest when he became the nation’s youngest governor in 2007, and who later was touted as the GOP’s Obama.

At a time when the GOP is trying to present itself as a party of change—and when Americans are desperate enough to ignore party affiliation—the GOP response to the Obama speech was a chance to crack things wide open; they missed it. To be fair, having the first Indian-American governor respond to a congressional address by the first African-American president does reflect a dramatic level of change on the surface. But in the current political climate, that is not enough. Jindal could have overcome his disadvantages with a better speech that laid out some specifics on how his party would tackle the current economic and financial crises differently than Obama and the Democrats. He didn’t.

Perhaps part of the problem was that Jindal approached the rebuttal like a high-school debate. He delivered a point-by-point response to the president’s and the Democratic Party’s agenda. That made it difficult for Jindal to present his own ideas on his own terms. In the end, the choice seemed like a stunt centered around identity politics. On politics, on biography, on public-speaking, Bobby Jindal pitted himself against Barack Obama—and he just didn’t cut it.

Jindal's Speech Didn't Cut It....

Republican Response to Pres. Obama Address to Congress

President Obama's Address to the Joint Session of Congress

President Obama addresses the nation before a joint session of Congress. In his speech focusing on the economy and the promotion of his economic agenda.

Duty Calls- President Obama uses his congressional speech to warn Americans that the "day of reckoning" has arrived.

By: Dayo Olopade

It was a poor man’s State of the Union—but we are all poor now. And, like a responsible parent, President Barack Obama wouldn’t let us forget it last night. Despite the sobering tumbles of financial markets and the steady uptick in job-loss numbers, the president asked the American people and their elected leaders in Congress to stay and fight. "What is required now is for this country to pull together, confront boldly the challenges we face, and take responsibility for our future once more," he said. Echoing the words of a young girl from South Carolina who wrote to Congress asking for help with her crumbling school building, he said: “We are not quitters. We are not quitters.”

The speech, which was not an official State of the Union address, was previewed by advisers as “Reaganesque," and it lived up to the hype. With Reagan’s sunny style, Obama delivered a hybrid speech, mixing the gloomy global prognosis of his inaugural address and the call to responsibility that rang through some of his most memorable moments as a candidate. The starkly progressive address was a firm, impassioned call to “claim opportunity from ordeal.”

That’s a fancy way of asking America to make lemonade from lemons—though Obama has proven himself a master at pricking the national conscience while still winning our admiration (as with the 67 separate ovations the Democratic Congress offered its new leader). In the first, most populist, third of his speech, the president went heavy on the admonitions. “If we’re honest with ourselves, we’ll admit that for too long, we have not always met these responsibilities—as a government or as a people.” He called out bankers in search of “quick profit at the expense of a healthy market” and CEOs who “use taxpayer money to pad their paychecks or buy fancy drapes or disappear on a private jet.” All this was in line with the tone struck at this week's White House fiscal responsibility summit, held in advance of the unveiling of Obama's first budget tomorrow.

Duty Calls....

Highlights from President Obama's 2009 Address to a Joint Session of Congress

The GOP’s Nutty Negro- Why aren’t responsible Republicans speaking out against Alan Keyes’ rants on President Obama’s citizenship?

By: Lawrence Bobo

Alan Keyes is a despicable lunatic. In an incredible screed now available on YouTube, Keyes denounces President Obama as a non-citizen, radical communist, abortionist, murderer bent on the destruction of the United States. He openly refuses to address President Obama by his title, instead referring to him as an “alleged usurper,” whose supposedly debatable claim to the presidency will lead to “chaos, confusion and civil war.”

Keyes again raises questions about the legitimacy of Obama’s birth certificate, even though the U.S. Supreme Court rebuffed a recent legal effort to raise this canard in court. Then he denounces Obama not only for past abortion stands, but also for his positions on immigration and mortgage relief.

What’s going on here is obvious, desperate and tragic. Republicans are so traumatized by the loss of the White House that many of them have decided to interpret the phrase “loyal opposition” to mean “complete resistance to all proposals from Democrats.” They are gambling that we will not have worked our way out of the severe economic downturn by 2010, and that a relentless, obstructionist posture will benefit them in the midterm elections.

The absence of Republican voices denouncing the irresponsible remarks is as disconcerting as Keyes’ crazy rant. Where are the voices of responsible Republican leadership disassociating the party from such poisonous accusations? The silence is telling.

The GOP’s Nutty Negro....

Alan Keyes: Stop Obama or U.S. will cease to exist!!!!

Tyler Perry's 'Madea' Tops the Box Office

Tyler Perry's 'Madea Goes to Jail' reigns at the box office, opening with an estimated 41.1 million-dollars.

NAACP wants NY Post editor and cartoonist fired

By VERENA DOBNIK

NEW YORK (AP) — The head of the NAACP on Saturday urged readers to boycott the New York Post, calling a cartoon that the newspaper published an invitation to assassinate President Barack Obama.

Benjamin Todd Jealous, president of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, called on the tabloid to remove editor-in-chief Col Allan, as well as longtime cartoonist Sean Delonas.

Earlier this week, the newspaper apologized to anyone who might have been offended by the image printed Wednesday, which some say likens Obama to a violent chimpanzee gunned down by police in Connecticut.

Jealous said the cartoon was "an invitation to assassination."

NAACP wants NY Post editor and cartoonist fired....

The NY Post's Apology Was as Tasteless as Their Cartoon

By: Deborah Mathis

It was more than 20 years ago. I had just begun writing a regular opinion column, and I had unnecessarily offended a public official. An apology was in order, and I didn’t hesitate to offer it.

After admitting my mistake in the opening lines, I proceeded to explain how I had come to make it.

“Next time, don’t do it that way,” counseled Bob McCord, my editor and a veteran newsman with decades of editorial writing under his belt. “People don’t want to hear your excuses. Just say, ‘I’m sorry; I was wrong,” and let it go at that.”

The editors of The New York Post could have used McCord’s good counsel last week, when they penned what began as an apology but ended as a scolding about its preposterous cartoon in which two police officers gun down a chimpanzee and one says, “They’ll have to find someone else to write the next stimulus bill.”

“It was meant to mock an ineptly written federal stimulus bill. Period,” read The Post editors’ post-mortem. “(T)o those who were offended by the image, we apologize.”

The NY Post's Apology Was as Tasteless as Their Cartoon....

Obama Aside, We Still Need Black History Month

By: Yanick Rice Lamb

Too many all-nighters from newspaper reporting, term papers and other homework assignments had left me a little groggy. It was the late 70s back at Ohio State University. I was sitting in one of my favorite classes, which focused on black women’s history, and the professor was telling us about Sojourner Truth. “By the way,” she offered as an aside, “Sojourner Truth gave her ‘Ain’t I a Woman’ speech up the road in Akron, Ohio.”

I sat upright so quickly that my head, which had been comfortably propped in my palm, nearly snapped off. I was stunned. I thought about all those Ohio history classes I’d taken from elementary through high school. No one ever said anything about the abolitionist or her 1851 lecture at a national women’s rights convention in my hometown. I had to hear it years later as a young adult, 120 miles away. On my next trip home, I visited the main library downtown to do some research. Turns out that Truth had given her speech a few blocks away, roughly on the former site of the art museum, where I’d spent many Saturdays.

This incident was an early reminder of the vast omissions on the black diaspora in textbooks. It reinforced my commitment as a journalist to tell untold stories and to emphasize the need for all of us to learn more black history and pass on that knowledge. This includes commemorating Black History Month. Since 1994, I’ve worked full time for black companies and institutions. Essentially, I’m thinking about our past and present contributions 24/7. Even though every day is black history day in my world, I still see the importance of shining a spotlight on our heritage. We shouldn’t end Black History Month, as some have suggested, just because President Barack Obama is in the White House.

No achievement, regardless of its magnitude, is reason enough to wipe out Black History Month. People all over the world are still skittish about race. The persistence of hate crimes and stereotypes shows how far we haven’t come. Just think about those who deny any racial overtones in the N.Y. Post's “stimulus” cartoon of a bullet-ridden monkey.

Obama Aside, We Still Need Black History Month....

Protests Continue Over NY Post Cartoon

Protesters continue to show their displeasure with the New York Post over a cartoon, that was published last week. People burned copies of The Post on Sunday. The New York Post has issued an apology for the cartoon.

2/21/09: Your Weekly Address

President Obama announces that the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act will start having an impact as soon as a few weeks from now, in the form of the quickest and broadest tax cut in history.

Don't Protest the New York Post

Obama can fend for himself. We've got better things to worry about during this Black History Month.

By: Lenny McAllister

Yes, I saw the cartoon published by the New York Post. Yes, it was insensitive, and yes, it was racist. Everyone knows that the imagery of a monkey serves as a powerful slur against African Americans, especially black men. The New York Post should be ashamed.

But, if we are going to organize a protest over the conditions black people face in America—especially during Black History Month—are we going to pick this as the cause we get behind?

Do we use our energy to take to the streets to defend the most powerful man in the United States, if not the world, from racism? Do you think Obama really needs us to defend him to the New York Post? Come on. He’s a grown man.

The president doesn’t need Roland Martin venting to the point of bursting his pipes. He doesn’t need the power of the black media to highlight this issue and protest its stench.

President Obama doesn’t need black civil rights leaders to hold press conferences to display our disgust with this thinly veiled and misguided gesture perpetrating as political satire.

If we are going to protest, let’s use the energy from our disgust from the New York Post’s cartoon to protest the conditions in our streets, in our communities and in our communities’ schools.

Don't Protest the New York Post....

NY Post Makes Partial Apology for Cartoon

After two days of protests, the New York Post apologized to some critics who were offended by a cartoon that some have interpreted as racist. However, the paper refuses to apologize to those it calls "opportunists".

Clyburn: Opposing Stimulus Slaps Blacks' Faces

By: Page Ivey

COLUMBIA, S.C. - The highest-ranking black congressman said Thursday that opposition to the federal stimulus package by southern GOP governors is "a slap in the face of African-Americans."

U.S. Rep. James Clyburn (D-S.C.) said he was insulted when the governors of Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi and his home state, which have large black populations, said they might not accept some of the money from the $787 billion stimulus package.

Texas Gov. Rick Perry said Wednesday he would accept the money, and none of the others has rejected it outright. The Republican governors of Idaho and Alaska also said they had reservations about whether the money would come with too many strings attached, but Clyburn said he was particularly taken aback by southern governors who said they might decline it.

"These four governors represent states that are in the proverbial black belt," Clyburn said.

A spokesman for South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford accused Clyburn of playing the race card.

Clyburn: Opposing Stimulus Slaps Blacks' Faces....

A New Low? Post Criticizes Gov. David Paterson’s Blindness

By: Michael H. Cottman

The New York Post, already under fire and facing boycotts for a controversial cartoon some are calling racist, is now criticizing New York Gov. David Paterson – for being blind.

Paterson, New York’s first black governor and the nation's first legally blind governor, replaced former Gov. Eliot Spitzer who resigned in disgrace last year after admitting to having an affair with a high-priced call girl.

According to the Post, as the state of New York appears to be on the brink of a financial crisis, Paterson’s blindness is obstructing his ability to lead effectively during a time of turmoil.

“Gov. David Paterson came to office almost one year ago under most trying circumstances,” the Post editorial read on Thursday. “He's had hardly a day of peace since - and many of his troubles can fairly be blamed on no one other than himself.”

“Today Albany teeters on bankruptcy,” according to the editorial. “Paterson's blindness severely constricts his ability to acquire basic information. His administration is adrift; he is inconsistent, imprecise and often contradictory in his public statements. To put it bluntly, the governor needs competent help.”

Tough talk. One political insider told BlackAmericaWeb.com the editorial was "a low blow, even for the Post."

A New Low? Post Criticizes Gov. David Paterson’s Blindness....

Protest Outside NY Post Over Cartoon

Some 200 demonstrators marched in front of the New York Post Thursday to protest a newspaper cartoon that critics say compares President Barack Obama to the chimpanzee that was recently shot dead by police in Connecticut.

After 200 Protest Over Cartoon, NY Post Apologizes - to Some

By: Karen Matthews

NEW YORK - After two days of protests, the New York Post apologized Thursday for a cartoon that some have interpreted as comparing President Barack Obama to a violent chimpanzee gunned down by police. But the newspaper also said its longtime antagonists exploited the image for revenge.

The qualified apology didn't mollify at least some of the cartoon's critics, who said they might continue protesting Friday.

The newspaper posted an editorial on its Web site Thursday evening saying the cartoon was meant to mock the federal economic stimulus bill, but "to those who were offended by the image, we apologize."

The piece was posted hours after 200 picketers chanting "Boycott the Post! Shut it down!" marched in front of the paper's office, saying the cartoon echoed racist stereotypes of blacks as monkeys.

The editorial said that "most certainly was not its intent," adding that some media and public figures who have long-standing differences with the paper saw the cartoon "as an opportunity for payback."

Calling them "opportunists," the editorial said: "To them, no apology is due."

The Rev. Al Sharpton, who helped lead the outcry over the cartoon, criticized what he called the paper's "conditional statement" of regret.

After 200 Protest Over Cartoon, NY Post Apologizes - to Some....

NY Post Chimp Cartoon Causes an Uproar

A New York Post cartoon that some have interpreted as comparing President Obama to a violent chimpanzee drew outrage from civil rights leaders and elected officials who said it echoed racist stereotypes.

Eric Holder: America ‘a Nation of Cowards’ on Racial Matters

By: Devlin Barrett

WASHINGTON - Eric Holder, the nation's first black attorney general, said Wednesday the United States was "a nation of cowards" on matters of race, with most Americans avoiding candid discussions of racial issues. In a speech to Justice Department employees marking Black History Month, Holder said the workplace is largely integrated but Americans still self-segregate on the weekends and in their private lives.

"Though this nation has proudly thought of itself as an ethnic melting pot, in things racial we have always been and I believe continue to be, in too many ways, essentially a nation of cowards," Holder said.

Race issues continue to be a topic of political discussion, but "we, as average Americans, simply do not talk enough with each other about race."

Holder's speech echoed President Barack Obama's landmark address last year on race relations during the hotly contested Democratic primaries, when the then-candidate urged the nation to break "a racial stalemate we've been stuck in for years" and bemoaned the "chasm of misunderstanding that exists between the races." Obama delivered the speech to try to distance himself from the angry rhetoric of his former pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright.

Holder cited that speech by Obama as part of the motivation for his words Wednesday, saying Americans need to overcome an ingrained inhibition against talking about race.

"If we're going to ever make progress, we're going to have to have the guts, we have to have the determination, to be honest with each other. It also means we have to be able to accept criticism where that is justified," Holder told reporters after the speech.

In the speech, Holder urged people of all races to use Black History Month as a chance for honest discussion of racial matters, including issues of health care, education and economic disparities.

Race, Holder said, "is an issue we have never been at ease with and, given our nation's history, this is in some ways understandable... If we are to make progress in this area, we must feel comfortable enough with one another and tolerant enough of each other to have frank conversations about the racial matters that continue to divide us."

Eric Holder: America ‘a Nation of Cowards’ on Racial Matters....

NY Post Blasted by Angry Readers, Public After Chimp Cartoon

By: Jackie Jones and Glenn Minnis

During the presidential campaign, The New Yorker magazine caused a stir with a satirical cover that portrayed then-candidate Barack Obama and his wife, Michelle, as militant terrorists.

It was, the magazine said, an attempt to poke fun at wild and wildly inaccurate rumors swirling about the Obamas’ political and religious leanings. Instead, the magazine took a great deal of heat for missing the mark.

Now the New York Post finds itself in a similar mess.

A cartoon in Wednesday's Post by Sean Delonas shows two police officers standing over the body of a bullet-riddled chimp. One of the officers says the other, "They'll have to find someone else to write the next stimulus bill."

Civil rights activist Rev. Al Sharpton called the cartoon "troubling at best, given the historic racist attacks of African-Americans as being synonymous with monkeys."

The Post, Sharpton said, should clarify the point it was trying to make with the cartoon, which was playing off Monday's rampage by a pet chimpanzee in Stamford, Connecticut that left a woman severely mauled. Police ended up killing the chimp.

The cartoon set off a furious response against the Post. Phones at its offices rang all day with furious callers. Protesters picketed the newspaper's headquarters in Manhattan, demanding an apology and a boycott and chanting "shut the Post down."

The newspaper’s editor, Col Allen, defended the cartoon Wednesday, suggesting Sharpton was creating a controversy where none existed.

"The cartoon is a clear parody of a current news event, to wit the shooting of a violent chimpanzee in Connecticut," Allan said in a statement. "It broadly mocks Washington's efforts to revive the economy. Again, Al Sharpton reveals himself as nothing more than a publicity opportunist."

NY Post Blasted by Angry Readers, Public After Chimp Cartoon....

Brawl Erupts at High School Basketball Game

A dozen juveniles were arrested for their roles in a massive fight that broke out during a high school basketball playoff game in Montgomery, Alabama.

NY Post cartoon seems to link Obama to dead chimp

By KAREN MATTHEWS

NEW YORK (AP) — The New York Post is standing behind a cartoon that some have interpreted as comparing President Barack Obama to a violent chimpanzee gunned down by police.

The cartoon in Wednesday's Post by Sean Delonas shows two police officers standing over the body of a bullet-riddled chimp. One of the officers says the other, "They'll have to find someone else to write the next stimulus bill."

Civil rights activist Al Sharpton called the cartoon "troubling at best given the historic racist attacks of African-Americans as being synonymous with monkeys."

NY Post cartoon seems to link Obama to dead chimp....

Confessions of a Reluctant Flag-Waver

By: William Jelani Cobb

Presidents Day was once a rude interruption to Black History Month, a reminder of whose terms we were on. This Presidents Day I find myself celebrating.

There are cynical luxuries that come with being black in this country, like the ability to shrug off the dime-store rites of patriotism. We've seen America through a perpetually raised eyebrow, the yeah, whatever perspective that comes with the terrain on our side of American history. And here lies Presidents Day. Like July 4th, Thomas Jefferson and NASCAR— it comes awash in the crimson, white and navy trimming meant to remind us of our blessed status as Americans.

For most of my life, Presidents Day has been—aside from a day off—a crass interruption, a retaining wall built into Black History Month to ensure that we don't forget whose terms we're operating on. Even the name lacks purpose—there's no weighty adjective to highlight why a president warrants a holiday; no devotion to, say, those commanders in chief who were assassinated or who led the nation through particularly trying times. Years ago it was known as Washington's Birthday, which virtually guaranteed that some black people would give the notion the stiff-arm because honoring the first president means you are simultaneously celebrating a slaveholder.

But, as with all else concerning this country, it's not that simple. Black history and Presidents Day share an ancestral link in Abraham Lincoln. There was, in the receding tides of black history, a point when many of us admired him. Carter G. Woodson, who understood Lincoln's flaws better than most, nonetheless chose February for his inaugural "Negro History Week" because both Lincoln and Frederick Douglass were born that month.

And like all else concerning black people in this country, the interconnectedness of black history and American history has become more complex with age. Since Nov. 4, 2008, it has seemed little more than an indecipherable riddle of identity. There are those who saw the election returns and divined from them a declarative statement, a reply to Frederick Douglass’ enduring question, “What to the slave is the 4th of July?” Or maybe a libation poured for those souls who died clearing the route to this moment.

Confessions of a Reluctant Flag-Waver....

Burris Tried to Raise Funds for Blagojevich

U.S. Sen. Roland Burris now acknowledges attempting to raise money for ousted Gov. Rod Blagojevich _ an explosive twist in his evolving story on how he landed a coveted Senate appointment from the man accused of trying to sell the seat.

Obama's Roots Inspire Kenyan Dad's Homeland

By: Samantha Henry

JERSEY CITY, N.J. - In the 17 years since Samuel Nyamwange came to New Jersey from Kenya, he's gotten used to his family calling about once every six weeks to check in.

That changed after Barack Obama, whose father was Kenyan, was elected president of the United States.

"Now, they're calling almost twice a week: 'Has he (Obama) done anything yet?'" Nyamwange said. "They think he's going to announce that everybody can come over here."

Nyamwange said he, like many Kenyan immigrants in America, has suddenly gained near rock-star status back home since the election.

"Everybody wants to come over here (to America) now," Nyamwange said. "They want to come here and see things for themselves, and to thank Obama for making Kenya great."

Wilfred Nyakundi, the owner of Mzalendo, a Jersey City convenience store that's a popular gathering place for Kenyan immigrants, hears similar questions when his relatives call.

"The first thing they ask you these days is 'How is Obama?' - before they ask 'How are you?'" Nyakundi said with a laugh. "They are excited, and they want to know more from us. They think since we're here, we're experiencing things directly."

Kenyans feel a special connection to Obama, and many in Jersey City, home to one of the nation's largest Kenyan immigrant communities, are especially proud of Obama's roots.

It doesn't matter to them that Obama is an American, born in Hawaii to an American mother and Kenyan father, and has only visited the East African nation a handful of times. Kenyans see a source of home pride in every gesture.

"He's a very warm person; he has a Kenyan handshake," said Jaris Mogoi of Jersey City, describing a grip that's firm and welcoming. "He even greets the journalists when he enters a press conference. That's very Kenyan."

Obama's Roots Inspire Kenyan Dad's Homeland....

U.S. to Help Plan UN Conference on Racism

By: Matthew Lee

WASHINGTON - The Obama administration said late Saturday it would participate in planning for a U.N. conference on racism despite concerns the meeting will be used by Arab nations and others to criticize Israel.

The U.S. will decide later whether to participate in the conference.

The State Department said it would send diplomats next week to participate in preparatory meetings for the World Conference Against Racism, which is set to be held in Geneva, Switzerland in April and which some countries including Israel have already decided to boycott.

During the Bush administration the United States and Israel walked out the first U.N. conference on racism in Durban, South Africa in 2001 over efforts to pass a resolution comparing Zionism - the movement to establish and maintain a Jewish state - to racism.

Those efforts failed but there are signs the resolution may be reintroduced at the so-called "Durban 2" meeting in Geneva and Israel has been actively lobbying the United States and European countries to stay away from this year's meeting.

In a statement released late Saturday, the State Department said the U.S. delegation to the planning discussions would review "current direction of conference preparations and whether U.S. participation in the conference itself is warranted."

U.S. to Help Plan UN Conference on Racism....

Lisa Jackson: Blacks Should Get Serious About Climate Change

By: Michael H. Cottman

Black environmental experts are spreading the word to African-Americans everywhere: Go green.

“Climate change is a clear and present danger to communities of color across the country,” Lisa Jackson, the new director of the Environmental Protection Agency, told a group of black college students and members of the Commission to Engage African Americans on Climate Change at a meeting at Howard University last week.

The Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies created the Commission last year. It hosted the meeting and invited students and faculty from a number of black colleges to discuss climate issues and its impact on the African-American community.

“We must act now to not only end, but also reverse, the ravaging effects inflicted upon our homes, schools and neighborhoods,” said Jackson, the first African-American to head the EPA.

“There is no need to choose between green in our pockets and going green,” Jackson said. “EPA and this administration are on the job and will work tirelessly to protect our environment and the family, friends and neighbors impacted by it.”

Jackson and other experts said that President Barack Obama’s plans to improve water and air quality will eventually help black Americans and improve living conditions in African-American communities across the country.

Lisa Jackson: Blacks Should Get Serious About Climate Change....

NAACP See Triumphs, Challenges As It Turns 100

By: Black America Web Staff

The NAACP celebrates its 100th anniversary this week--which coincides with the bicentennial of Abraham Lincoln's birth—marking another milestone in the history of the nation’s oldest civil rights organization.

The NAACP was formed partly in response to the continuing practice of lynching and the 1908 race riot in Springfield, the capital of Illinois and birthplace of Lincoln.

"The NAACP has successfully fought discrimination for 100 years and we are proud of our achievements to date," said NAACP National Board of Directors Chairman Julian Bond. "Our founders could not have dreamed that our centennial would coincide with the inauguration of the first African American president. We know we played a role in this triumph; sadly, we know our work is not done."

U.S. Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.) said the NAACP remains relevant in America.

“Earlier this year, our nation came together to celebrate an historic moment when Barack Obama was sworn in as America’s first black president,” Cummings said in a statement.

“This victory symbolized the progress our nation has made in recognizing individuals not by the color of their skin, but by the contributions they bring to our society,” Cummings said.

“And, importantly, it paid tribute to the one hundred years of blood, sweat, and tears by the NAACP to make African Americans visible,” he added. “As we enter a new era and the NAACP’s focus shifts from civil rights to human rights, I applaud the organization for everything it has done for me, my family, and my community, and I look forward to a continued legacy of justice and opportunity for my children and my children’s children.”

Heading into the 21st century, the NAACP is focused on disparities in economics, health care, education, voter empowerment and the criminal justice system while also continuing its role as legal advocate for civil rights issues.

The NAACP will partly mark the 100th year of its founding by releasing a white paper that lays out an urgent civil and human rights agenda for the 111th Congress and new Administration.

The report calls for bailout and stimulus dollars to be made discrimination resistant, highlights the need for law enforcement accountability and identifies several key areas of pressing concerns including mass incarceration, health care, the diversion of funds from Katrina victims and climate change.

"Our journey remains unfinished," said NAACP President and CEO Benjamin T. Jealous. "African Americans suffer disproportionately from the economic recession; we are seeing a rise in hate crimes and police killings, there is still not a level playing field in economic and educational opportunities for every community. The audacious dream of America, a land where opportunity exists for all and where every person is given a chance to reach their full potential, still remains elusive."

NAACP See Triumphs, Challenges As It Turns 100....

Stars React to Brown Scandal

Stars, including Taraji P. Henson, Sanaa Lathan and Glynn Turman, discuss the arrest of Chris Brown at the NAACP Image Awards.

AP Top Stories 02.13.09

Here's the latest news for Friday, February 13th: Gregg abruptly withdraws while Panetta is confirmed; Arrest in one Aussie arson; No jail for 9-year-old alleged killer; Texas recalls every product from peanut plant.

Presidential Press Conference

President Obama's first news conference since taking office.

Conn. Judge Suspended for Racial Slurs

A Superior Court judge charged with drunken driving and using racial slurs while arguing with police officers has been suspended for 240 days by a judicial review panel.

AP Top Stories 02.08.09

Here's the latest news for Sunday, Ice fisherman rescued on Lake Erie; Obama and GOP debate stimulus package; Australia hit by deadly wildfires; Sports Illustrated reports A-rod tested positive for steroids.

To Whom Does Steele Owe Thanks for His GOP Win? Barack Obama

By: Tonyaa Weathersbee

Better late than never, I say.

Nearly two decades after the Democrats anointed Ron Brown as the first African-American to head their national committee, the Republicans finally caught up. They recently tapped former Maryland lieutenant governor Michael Steele as their first black party chairman.

At this rate, I guess the GOP will nominate its first black presidential candidate by 2029.

Yet and still, the Republicans’ decision to tap Steele as their leader does, at least, show that they are dipping a big red toe into the new purple mainstream of American politics. This mainstream is one that is ethnically and racially diverse; one that defines itself on issues that it can build upon, not divide itself against.

It was that mainstream that swept Barack Obama into the White House – and Steele into the GOP party chairmanship.

So instead of just thanking the Republican leadership for his new job, Steele ought to be thanking Obama – because if his guy, John McCain, had won, he wouldn’t have had a chance against the guy who George W. Bush foisted on them.

Understand though, that Steele’s ascension doesn’t mean that the Republicans have suddenly unearthed their inner-Lincoln. His nomination, in fact, was hard-fought. Steele, who bills himself as a conservative but is moderate on issues like affirmative action and abortion rights, lobbied for the position for more than two months.

It took six ballots and a five-hour voting marathon before he was proclaimed the winner.

And while Republicans have been willing to trust black people with top positions – witness George W. Bush’s appointments of Colin Powell and later, Condoleezza Rice as the first black secretaries of states – they’ve also been known to expect acquiescence, and not attitude, from them.

It’s like they’re willing to give black people and minorities top jobs – with the understanding that they behave as slaves.

That has to change.

COMMENTARY....

Holder Sworn in As Attorney General

Eric Holder, sworn in Tuesday as attorney general, promised a clean break with the past policies of the Bush administration, saying the Justice Department will be "no place for political favoritism."

NAACP President: US Minorities Still Suffer

In a meeting with the Associated Press, NAACP President Benjamin Jealous says, despite the election of President Barack Obama, there is still a lot of work to be done to help minorities in the United States.

A Post-Racial Era? Let’s Not Be So Quick to Forget the Past

By: Deborah Mathis

It has become a hot new topic, popular among the talk show pundits in the wake of Barack Obama’s election: We have entered a post-racial era.

That supposedly means that the country has moved beyond race; that race is no longer a significant motivator in how people, or institutions, think of or treat other people.

If only. One leap forward – even a gigantic leap like the emergence of the first black president – does not a cure make for this universally human, but quintessentially American, disease. President Obama has closed a huge gap. But there are many others, and millions languish – or agonize – in those yawning chasms.

So, let them flesh this out. I want to hear more of what this purported post-racial society is about. It must be explained to those of us who worked for, prayed for, waited for and witnessed change but don’t share the confidence of those who think the hating days and hating ways are behind us.

COMMENTARY....

Former Detroit Mayor Kilpatrick Out of Jail

Kwame Kilpatrick regained his freedom early Tuesday morning, emerging from jail after a 99-day sentence and stepping back onto the streets of the city he once ruled as mayor.

Senate Votes to Confirm Holder As AG

The Senate has voted 75-21 to confirm Eric Holder as the nation's first African-American attorney general. The chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Sen. Patrick Leahy, called the vote historic.