The First Lady Hosts Spring Planting At The White House Kitchen Garden
April 14, 2010
First lady Michelle Obama and local elementary school students planted a couple of rows vegtables in the White House Kitchen Garden. It has become a symbol for the first lady’s campaign against childhood obesity.
Pictured: U.S. first lady Michelle Obama (3L) plants seedlings with schoolchildren from Bancroft and Hollin Meadows Elementary Schools during the annual Spring Garden Planting event held in the White House Kitchen Garden March 31, 2010 in Washington, DC. Mrs. Obama sponsors the event to teach children the importance of eating healthy foods and to encourage children to spend time outdoors. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images).
White House Easter Egg Roll
April 5, 2010
President Obama and the family joined thousands of children and their parents on the South Lawn for games, musical acts, special readings and visits from the Easter Bunny and other furry friends.
Pictured: U.S. first lady Michelle Obama (2nd L) speaks from the Truman Balcony as President Barack Obama (L), daughters Malia (R) and Sasha (3rd L) look on during the annual White House Easter Egg Roll at the South Lawn April 5, 2010 in Washington, DC. The White House Easter Egg Roll is a tradition dating back to 1878 during the presidency of President Rutherford B. Hayes. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images).
Basketball’s Shaquille O’Neal pays for North Carolina girl’s funeral
December 4, 2009
Professional basketball star Shaquille O’Neal paid for the funeral of a 5-year-old North Carolina girl whose body was found last week, O’Neal’s team confirmed Thursday.
Authorities believe the child, Shaniya Davis, was kidnapped, raped and murdered after being reported missing November 10. Her body was found six days later on a roadside about 30 miles from her hometown of Fayetteville, North Carolina. Her funeral was Sunday.
O’Neal said in a statement released by his team, the Cleveland Cavaliers, that he was touched after seeing Davis’ story on CNN sister network HLN’s “Nancy Grace” show.
Pictured:Shaquille O’Neal attends the WBC heavyweight title eliminator fight between Samuel ‘Nigerian Nightmare’ Peter and James ‘Lights Out’ Toney at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino January 6, 2007 in Hollywood, Florida. (Photo by Marc Serota/Getty Images).
Nation’s pupils find few black men to call Mister
October 15, 2009
Lenny Macklin made it to 10th grade before having a teacher who looked like him — an African-American male. Gregory Georges graduated from high school without ever being taught by a black man.
Only about 2 percent of teachers nationwide are African-American men. But experts say that needs to change if educators expect to reduce minority achievement gaps and dropout rates.
Macklin, now an 18-year-old college student, said he understands the circle that keeps many of his peers out of the classroom professionally.
“A lot of males, they don’t like being in school because they can’t relate to their teacher,” said Macklin, of Pittsburgh. “So why would you want to work there?”
American teachers are overwhelmingly white (87 percent) and female (77 percent), despite minority student populations of about 44 percent, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Pictured: Professor and author Cornel West makes a point while addressing the crowd at the ‘State Of The Black Union’ symposium at the Ernest E. Morial Convention Center February 23, 2008 in New Orleans, Louisiana. Presidential hopeful Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) spoke at the event which was held at the site where thousands of New Orleans residents sat without aid for days following Hurricane Katrina in 2005. (Photo by Richard Alan Hannon/Getty Images)
Michelle Obama Becomes National Honorary President of Girl Scouts of the USA
October 14, 2009
Girl Scouts of the USA is pleased to announce that First Lady Michelle Obama has agreed to serve as its Honorary National President.
“It is my great pleasure to serve as Honorary National President of Girl Scouts,” said Mrs. Obama. “With their innovative new programming, ground-breaking research, and emphasis on service and leadership, Girl Scouts is preparing the women of tomorrow to be a positive force for change – in their own lives, their communities, and across the globe.”
In accepting the position, Mrs. Obama takes her place in a tradition stretching back to 1929, when Lou Henry Hoover became the first Honorary National President of the Girl Scouting movement. Since then, each successive First Lady has served in this post. Read more
Bill Cosby lends support to Detroit Public Schools
September 10, 2009
Blending commentary with comedy and criticism, Bill Cosby challenged Detroit parents to be more active in their children’s education and back an effort to improve the troubled public schools.
The activist and entertainer said Tuesday that he supports the district’s emergency financial manager, Robert Bobb, and a campaign to retain the schools’ shrinking enrollment. Bobb and Cosby were scheduled to go door-to-door late Tuesday afternoon, to persuade parents to keep their children in, or return them to, the district.
“This has a chance,” Cosby told reporters at a news conference. “And we’re going to knock on these doors because they weren’t open. And we’re going to talk to people to get them to understand the seriousness of a child left without a reason to understand math, without a reason to study and be able to understand English.”
Pictured: Host Bill Cosby speaks onstage during the Jackie Robinson Foundation Annual Awards Dinner Chaired by Air Products on March 16, 2009 in New York City. (Photo by Bryan Bedder/Getty Images for The Jackie Robinson Foundation)
Muhammad Ali visits ancestral home in Ireland
September 4, 2009
Legendary American boxer Muhammad Ali has visited the birth place of his ancestors in Ireland, prompting thousands of well-wishers to line the streets of the town.The scenes were reminiscent of a presidential visit as the 67-year-old former three-times world heavyweight champion traveled to Ennis, County Clare to see the hometown of his forebear.The visit was commemorated by the town council with the unveiling of a plaque at the home of his great grandfather and by making Ali the first honorary “freeman” of the town.
Pictured: Former Heavyweight Boxing Champion Muhammad Ali smiles as he attends the dedication of his Muhammad Ali Center on November 20, 2005 in Louisville, Kentucky. (Photo by David R. Lutman/Getty Images)
Candid: President Obama makes statement on Edward Kennedy
September 4, 2009
US President Barack Obama makes a statement over the death of US Sen. Edward Kennedy at the Blue Heron Farm in Oak Bluffs on Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts, on August 26, 2009. Obama on Wednesday eulogized Edward Kennedy as a ‘singular figure’ in American history, hours after the liberal icon died of brain cancer aged 77. ‘Even though we knew this day was coming for some time now, we awaited it with no small amount of dread,’ Obama said, at a farm he is renting on the east coast island of Martha’s Vineyard during his week-long vacation. AFP PHOTO/Jewel SAMAD (Photo credit should read JEWEL SAMAD/AFP/Getty Images)
Obama Calls for Service, Beautiful Dolls Answer!
September 2, 2009
On Patriots’ Day, a “Pretty . . . Philanthropic” group, will kickoff, launch and stand in civic pride! The Black Doll Affair [BDA] announces the kickoff of its third chapter and the launch of the Ambassadolls!
In a federal challenge to increase volunteerism, via the United We Serve Program, President Obama called on U.S. citizens to serve their country. In response, The Black Doll Affair is extending its mission to our Nation’s Capital.
Civil rights activists and psychologists, Kenneth and Mamie Clark are known for their 1940s “doll test” where black children were tested to determine racial perception and preference. The majority of children selected the white doll as the preferred doll and attributed positive characteristics to it and negative characteristics to the black doll. May 2007, ‘A Girl Like Me‘, the documentary by Kiri Davis, an African-American teenage filmmaker, is featured on the Oprah Winfrey Show. After witnessing Kiri’s mirror image ‘doll test’ results, Dana Hill created BDA. With the slogan, “We’re pretty . . . philanthropic,” BDA has chapters in Georgia and Florida. Read more
President Obama at Martha’s Vineyard
August 28, 2009
US President Barack Obama walks after teeing off at the Farm Neck Golf Club in Oak Bluffs on Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts, on August 24, 2009. The US First family are on a week-long vacation on the exclusive island of Martha’s Vineyard. AFP PHOTO/Jewel SAMAD (Photo credit should read JEWEL SAMAD/AFP/Getty Images)
The Obamas Return To White House After National Parks Visit
August 24, 2009
President Barack Obama (L) returns to the White House with his family including (L-R) daughter Sasha, U.S. First Lady Michelle Obama, and daughter Malia August 17, 2009 in Washington, DC. The family spent the last 3 days out of town, including a visit to the Grand Canyon National Park. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)
Oprah Winfrey and Russell Simmons attend Funeral for Eunice Kennedy Shriver
August 17, 2009
Oprah Winfrey (2nd L) and Russell Simmons (C) attend the funeral of Eunice Kennedy Shriver at St. Xavier Church August 14, 2009 in Hyannis, Massachusetts. Shriver, the fifth of nine children to Joseph P. Kennedy and Rose Kennedy, and the founder of the Special Olympics, died Tuesday after a series of strokes. (Photo by Steven Senne-Pool/Getty Images)
The Obama’s arrive back to White House
July 21, 2009
US President Barack Obama, First Lady Michelle Obama and their daughters Malia and Sasha walk on the South Lawn at the White House after disembarking from the Marine One helicopter upon their return in in Washington, DC, from Camp David on July 19, 2009. AFP PHOTO/Jewel SAMAD (Photo credit should read JEWEL SAMAD/AFP/Getty Images)
President Barack Obama waves after throwing out the first pitch at the MLB All-Star Game
July 17, 2009
US President Barack Obama (R) waves after throwing out the first pitch to the Cardinal’s Albert Pujols (L) at the Major League Baseball All-Star Game on July 14, 2009 at Busch Stadium in St. Louis, Missouri. AFP PHOTO / Tim Sloan (Photo credit should read TIM SLOAN/AFP/Getty Images)
Obama and Black Organizations Have New Plan to Fight AIDS
April 21, 2009
Last week, officials from the White House, the Department of Health and Human Services and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced a comprehensive five-year plan to tide the spread of HIV and AIDS in America, with a special emphasis on the African American community.
The Act Against AIDS campaign – which highlights the statistic that every nine and half minutes another person in the United States becomes infected with HIV – will feature public service announcements (PSAs) and online communications, as well as targeted messages and outreach to black and Hispanic communities in the U.S., populations hit especially hard by HIV and AIDs.
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