President Obama

Rep. Bass Responds To Trump’s Embargo Threat Against Cuba

Rep. Karen Bass (D-Calif.), Chair of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights and International Organizations issued the following statement after President Trump threatened a “full and complete embargo, together with highest-level sanctions” against Cuba.

Post-Racial Myth Perpetuates Racism and White Privilege

Those who feel America is a post-racial society tend to be either die-hard conservatives   or so naïve, they might believe there are snow-capped mountains in Florida.  But by any measure, public education, the criminal injustice system, poverty, etc., White privilege and its cohort racism, remain the prime barriers to Blacks receiving actual justice and equality. 

Director Steve James Talks New Starz Docu-Series ‘America to Me’

Emmy Award-winning Steve James is one of America’s most respected documentarians, working in the field today.  In his new Starz doc-series “America to Me”— a 10-part look at race through the eyes of students, teachers and administrators at Oak Park and River Forest High School (OPRF) — an elite, racially diverse public high school in a suburb west of Chicago, he gives all of the subjects the opportunity to let it all “hang out” so to speak.  

Our Children Are at Risk

A few years ago, his Department of Education, in conjunction with the Department of Justice, studied school discipline data and came to a troubling conclusion: African American students in the 2011-12 school year had been suspended or expelled at a rate three times higher than White students.

Your Cable – Internet Bill will Increase ?

The original goal of “net neutrality” was that internet service providers and governments would treat all data on the internet equally and not discriminate or charge differently based on the user, services, website, application, or device – in other words, it would provide an open internet.

I HEART OBAMA 

Barack Obama’s presidency will be documented ad infinitum. However, Los Angeles is fortunate to have Erin Aubry Kaplan’s new book, I Heart Obama, a solid jumpstart on what is certain to be a mammoth field of chroniclers.

President Obama to Deliver Final Keynote at 46th ALC Phoenix Awards Dinner 

The Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, Incorporated (CBCF) recently announced that President Barack Obama will deliver his seventh and final keynote address at its 46th Annual Legislative Conference (ALC) Phoenix Awards Dinner. The event is scheduled for 6 p.m., Saturday, Sept. 17 at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center. The evening’s co-emcees will be Trevor Noah, host of The Daily Show on Comedy Central, and actress Sanaa Lathan, who has a new show premiering this fall on FOX. Honorary co-chairs of this year’s conference are U.S. Representatives Karen Bass of California and Lacy Clay of Missouri.

Obamas to Host International Jazz Day 2016

United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Director-General Irina Bokova and UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador Herbie Hancock recently announced the fifth annual International Jazz Day, which will be celebrated around the world on April 30. President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama will host the 5th anniversary International Jazz Day All-Star Global Concert at the White House on April 29 and the event will be broadcast on International Jazz Day as a one-hour primetime ABC television special, “Jazz at the White House,” on Saturday evening, and streamed on the United Nations, UNESCO, U.S. State Department and White House websites.

Presidential Proclamation — Women’s History Month, 2016

Throughout history, women have driven humanity forward on the path to a more equal and just society, contributing in innumerable ways to our character and progress as a people. In the face of discrimination and undue hardship, they have never given up on the promise of America: that with hard work and determination, nothing is out of reach.