Blackinformant.com – African-American culture, news commentary, politics

(SciDev.Net -- Allafrica.com) Zambia's first private university for science and technology will open in July, while the country's state-run university faces problems due to a lack of government support. Victoria Falls University of Technology, based in Livingstone, Zambia, will offer training in information and communication engineering and agricultural food processing. Gertrude Akapelwa-Ehueni, chief executive officer of Victoria Falls, told SciDev.Net that the idea for the University was prompted by the shortage of ...More

(BlackNews.com) - In Don Franco's newly released book, The FAMDO Way: A Commentary and Solution to the African-American Crisis, a detailed economic plan is revealed to empower local African-American communities. Don is the Founder and CEO of FAMDO, Inc., a for-profit company that utilizes social entrepreneurship to equip black communities for success. FAMDO denotes: For All Minds Desiring Ownership. In the book, Franco reveals specific examples of how the company (FAMDO, ...More

(washingtontimes.com) The California town of Manhattan Beach is hoping to make amends for using its powers of eminent domain to take land from black families more than 80 years ago. The city council voted to rename the two block neighborhood it turned into a public park after the African-American couple that bought the land overlooking the Pacific Ocean in 1912, The Los Angeles Times reported. Charles and Willa Bruce had created one ...More

(newyorker.com) "The American explorer Robert Peary reached the North Pole on April 6, 1909. With him were four Eskimos— Oatah, Egingwah, Seegloo, and Ookeah—and Matthew Henson, an African-American guide. To Barbara Hillary, Henson is both a hero and a goad. Hillary is seventy-five, and a resident of Arverne, Queens. On April 20th, she will disembark from the Borneo ice camp, towing a fifty-pound sled and the wish to become the ...More

This was something I have heard over the past couple of years regarding how the Black community consistently votes for the Democratic party. This phrase was especially common during last year's State of the Black Union series. If you listen to many Black bloggers and media reports, Blacks are becoming sold on Barack Obama. For sometime now I have been asking "Besides his skin color, what is the draw that ...More

(washingtonpost.com) "New Orleans Mayor C. Ray Nagin has suggested that the slow recovery and rebuilding of New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina -- which has prevented many black former residents from returning -- is part of a plan to change the racial makeup and political leadership of his and other cities. "Ladies and gentlemen, what happened in New Orleans could happen anywhere," Nagin said at a dinner sponsored by the National Newspaper ...More

(cnnmoney.com) "In another study, 129 Hezbollah militants who died in action (not all of them in activities that could be considered terrorism) were compared to the general Lebanese population. The Hezbollah members were slightly less likely to be poor, and significantly more likely to have finished high school. Outside Palestine, there is general agreement that suicide attacks on civilians is a form of terrorism. So where do suicide bombers fit in? ...More

(statenews.com) It's interesting to see that during Black History Month, a time when we as a nation honor the struggles and perseverance of African Americans against racial segregation, there is a civil rights battle that mirrors theirs almost perfectly occurring here. The Marriage Protection Amendment is no better than the Black Codes and Jim Crow laws — an attempt to make second-class citizens, even three-fifths of a person, out of homosexuals. ...More

JASMINE RUMPH Case Type: Endangered Missing DOB: Jul 16, 1988 Sex: Female Missing Date: Feb 3, 2007 Race: Black Age Now: 18 Height:  5'11" (180 cm) Missing City: SEAT PLEASANT Weight:  210 lbs (95 kg) Missing State : MD Hair Color: Black Missing Country: United States Eye Color: Brown Case Number: NCMA1063825 Circumstances: Jasmine was last seen on February 3, 2007. She may still be in the local area. ANYONE HAVING INFORMATION SHOULD CONTACT National Center for Missing & Exploited Children - 1-800-843-5678 SPECIAL NOTE: This case was ...More

Huh? While this holiday is usually associated with the Irish culture, a little digging around the web will reveal that there are a few cultural positive intersections where both Africa and Ireland meet Samantha Mumba - is a Grammy-Award Nominated Irish singer, actress and model. (more...) Africans and Irish in Barbados (more...) "ALTHOUGH IT HAS been more than 20 years since Alex Haley's ``Roots'' first hit the top of the best-seller list, it is ...More

Under RE-construction throughout the evening of 3/17 and 3/18. More

This is an issue that has been on my mind off and on all week. The three most important things I see that these brothas need once they get out of prison is 1 - Serious counseling, 2 - a decent place to stay, and 3 - a good job. I know that there are many organizations out there that address these issues which is why I would ...More

(Rochester, N.Y.--13wham.com) – It’s called Black English Vernacular – or more commonly – Ebonics.In a newsletter to staff, Rochester City School District officials say it is OK for students and teachers to speak Ebonics in class. The newsletter, Diversity Dialogue, suggests teachers use BEV to communicate with students. It says teachers can: • “Switch into BEV in specific situations or informal discussion.” • "Translate common phrases in Standard English into BEV.” • “Read and ...More