United States

Book Review: Ta-Nehisi Coates visits Senegal, South Carolina and the Middle East for ‘The Message’

ROB MERRILL Associated PressOctober 5, 2024

Ta-Nehisi Coates always writes with a purpose, so naming his latest collection “The Message” is nothing if not on-brand. But what’s the actual message? Consisting of three pieces of non-fiction, the book is part memoir, part travelogue, and part writing primer. It covers his recent trips to Dakar, Senegal; Columbia, South Carolina; and various cities and towns in the Middle East.

News

Movie Mogul Tyler Perry Stops Production on $800M Studio Expansion After Seeing Video AI Model

Lauren Victoria Burke, NNPA Newswire ContributorFebruary 27, 2024

With the rise of e-commerce and automated checkout systems, traditional retail roles may diminish. Cashiers: Similar to retail salespersons, automated checkout systems are reducing the need for human cashiers. Telemarketers: AI-driven chatbots and voice recognition systems are increasingly handling customer inquiries. Data Entry Clerks: Automation tools can handle routine data entry tasks more efficiently. Bookkeepers and Accounting Clerks: AI can automate many financial tasks, potentially reducing the need for manual bookkeeping.

National News

Brittney Griner Back Home in US After Russian Prisoner Swap

Lekan Oyekanmi and Eric Tucker, Associated PressDecember 14, 2022

Brittney Griner returned to the United States early Friday, nearly 10 months after the basketball star’s detention in Russia made her the most high-profile American jailed abroad and set off a political firestorm.

Basketball International National News Sports

UPDATE: WNBA Players Express Reluctance to Play Overseas As Brittney Griner Negotiations Continue

Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire National CorrespondentSeptember 8, 2022

While former NBA All-Star and Champion Dennis Rodman formally canceled plans to go to Russia to help gain the release of WNBA star Brittney Griner, members of the Washington Mystics said Griner’s detainment has discouraged them from playing overseas.

Family Health News

COVID Vaccines Available for Children Under 4 Years Old

Edward Henderson, California Black MediaAugust 11, 2022

As parents across California focus on purchasing new clothes, school supplies and technological aids for their children for the coming school year, public health officials and healthcare professionals are asking them to consider the COVID-19 vaccine a back-to-school essential.

Opinion

Prostate Cancer Rising in Black America

Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis, Jr., President and CEO, National Newspaper Publishers Association April 28, 2022

Whether it is other philanthropists, local or regional health centers, or state and federal officials, there is a desperate need for creative solutions to getting more people screened and saving more lives. Smith’s initiative is an innovative approach, but there are other ways to spread awareness and boost screenings in the Black community.

News

Sisters of the Skies and Delta Air Lines Host Fundraiser for Future Black Female Pilots

Rox Edward, Atlanta Daily WorldMarch 17, 2022

The purpose of the gala is to seek to improve the current number of Black female pilots which stands roughly north of 150 in the United States for those holding Airline Transport Pilot, Commercial, Military and or Certified Flight instructor licenses. The first gala was held in February 2019 in Atlanta, Georgia honoring the first All-African American Female flight crew. This year the SOS brings fundraiser back to where it began again recognizing Black women who are first in their aviation careers.

News

New ID Bill Would Increase Access for Immigrant and Disabled Communities

Sentinel News ServiceFebruary 10, 2022

Assemblymembers Reggie Jones-Sawyer (D-South Los Angeles), Assemblymember Mark Stone (Monterey Bay), Assemblymember Robert Rivas (D-Salinas), and Assemblymember Mike Gipson (D-Carson), have jointly authored AB 1766 that will expand California Identification Card (CA ID) eligibility to all Californians, regardless of their immigration status. If enacted, California will be the first state in the nation to allow people who are undocumented to obtain a non-license, standard identification card.

National News Political

Senator Cory Booker (D-NY), Environmental Justice Advocate, Proud to Receive NNPA Leadership Award

NNPA NewswireSeptember 16, 2021

Sen. Booker, who served two terms as Newark mayor before his election to the Senate, will receive the 2021 National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) National Leadership Award for excellence and innovative leadership in Black America. Drs. James Hildreth and Ebony Hilton, Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.), Congresswoman Cori Bush (D-Missouri), and Olympic record-setter Allyson Felix also will receive National Leadership Awards from the NNPA, the trade association of more than 230 African American-owned newspapers and media companies.

News

Afghanistan: After 20 Years, Thousands Dead and Trillions Spent, Rep. Barbara Lee Proven Right

Lauren Victoria Burke, NNPA Newswire ContributorSeptember 16, 2021

In an August 30 statement on the Afghanistan withdrawal, Congresswoman Lee said: “Twenty years ago, it was clear that rushing into war without a clearly defined mission and exit strategy would risk perpetual war. The Special Inspector General of Afghanistan Reconstruction clearly illustrated in recent reports that ‘U.S. officials rarely had even a mediocre understanding of the Afghan environment, much less how it was responding to U.S. interventions,’ and that this ignorance often came from a ‘willful disregard for information that may have been available.’ In a world where the threat of terrorism cannot be ignored, hopefully we will learn the lessons from the past two decades and not repeat our mistakes.”

International News

Costs of the Afghanistan war, in lives and dollars

Ellen Knickmeyer, Associated PressAugust 16, 2021

At just short of 20 years, the now-ending U.S. combat mission in Afghanistan was America’s longest war. Ordinary Americans tended to forget about it, and it received measurably less oversight from Congress than the Vietnam War did. But its death toll is in the many tens of thousands. And because the U.S. borrowed most of the money to pay for it, generations of Americans will be burdened by the cost of paying it off.

WENDY'S WINDOW

Wendy’s Window – Two Days to Remember and Never Forget

Wendy GladneyJune 17, 2021

June 20th is Father’s Day, the day we celebrate the 70 million fathers in the United States. The reason this day plays a pivotal role in my life is because of the tumultuous relationship I had with my father had a chance to be restored before his death. Without going into detail my father was not always there for me when I needed him most and his lifestyle in my formative years was quite questionable.

News Opinion Political

Experts Say It’s Rare that a ‘Jury of your Peers’ Applies to African Americans

Stacy M. Brown NNPA Newswire CorrespondentJune 3, 2021

“When a juror is unable to relate to a person accused of a crime, the defendant is more likely to face stiffer penalties, up to and including life in prison,” said Charlotte, N.C.-based Attorney Darlene Harris, who after trying a recent murder trial, spoke to a White male juror who shared that a lot of the jurors could not understand the African American defendant.

National News

HUD Earmarks $5 Billion to Help the Homeless

Stacy M. Brown NNPA Newswire Senior National CorrespondentMay 28, 2021

HUD’s most recent Point-in-Time count, which outreach workers and volunteers conducted in January, show that 17 out of every 10,000 people in America experienced homelessness on a single night in 2019. The report revealed that 567,715 people are homeless and represent a cross-section of America – associated with every region, family status, gender category, and racial and ethnic group.

Family Health

Dr. Kevin Williams Issues Caution to African Americans About Rare Heart Disease

Stacy M. Brown NNPA Newswire Senior National CorrespondentMay 27, 2021

With the most recent collaboration between Pfizer Rare Disease and the Black Press, the organizations embarked on a mission to educate and raise awareness to transthyretin amyloid cardiomyopathy – or ATTR-CM. “ATTR-CM is a rare, life-threatening, underrecognized, and underdiagnosed type of amyloidosis that affects the heart and it is associated with heart failure,” Dr. Kevin Williams, Pfizer’s chief medical officer, told the NNPA in a live interview.