December 5, 2007 (Dallas, Texas) – The Underground Hip Hop Academy, a 501(c) nonprofit organization based in Dallas, is hosting a youth outreach event called Break Out 2007. Created by Founder & Director Shanna Poteet, this charity event takes place Saturday December 15th, 2007 from 12pm to 5pm CST at Pike Park Recreation Center outside of Downtown Dallas. As the culmination of a life long vision and continued efforts by Shanna Poteet, the Underground Hip Hop Academy partnered with recreational centers in the city of Dallas for Breakout 2007. Free to the public, the children attending will be partaking in activities centered around the core elements of the Hip Hop culture such as choreographed and/or Freestyle dancing, various forms of spoken word poetry and DJing. There will also be fun workshops for the children as well. Hosted by Music Executive & 2006 Cambridge Who’s Who Finalist Vincent Tucker, Breakout 2007 will also feature appearances and performances by local celebrities and personalities from the Hip Hop community including Headkrack (KBFB-FM 97.9 Radio Personality) and Bruh N Law (of Kin Folk Kru). Phil Jordan, former head of the Drug Enforcement Agency and noted author, will serve as a public speaker discussing ...

Sad to report that Jackson Police say they found a body they believe is Latasha Norman.   Norman was last seen on the Jackson State University campus, earlier this month.  Her ex-boyfriend told police where they body could be found.  He was arrested an charged with domestic abuse back in October.

Latasha Norman, who is a student at Jackson State University, was last seen Nov. 13 in one of her classes. Her car was left on the campus, and the 20-year-old never returned to her dormitory room.   According to the Associated Press, those who know Latasha Norman describe her as a serious, smart student who was seen around Jackson State with pad and pencil, covering stories for the campus newspaper. Black and Missing but not Forgotten reports that Jackson Police Chief Malcolm McMillin said Norman's disappearance should get "the same kind of concern" as that of Stacy Peterson, 23, a white woman from suburban Chicago who has been missing for three weeks.  "As far as the interest by the national media in the story, I think race probably had an impact," said McMillin, who is white. "It's a small college in the South. It's the daughter of simple people who maybe are not important outside of their circle, and maybe we don't attach the same importance to them that we do for other people." Jackson State's Office of University Communications has sent out a series of press releases since Norman's disappearance.   According to their website, Ms. Norman is an ...

It seems like some of the good folks of Jena have gathered behind the woodshed and come up with some revisionist history regarding the racial unrest that has happened in their town over the last year.  The Christian Scientist Monitor has allowed Craig Franklin, co-editor of the Jena Times, to retell the accounts of Jena's twisted saga at their site.  The story is titled Media Myths About the Jena 6. I'll let everyone read the story for themselves, but here are two examples of what Franklin wants us to believe. Myth 1: The Whites-Only Tree. There has never been a "whites-only" tree at Jena High School. Students of all races sat underneath this tree. When a student asked during an assembly at the start of school last year if anyone could sit under the tree, it evoked laughter from everyone present – blacks and whites. As reported by students in the assembly, the question was asked to make a joke and to drag out the assembly and avoid class. Myth 2: Nooses a Signal to Black Students. An investigation by school officials, police, and an FBI agent revealed the true motivation behind the placing of two nooses in ...

On Saturday October 27, a unique event will take place at Mesquite's Resistol Arena.  The Cowboys of Color Rodeo will host their National Finals Rodeo this weekend. The rodeo brings together participants from all over the state and region to compete and exhibit in a number of events.  The rodeo's founder, Mr. Cleo Hearn, gives an insightful look at the rodeo and its history in an interview he granted to Dallas South. Tickets for Saturday's rodeo can be purchased here. Take a few moments to listen to one of the living legends of rodeo Mr. Cleo Hearn.  [audio:Cleo Hearn interview.mp3] Cowboys of Color National Finals Rodeo  Event Date: 10/27/2007 Event Start Time: 8:00 pm Event End Time: 10:00 pm Event Location: Mesquite Resistol Arena

On Wednesday October 17, the University of Texas at Arlington Chapter of the NAACP will present a program regarding the national organizations STOP campaign.  According to the NAACP website, The STOP Campaign is an initiative of the NAACP Youth & College Division that seeks to “STOP” the demeaning images of African-Americans in the media, particularly with respect to the portrayal of African-American women.  There are six points to the campaign: STOP Defaming Our Women… by respecting all African-American Women and not describing them in profane and derogatory term STOP Degrading Our Community… by not supporting hurtful images that portray negative images of the African-American community STOP Denigrating Our History… by not supporting words and media that diminishes our proud history and insults our ancestors STOP Accepting Disrespect… by not patronizing companies and artists that put forth demeaning and disrespectful images in our community START Standing Up… by standing up against anyone who diminishes the capacity of young people START the Diversity… by supporting balance and diversity of content in the entertainment industry to create positive role models for young people and ...

"The new literacy is math and science."                        Tom Luce, CEO Nat'l Math and Science Initiative The Congressional Black Caucus held an informative outreach session this weekend which focused on Education, Technology, and Teacher Preparedness.  This CBC Institute program was hosted by Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson at the Yvonne A. Ewell Townview Center in Dallas on Saturday.  I attended the morning session which was titled Closing the Disparities Gap. Representatives on hand for the event included: Hon. Corrine Brown Hon. Sheila Jackson-Lee Hon. Barbara Lee Hon. Carolyn Cheeks-Kilpatrick Hon. Al Green Hon. James Clyburn Hon. Bennie Thompson Hon. Bobby Rush Hon. Diane Watson Rep. Johnson kicked off the session with some opening statements.  She talked about closing the gap that exists between "minority" and "majority" groups in so-called STEM courses - Science, Technology, English, and Math.  She also spoke of how American is losing ground to other countries in the area of science and technology.  "We want (foreign) talent to come here and learn, not come here and replace," Congresswoman Johnson said. Melendy Lovett, President of Education Technology at Texas Instrument, served as moderator for the session.  There were three speaker who spoke to those assemble ...

Dallas, Texas - ( Monday, October 1, 2007)   The Congressional Black Caucus Political Leadership and Education Institute (CBC Institute), along with Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson and Congressman Al Green, is sponsoring an Education, Technology and Teacher Preparedness Outreach Conference in Dallas, Texas on October 12-14, 2007.  Speakers include Tom Luce, former Assistant Secretary of the U.S. Department of Education and founder of the National Math and Science Initiative; and Gerald McElvy, president of the ExxonMobil Foundation.   As part of the conference, the CBC Institute will hold a series of public policy forums open to the public; and fact finding activities.                            Other US House Leadership Team Members who have confirmed plans to attend include:   Honorable James Clyburn, US House Majority Whip          Honorable John Conyers, Chair, Judiciary Committee          Honorable Bennie G. Thompson, Chair, Homeland Security           Honorable Carolyn Kilpatrick, Chair, Congressional Black Caucus           Honorable Eddie Bernice Johnson          Honorable Al Green      On Saturday, a Community Forum and Town Hall Meeting will be held ...

Frederick Douglass Academy has announced that Cheryl Rischer will serve as the school's new director.  Mrs. Rischer is scheduled to begin her tenure on October 15th. Frederick Douglass, formerly known as A Perfect Place, instructs grades Pre-K through 4th grade.  The school also houses a day care for children starting at 18 months old. Mrs. Rischer most recently served as Leadership and School Improvement Consultant for Region 10 Education Service Center.  Region 10 Education Service Center is one of 20 regional service centers established by the Texas State Legislature in 1967 for the purpose of providing services to the school districts within this defined geographic region. Her journey in education began as a speech communications teacher at Benjamin Franklin Middle School in Dallas.  Her administration career took off when she joined Dallas' John H. Reagan Elementary School as an Assistant Principal. Other stops for Mrs. Rischer include time as Director of Education for The Brown Schools, and a stint as Director of Teacher Preparation for El Centro College.  She  serves as an adjunct professor at El Centro College and Brookhaven College. The Baylor University graduate received a Bachelor's of Science in Education and earned a Master's in Educational Administration ...

Today opponents of the  Bush Library and Institute vowed to continue their fight within the 11 million member United  Methodist Church to deny approval to Southern  Methodist University (SMU) to host the Bush complex. The South Central  Jurisdictional Conference of the United  Methodist Church will meet in Dallas from July 15-19, 2008, when it will be asked by SMU to  approve the use of university land for the Bush complex, which will include a  partisan political institute operated totally by the Bush Foundation.  United Methodist opponents of the Bush  complex will ask the 290 elected delegates to the Conference to vote  against this request.  The delegates  in the South Central Jurisdictional Conference represent the 1.83 million United  Methodists living in Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico,  Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska,  Arkansas, and Louisiana. Bishop Joe A. Wilson  explains:  "Even though the 21 member Mission Council approved by a vote of  10-4 the use of the SMU property for the Library and partisan Policy Institute,  this decision must be ratified by the larger Jurisdictional Conference which  meets in July of 2008.”  The rules of the Jurisdiction state that, “all  actions taken by the Council shall ...