CNN’s Roland Martin had some interesting things to say about "The Donald” – Click to read.
Friday, May 6, 2011
Why Won’t Obama Release the bin Laden Death Photos?
by Dr. Boyce Watkins, Your Black World
Here, I speak with Nida Khan, a highly-respected journalist with The Huffington Post, Kiss-FM in New York and the Rev. Al Sharpton National Radio show.
Giving Bush Credit for Bin Laden Means Giving Him Credit for EVERYTHING
by Dr. Wilmer Leon
After releasing the long form of his birth certificate President Obama said, “We’ve got some enormous challenges out there… We’re not going to be able to solve our problems if we get distracted by sideshows and carnival barkers.”
It’s Been Confirmed by Al-Qaeda: Osama bin Laden is Dead
Yes, it’s finally been confirmed: Osama bin Laden is dead. Al-Qaeda has released a statement stating that its leader is now deceased. Click to read more.
Technorati Tags: black news,black politics
“Birthers” Replaced by “Deathers”: Don’t Believe Bin Laden is Really Dead
by Brook Griffin, Your Black World
Last week, when President Barack Obama released his long-form birth certificate, he silenced many of the critics, birthers, who didn’t believe that he was born in the United States. Now, the birth certificate controversy has been replaced by another one: whether or not Osama Bin Laden is actually dead.
Thursday, May 5, 2011
The White House’s Progress on Civil Rights: Laying Out Some Facts
by Dr. Boyce Watkins, YourBlackWorld.com – Scholarship in Action
Below is a direct cut and paste of the White House’s most recent work on Civil Rights. I obtained the information from this link: http://www.whitehouse.gov/issues/civil-rights. I was inspired to visit the page after receiving an email from Michael Blake, Associate Director of the White House Office of Public Engagement (he was on the panel with myself, Al Sharpton and Ben Jealous at the Measuring the Movement forum this year in New York City). They are working hard to get African Americans enthusiastic about the 2012 elections and Blake is the man on the job.
President Obama Heads to Ground Zero
Washington (CNN) -- U.S. President Barack Obama will visit New York's ground zero Thursday, days after a nighttime raid in Pakistan led to the death of the terror leader behind the attacks that toppled the twin towers.
Obama's visit will include a wreath-laying ceremony, the White House said. He does not plan to deliver a speech.
Study: Minorities Still Locked Out of Most Institutions
by Dr. Boyce Watkins, YourBlackWorld.com, Scholarship in Action
I took a look at an ABC News picture of President Barack Obama sitting in a Situation Room with lead advisers watching the assassination of Obama bin Laden. Everyone had a tense look on their face, as 10 years of hard work suddenly came down to the wire. I couldn’t help but notice, as I scanned all the faces across the room, that there were only two women present (Hillary Clinton and another woman in the back), and one bi-racial black man (President Obama). Every other person in the room was a white male.
What startles me the most is that millions of other Americans can look at this picture and see absolutely nothing wrong with it. The “white guy’s club” has always been the status quo in leadership positions.
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Obama Refuses to Release Bin Laden Photos
Washington (CNN) -- President Barack Obama has decided not to release photos of Osama bin Laden's body as evidence of his death, an administration official briefed by the White House told CNN Wednesday.
The decision settles the debate over whether to release the images, though Obama's choice is sure to garner criticism.
Earlier, two top senators involved in national security said the photos of bin Laden's corpse should be released.
Sen. Carl Levin, D-Michigan, who chairs the Armed Services Committee -- and who has not seen the photos -- said the United States should wait to allow the emotions of people around the world who may be sympathetic to bin Laden to cool down.
"I'd let a little time pass so we that we don't play into the hands of people who want to retaliate with what obviously will be a sensational picture. I would not want to feed that sensation so I'd wait days or weeks," he said.
Michelle Obama Doing the Dougie and the Running Man all in the Name of Fitness
Your Black World Reports
Notice how Michelle Obama purses her lips as she does all the latest dances in the name of fitness. Yes, it appears that she is a black woman.
President Obama’s Approval Rating Jumps 11 Percent
by Dr. Boyce Watkins, Your Black World – Scholarship in Action
Life is good in the White House this week, as a recent CBS/New York Times poll shows that President Obama’s approval rating jumped a startling 11 points this month. As of this week, 57 percent of Americans say they approve of the way President Obama is handling his job, a stark increase from the 46 percent number just one month ago.
The White House Can’t Get It’s Story Straight on Bin Laden
John Cook — When you're dealing with the assassination of the world's most-wanted criminal, you might want to actually know what you're talking about. In the space of 36 hours, the official story on what happened to Osama bin Laden has gone from "he went down guns blazing and taking hostages" to "basically we shot him."
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
How Does Capturing Bin Laden Impact the Obama Presidency? Dr. Wilmer Leon and Dr. Boyce Watkins Discuss
Dr. Boyce Watkins, YourBlackWorld.com – Scholarship in Action
I spoke to noted political scientist, Dr. Wilmer Leon from Howard University about the recent killing of Osama Bin Laden and what this means for the Obama Presidency.
Continue reading ‘How does the Bin Laden Assassination a Impact the Obama Presidency?’
Saturday, December 5, 2009
President Barack Obama and family light National Christmas Tree near White House
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Surrounded by celebrity performers and characters from the North Pole, the Obama family on Thursday led a countdown and lighted the National Christmas Tree.First lady Michelle Obama and daughters Malia and Sasha helped President Barack Obama press a button to light the tree, an annual tradition since the 1920s. "I'm technologically challenged and I might not get this right," the president joked. "Everybody has got to help me out here."
The Obamas and the spectators counted down from five, and the red and yellow lights came alive on the 40-foot Colorado blue spruce growing on the Ellipse, just south of the White House. "It worked," Obama shouted.
After the lighting, Sheryl Crow, who performed at some of Obama's inaugural festivities, sang "Jingle Bell Rock." Hip hop artist Common rapped as a children's group sang. "American Idol" winner Jordin Sparks dazzled onlookers bundled in coats and scarves.
"I told Sasha we're not on 'American Idol,'" the president said about his 8-year-old daughter, who sat on his lap during part of the event. The Obama family and Vice President Joe Biden and his grandchildren watched from seats beside the stage, behind a clear protective shielding.
Mrs. Obama sat on stage and read "The Night Before Christmas" as children in knit hats and mittens surrounded her.
The characters Santa Claus and Mrs. Claus also joined the celebration, saying it was their "date night."
Read further story here.
Friday, October 30, 2009
Popular first family gives Washington a new vibe visitors can feel
A year has passed since the history-making election that proclaimed Barack Obama the 44th president of the United States, and national polls suggest that for many Americans the "honeymoon" is over. In Washington, however, each political bump this new administration suffers seems only to strengthen the city's love affair with the first family.When I spent a few days there recently, Washington still felt fully in thrall to Obamania. Indeed, those few people I encountered who could recall ancient history - meaning, the previous administration - were quick to describe what a pall George W. Bush cast over the nation's capital. Besides frequently bragging about how his tax policies were "starving the beast," (that beast, of course, being Washington), President Bush was famously uninterested in the city's cultural and culinary attractions. His most memorable dining experience in the capital, one wag told me, was the pretzel that nearly caused him to choke to death.
"President Bush was always dissing Washington, but Barack Obama doesn't," said Peggy Clifton, a researcher at the Library of Congress. "So, most people who live and work here are much happier now. We feel like there's finally someone in the White House who respects what this town actually does - which is govern."
Visitors will see that glowing pride reflected in the city's swank new restaurants, ritzy new hotels and spruced up landmarks.
Read the full story here.
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
I'm skinny, but tough, says Obama
Washington: He may be skinny but he's tough - that's America's first black president Barack Obama's message to his political friends and foes."I've tried to explain... just because I'm skinny doesn't mean I'm not tough. I don't rattle. I'm not going to shrink back, because now is the time for us to push and follow through on those things that we know have to be done but have not been done in decades", he said.
The US president said this in Miami during a fundraising event for Democratic candidates for the 2010 elections. Obama is a fitness freak. He visits the gym six times a week and lifts weights and runs on the treadmill to keep in shape. He also loves basketball.
Monday, June 29, 2009
Barack Obama Afraid to Publicly Acknowledge Michael Jackson?
President Barack Obama has written to the family of Michael Jackson rather than making a public statement, his senior adviser said Sunday.
Appearing on the NBC program "Meet the Press," Obama adviser David Axelrod said Obama believes Jackson was "an important and magnificent performer" who made an undeniable impact on music and entertainment.
Asked why Obama had yet to speak publicly about Jackson's sudden death last week at age 50, Axelrod said: "The president has written the family and has shared his feelings with the family."
"He felt that was the appropriate way to go," Axelrod said.
Posted by BallerGirl on Your Black Celebrities, at 11:02 AM 0 comments
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Sunday, June 28, 2009
Your Black News: Pastor Wishes Death on Obama
From the Baltimore Afro-American:
A well-known minister of a denomination that once supported slavery and is firmly against a woman’s right to an abortion said recently that he is praying for President Obama to die.
The Rev. Wiley Drake, a former second vice president of the Southern Baptist Convention, told Fox News Radio earlier this month that he was practicing “imprecatory prayer” or seeking a divine curse that would cause the president to die.
“If he does not turn to God and does not turn his life around, I am asking God to enforce imprecatory prayers that are throughout the Scripture that would cause him death,” Drake said in an interview with Fox’s Alan Colmes, according to the Associated Press.
www.yourblacknews.blogspot.com
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Rev. Jeremiah Wright: Not what Fox News Tells You
Rather than letting Fox News sound bites define Jeremiah Wright for you, take a look at his bio.
Life, Love and Legacy
Rev. Dr. Jeremiah A. Wright, Jr.
The Rev. Dr. Jeremiah A. Wright, Jr. is a man of faith, a homiletic genius, a theological scholar and a pastor’s pastor. He is a family man who enjoys spending quality time with his wife, children, grandchildren, extended family and friends.
Steeped in Family Tradition and Educational Achievements
Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Dr. Wright is a son of the parsonage and hails from a family steeped in educational achievements. A third generation family member to matriculate at Virginia Union University, Dr. Wright followed in the footsteps of his maternal grandfather, Dr. Hamilton Martin Henderson who graduated from Virginia Union with a Bachelor of Arts degree in the late 1800s and finished seminary at Virginia Union in 1902. His father, Dr. Jeremiah A. Wright, Sr., also graduated from Virginia Union with two undergraduate degrees and from the seminary with a Master of Divinity degree in 1938. The senior Wright also received a Master of Sacred Theology degree (S.T.M.) from the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia.
Dr. Wright’s mother, Dr. Mary Henderson Wright, also graduated from Virginia Union and earned her first master’s degree before age 19 from the University of Chicago. She also earned a second master’s degree and her doctorate in education from the University of Pennsylvania.
Foundational Strengths
With four earned degrees, a Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts in English from Howard University, a Master of Divinity from the University of Chicago Divinity School and a Doctor of Ministry from the United Theological Seminary, Dr. Jeremiah A. Wright, Jr. grew up in a home where reading books was a daily way of life. Wright read a wide range of sources from the Greek philosophers and Shakespeare to African American authors such as Carter G. Woodson (the Father of African American History) to Sterling Brown (one of the Harlem Renaissance artists), as well as one of Dr. Wright’s college professors.
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Pres. Obama Signals More Rights for Gay Workers
President Obama signaled to gay rights activists Wednesday that he is listening to their desire for greater equality in "a more perfect union." But he did not give them even close to everything they want, bringing anger that has been growing against the president to the surface.
The president's critics saw the incremental move to expand gay rights as little more than pandering to a reliably Democratic voting bloc, with the primary aim not of making policy fairer but of cutting short a fundraising boycott.
DISAPPOINTMENT: Jubilation muted on gay marriage anniversary
"We all have to acknowledge this is only one step," Obama said in his Oval Office, where he signed a memorandum extending some benefits, such as visitation or dependent care rights, to the same-sex partners of federal employees.
"When a president tells you he's going to be different, you believe him," said John Aravosis, a Washington-based gay activist. "It's not that he didn't follow through on his promises, he stabbed us in the back."
Read more at
www.yourblackpolitics.blogspot.com
Monday, June 22, 2009
Dr Boyce Watkins on Why Obama’s Overhaul is a good idea
by Dr. Boyce Watkins, Finance Professor Syracuse University
I have a friend who broke both of his legs climbing a dangerous mountain in Southeast Asia. This friend has nearly died 8 times, been chased by bears, and has had food poisoning too many times to count. After his latest injury, we presumed that he would understand that taking such risk simply doesn't pay. But he rebuffed our intervention, stating that the risk is what makes his life worth living. My friend seems to believe that pursuing and living the dream might be worth enduring the occasional nightmare.
The current financial crisis is certainly the worst of economic nightmares. Job losses have been enormous and the stock market has shrunk faster than Lindsay Lohan's dress size. A report released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics last week reported that in May jobless rates were higher in all 50 states and in the District of Columbiathan they were a year ago.
The Black community has had a double dose of economic drama, as our unemployment rate is nearly double that of White Americans, standing at 14.9% according to the latest figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Black urban centers such as Detroit have been hit especially hard.
www.yourblackpresident.blogspot.com
Sunday, June 14, 2009
Sotomayor, Obama and Racial History
On Tuesday May 26th, President Obama nominated federal judge Sonia Sotomayor to replace retiring Supreme Court Justice David Souter. Before the President announced his selection he stated he was not just looking for someone with just “ivory tower learning”; he wanted “intellectual firepower” as well as a “common touch” and a “practical sense of how the world works”. He also used the word “empathy” several times. It did not take long for the critics to weigh in and challenge the nomination.
What is troubling about the criticism is that most of it is intentionally not directed at judge Sotomayor’s record as a jurist and opinions that she has rendered. Most of the criticism is deliberately based upon select statements made in speeches or lectures, as was the case with Rev. Jeremiah Wright. They have been contextualized in the most inflammatory way possible in order to scare white people.
Click to read more on our Black Scholars Blog.
Thursday, June 11, 2009
Jeremiah Wright Has interesting words for the president
Jeremiah Wright says that the Jews won’t let him talk to Obama. Click the image to watch.
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Obama’s New spending Legislation
President Obama on Tuesday proposed making "pay-as-you-go" rules for federal spending into law.
President Obama proposed Tuesday that the government adopt "pay-as-you-go" rules for federal spending.
The so-called PAYGO proposal requires Congress to balance any increased spending by equal savings elsewhere, Obama said in announcing the measure that now goes to Congress.
A previous PAYGO mandate helped erase federal budget deficits in the 1990s, and subsequent ineffective rules contributed to the current budget deficits, Obama said. Now the PAYGO rules should be the law, he said.
"Paying for what you spend is basic common sense," Obama said. "Perhaps that's why, here in Washington, it's been so elusive."
Sunday, May 24, 2009
Your Black News: Obama and Cheney Fight in Public
President Barack Obama fought Thursday to retake command of the emotional debate over closing Guantanamo, denouncing "fear-mongering" by political opponents and insisting that maximum-security prisons in the U.S. can safely house dangerous terror suspects transferred from Cuba.
AP/Getty
In a unique bit of Washington theater, former Vice President Dick Cheney delivered his own address just one minute later, defending the Bush administration's creation of the prison camp as vigorously as Obama denounced it.
Obama, appearing at the National Archives with its immensely symbolic backdrop of the nation's founding documents, said shutting down Guantanamo would "enlist our values" to make America safer. Speaking a day after an overwhelming congressional rebuke to his pledge to close the prison, he forcefully declared the camp a hindrance — not a help — to preventing future terrorist attacks. He contends that the prison, which has held hundreds of detainees for years without charges or trials, motivates U.S. enemies overseas.
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Black News: Barack Says Bush Hurt America
President Obama said Thursday that some of the terror suspects now being held at Guantanamo Bay may end up in the nation's "supermax" prisons, and he said the United States may have to indefinitely hold others if it is clear that releasing them would endanger the American people.
Obama said an ad hoc, ineffective legal framework set up to fight terrorism by the Bush administration has "weakened American national security" since the 9/11 attacks.
In a speech at the National Archives aimed at explaining his policies toward detainees and hushing critics who say he could put the nation at risk by closing the Guantanamo prison, Obama vowed to continue dismantling flawed policies that he said have been used as a rallying cry for terrorists.
Technorati Tags: barack obama,black news,african american news,black politics,african american politics
Thursday, May 14, 2009
President Obama Does Not Give Us a Truly Post Racial America
A recent New York Times/CBS poll concluded that race relations are improving in the wake of the election of President Obama. According to the survey, about 66 percent of Americans said that race relations are generally good compared with 53 percent in July of last year. Fifty-nine percent of African-Americans – along with 65 percent of whites – now characterize the relationship between Blacks and Whites in America as ‘good,’ The New York Times proclaimed with glee, “Barack Obama’s presidency seems to be altering the public perception of race relations in the United States.” The Huffington Post also chimed in claiming that “Obama’s race relations effect is real.”
It seems that the single event of the election of President Obama has erased America’s racial transgressions in one fell swoop and has improved the relationship between Blacks and Whites overnight. The problem, however, is not relations between Blacks and Whites; there is no evidence yet that the election of President Obama has had more than a symbolic (but important) effect on America’s still unresolved and conflicted relationship with race.
Obama’s election has not changed the fact that in this economic downturn, Black unemployment is at approximately 15 percent while White unemployment is at approximately eight percent. Since his election, racial profiling has not stopped, the educational achievement gap between Blacks and Whites has not narrowed. In addition, the President did not attend, nor did he send a delegation to the World Racism conference in Geneva. Thus, it can be argued that Obama’s election has had nothing but a symbolic effect on race. The difficulty with this argument is that it suffers from the same flaw in logic that is inherent in the New York Times/CBS News poll.
First, the question in the poll was about race relations. That is, the interpersonal relationship between Blacks and Whites. But, the issue is not race relations, it is whether the President will use his bully pulpit to eradicate the substantive racial inequalities that afflict Blacks in America. Much like he will use it to bring peace to the Middle East.
Click to read more on our Black Scholars Blog.
Monday, May 11, 2009
African American News: Barack Obama Gets Attacked by Notre Dame
Greer Hannan will mark President Obama's attendance at her University of Notre Damegraduation Sunday by having a cross and a pair of baby feet printed on her mortar board. Some of her classmates plan to skip the ceremony to lead a protest across campus. The local bishop and former U.S. ambassador to the Vatican say they won't even show up to share the stage with a man who supports abortion rights.
Obama's first pass at the annual springtime rite for presidents — delivering commencement addresses at a couple of universities or colleges and one military academy — has caused controversy at two of the three schools the White House selected from dozens of invitations.
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
News: Barack Obama Accused of Breaking Promise to Farmers
As a senator, Barack Obama led the charge last year to pass a bill allowing black farmers to seek new discrimination claims against the Agriculture Department. Now he is president, and his administration so far is acting like it wants the potentially budget-busting lawsuits to go away.
AP
The change isn't sitting well with black farmers who thought they'd get a friendlier reception from Obama after years of resistance from President George W. Bush.
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Sunday, April 26, 2009
President Barack Gets Good Reviews for the first 100 Days in Office
The reporters assembled Thursday morning to hear the results of a new poll measuring public attitudes toward President Obama did their best to ferret out nuggets of bad news. How durable is the president's high job-approval rating (63 percent) and higher-yet personal rating (73 percent)? One bit of bad news and the rainbow disappears? asked one scribe. What about the narrative Republicans are advancing that Obama is a weak president who can be pushed around? Another wondered how much of Obama's "halo effect" could be attributed to the nation's "historic self-congratulations" over the breakthrough his election represented.
Thursday, April 23, 2009
President Obama Attacks High Fees for Credit Card Companies
Ramping up his campaign to crack down on credit cards, President Obama met Thursday with more than a dozen executives of card-issuing companies to press his case for new consumer protections.
Technorati Tags: barack obama,black money,african american money,black wealth,african american wealth
Barack Obama’s Boycott of Racism Conference Sending Mixed Messages
by Dr. Ronald Walters, University of Maryland
I am missing something here. President Barack Obama just went to Europe and Iraq and made speeches saying that he would be deferential to Communist China, that he would meet without conditions with the leadership of Iran and that he wanted to open up a new relationship with the Islamic world. Then he went to the Conference of the Americas in Trinidad and shook the hand of Hugo Chavez of Venezuela who has said some devilish things about America and the Bush administration. But the key issue that took the conference over was the American overture to Cuba to talk, in response to Raul Castro’s statement that he would talk with the U. S. and that everything would be on the table. Moreover, the Obama administration has said that it wanted to open up a new chapter in its relationship with the United Nations. To that end, it has appointed an African American Ambassador and put in its application for a seat on the Human Rights Commission. Against this background, the decision of the Obama administration not to go to the United Nations Conference On Racism in Geneva, Switzerland April 20-24 would appear to be a powerful refutation of this relatively liberal approach to the international community it has established.
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Black Politics and Obama’s Racism Boycott
As President Obama shook hands with Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, he was willing to take the political heat. He said that he was not concerned about the politics of the hand shake and more concerned about extending an open hand to nations hostile to the U.S. The open hand, it seems, is not so open after all. The President announced that, like the Bush Administration, the United States will boycott the world anti-racism conference (Durban II), which opens in Geneva today. According to the President, "I would love to be involved in a useful conference that addressed continuing issues of racism and discrimination around the globe. We expressed in the run-up to this conference our concerns that if you adopted all of the language from 2001, that's not something we can sign up for. "Hopefully some concrete steps come out of the conference that we can partner with other countries on to actually reduce discrimination around the globe, but this wasn't an opportunity to do it."
On this issue, it is difficult to reconcile the President's rhetoric with his actions. The President has repeatedly said that his policy is to talk with those with whom he disagrees. He is talking to Chavez, to Ahmadinejad, to Medvedev and Kim but cannot talk to human rights defenders about the best way to address the continuing significance of racism world wide? Surely the message cannot be that the United States does not believe that the right to be free from racism is not a basic human right.
Sunday, April 19, 2009
Condi Asks for the Same Speaking Fee As Bush
Former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is charging the same fee — $150,000 — per speech as does former President George W. Bush.
So, as Bush emerges again into the public eye — he threw out the first pitch of the season at the Texas Rangers’ home opener — he’s finding that he’s not the biggest star of his own administration.
Information about the speech fees Rice and Bush charge comes from a corporate political adviser who asked the Washington Speakers Bureau about their speaking fees.
Bush spoke last month in Calgary at a private event hosted by tinePublic Inc. He is scheduled to speak before the Economic Club of Southwestern Michigan on May 28, his first domestic post-presidency speech.
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