Thursday, March 25, 2010

Panelists for the Black Leadership Forum in NYC

The event is set to take place in New York at the Sheraton Hotel and Towers from April 14 - 17.  The list of panelists is as follows:

Host: Tom Joyner- Host, "Tom Joyner Morning Show"
Moderator: Roland Martin, CNN/TV One analyst
Rev. Al Sharpton- President, National Action Network
Marc Morial- CEO, National Urban League
Ben Jealous- President & CEO, NAACP
Dr. Elsie Scott- President and CEO, Congressional Black Caucus Foundation (CBCF) in Washington, D.C.
Angela Sailor- Coalitions Director, Republican National Committee
Lezli Baskerville- - President & CEO, NAFEO- America's Black Colleges and Universities
Warren Ballentine- Host, "The Warren Ballentine Show"
Dr. Boyce Watkins- Assistant Professor, Finance- Syracuse University
Dr. Charles Ogletree- Professor, Harvard Law School
Jeff Johnson- BET Personality
Judge Greg Mathis - Television Show host
Chuck D - Recording artist




Tuesday, March 23, 2010

Black Athletes: Tiger Makes His First TV Appearance

Dr. Boyce Watkins, Syracuse University


Tiger Woods
chose ESPN and the Golf Channel as the venues for his first interviews, since his sex scandal began four months ago. He gave the interviews with the requirement that they be only five minutes long.
"If you limit it to five minutes, when you account for structure, there's not much time to get into anything, which is probably best," said Syracuse University professor and pop culture expert Robert Thompson.
Woods had to be careful to ensure that the interviews were done in a such a way that they did not overshadow the PGA event being played this weekend. Woods has been able to transcend the game of golf in ways that no player in history has been able to accomplish. His presence (or lack thereof) can make or break a golf tournament's financial outcome.
"We really had two main things that were most important," said an ESPN spokesman. "No. 1, no restrictions on questions, and No. 2, we chose the interviewer."

 

Click to Read




Monday, March 22, 2010

Dr. Boyce: Michael Steele Bows to the Tea Baggers

by Dr. Boyce Watkins, Syracuse University

The Tea Party Protesters might need a little bit of brand management to overcome the growing perception that they represent a racist, homophobic, extremist fringe of disgruntled voters. The most recent incident of very bad PR came this week, as a small group of Tea Party protesters gathered on Capitol Hill and yelled "n*gger" and "f*ggot" at members of Congress as they walked past the crowd. The group has taken heat for the actions of those who don't know how to be cordial in their discourse, and it's not good for the Republican Party.


Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele was put in yet another awkward position, trying to defend that which is not defensible. A man who appears to be disrespected at every turn by his own party, Steel dismissed those using the n-word within the Tea Party group as "idiots out there saying stupid things." Of course, Steele was not in a position to dismiss the Tea Partiers themselves, likely because they would have put him in a pile with the other black people they hate the most.

Click to read




Friday, March 19, 2010

Dr. Boyce Watkins on TheGrio.com - 3/19/10


  • 11-year-old caught in the middle of health reform mudslinging

    11-year-old caught in the middle of health reform mudslinging

    By Dr. Boyce Watkins

    3:00 PM on 03/19/2010

    OPINION - Marcelas Owens' story can bring realism and relevance to a debate that has been about posturing, bickering and mid-term elections...

    > READ MORE

  • Presidential disrespect goes prime-time in Obama's Fox interview

    Presidential disrespect goes prime-time in Obama's Fox interview

    By Dr. Boyce Watkins

    11:22 AM on 03/18/2010

    OPINION - Republicans should realize that when they disrespect the presidency, they are disrespecting themselves...

    > READ MORE

  • Clarence Thomas' wife's Tea Party ties are supremely disturbing

    Clarence Thomas' wife's Tea Party ties are supremely disturbing

    By Dr. Boyce Watkins

    9:20 AM on 03/16/2010

    OPINION - When you sleep next to someone who openly states they want to undermine the president's "hard left agenda" you can hardly call yourself impartial...

    > READ MORE

  • Democrats' crack-cocaine compromise is still 'racist'

    Democrats' crack-cocaine compromise is still 'racist'

    By Dr. Boyce Watkins

    9:00 AM on 03/15/2010

    OPINION - While some might call this political pragmatism, others might describe this outcome as the modern-day version of the Three-Fifths Compromise...

    > READ MORE




  • Your Black Social Commentary from TheGrio - 3/19/10


  • Dr. Boyce Watkins

    Dr. Boyce Watkins

    Author and Finance Professor at Syracuse University

    11-year-old caught in the middle of health reform mudslinging

    3:00 PM on 03/19/2010

    OPINION - Marcelas Owens' story can bring realism and relevance to a debate that has been about posturing, bickering and mid-term elections...

    > MORE

  • Rani G Whitfield

    Rani G Whitfield

    The Hip Hop Doctor

    Colorectal cancer doesn't discriminate

    8:14 AM on 03/19/2010

    OPINION - African-Americans are less likely to receive CRC screenings, especially if they are uninsured...

    > MORE

  • Suzanne Rust

    Suzanne Rust

    Book critic

    An 'Immortal Life': How one woman's cells helped cure a generation

    11:31 AM on 03/18/2010

    REVIEW - The cells of a poor black woman from Clover, Virginia, a descendant of free slaves, led to major breakthroughs in everything from polio to Parkinson's...

    > MORE

  • Dr. Boyce Watkins

    Dr. Boyce Watkins

    Author and Finance Professor at Syracuse University

    Presidential disrespect goes prime-time in Obama's Fox interview

    11:22 AM on 03/18/2010

    OPINION - Republicans should realize that when they disrespect the presidency, they are disrespecting themselves...

    > MORE

  • Marcus Vanderberg

    Marcus Vanderberg

    Sports and social commentator

    Baller-in-chief: Obama's 'March Madness' bracket scores well

    8:16 AM on 03/18/2010

    OPINION - As much as I would have loved to see the president go out on a limb and pick the Baylor Bears to win it all, it's hard to argue against the Jayhawks...

    > MORE

  • Karen Finney

    Karen Finney

    Political analyst

    Conservatives use abortion issue to court African-Americans

    8:09 AM on 03/18/2010

    OPINION - Conservative shock and awe tactics from anti-choice groups are a desperate attempt to win over voters and obscure the harsh realities that black women face...

    > MORE

  • Rashod D. Ollison

    Rashod D. Ollison

    Cultural Critic

    Will Michael Jackson's new music be a thriller for fans?

    9:00 AM on 03/17/2010

    OPINION - Would he have done something different? Did he mean for that note to be there? Would he have approved this final mix?...

    > MORE




  • Thursday, March 18, 2010

    President Obama Attacked on Fox News

    Presidential disrespect goes prime-time in Obama's Fox interview

    by Dr. Boyce Watkins, Syracuse University

     

    The Democrats must pass health care reform. If they pass the legislation, they are still going to get hammered in the mid-term elections. If they don't pass the bill, the hammering will only multiply in its intensity. Right now, our Congress finds itself in a terribly complex situation, with terms like "reconciliation" and "deem and pass" being thrown around like profanity against a growing backlash from a portion of the American public. If we could go back in time, President Obama would never have taken on this issue.

    I watched President Obama's interview with Brett Baier on Fox News with intrigue. I wondered why Obama would want to appear on a network that has spent hundreds of millions of dollars undermining the White House. I then realized that Obama's appearance is likely in line with the White House strategy of taking on the Republicans face-to-face. Rather than appearing to be an elitist leader who hides from his adversaries (as George Bush might have done), Obama is walking into one lion's den after another, making his presidency even more interesting than it was when he arrived. Also unlike President Bush, Obama is savvy and intelligent enough to debate 100 Republicans in a single bound, the way Tiger Woods can dominate a golf course with scores of non-black competitors. Barack Obama is his own greatest asset.

     

    Click to read




    Monday, March 15, 2010

    Black Social Commentary from TheGrio - 3/15/10


  • Dr. Boyce Watkins

    Dr. Boyce Watkins

    Author and Finance Professor at Syracuse University

    Democrats' crack-cocaine compromise is still 'racist'

    9:00 AM on 03/15/2010

    OPINION - While some might call this political pragmatism, others might describe this outcome as the modern-day version of the Three-Fifths Compromise...

    > MORE

  • Earl Ofari Hutchinson

    Earl Ofari Hutchinson

    Journalist, author and broadcaster.

    California police stop proves racial profiling is alive and well

    8:37 AM on 03/15/2010

    OPINION - In an address to a joint session of Congress in 2001, then President Bush blasted racial profiling, "It's wrong and we will end it in America." It hasn't...

    > MORE

  • Talia Whyte

    Talia Whyte

    Journalist & Activist

    Is the average single black woman really worth just $5?

    9:02 AM on 03/12/2010

    OPINION - If this disturbing new study doesn't prove once and for all that America isn't 'post-racial' I don't know what does...

    > MORE

  • Christopher Chambers

    Christopher Chambers

    Professor of Journalism at Georgetown University

    Prison shouldn't be a publicity stunt for Lil Wayne

    8:22 AM on 03/12/2010

    OPINION - If Lil Wayne regards his cell as an extension of his studio or his label's offices, he will suffer...

    > MORE

  • Dr. Boyce Watkins

    Dr. Boyce Watkins

    Author and Finance Professor at Syracuse University

    'March Madness' isn't amateur, it's big league exploitation

    8:17 AM on 03/12/2010

    OPINION - The amount of money made during March Madness exceeds that which is earned in the playoffs for the NFL, NBA or Major League Baseball...

    > MORE

  • Dr. Janet Taylor

    Dr. Janet Taylor

    Psychiatrist

    Too many Tigers, not enough Trojans

    7:05 AM on 03/12/2010

    OPINION - What's notable is reportedly not only did Woods not wear a condom, but his partner's didn't insist upon it...

    > MORE

  • Dr. Boyce Watkins

    Dr. Boyce Watkins

    Author and Finance Professor at Syracuse University

    Why African-Americans are more optimistic despite fewer jobs

    11:10 AM on 03/11/2010

    OPINION - A new study shows that blacks are more economically optimistic than whites, with 36 percent stating that we expect our financial future to improve...

    > MORE

  • Dr. Janet Taylor

    Dr. Janet Taylor

    Psychiatrist

    How black women can combat genital herpes crisis

    10:42 AM on 03/11/2010

    OPINION - According the Center for Disease Control nearly half of all African-American women are infected with the HSV-2 virus...

    > MORE

  • Marcus Vanderberg

    Marcus Vanderberg

    Sports and social commentator

    Torii Hunter is right about blacks in baseball

    8:57 AM on 03/11/2010

    OPINION - By associating Dominican players with blacks, it disguises the fact that MLB has a long way to go in competing with the NFL and NBA in urban communities...

    > MORE




  • Dr. Boyce Watkins on the Crack Sentencing Disparity

    Democrats' crack-cocaine compromise is still 'racist'

    Dr. Boyce Watkins, Syracuse University

     

    When I was a teenager, a police officer explained to me how the "War on Drugs" took place in his hometown. The officer candidly described how every policeman in the city knew what boats contained drugs and when those boats would arrive in the city's major port. But he also knew that officers were not expected to show up on these boats to make arrests, and that they were not to deter the progress of the product when it hit the port. Instead, they were instructed to allow the drugs to get to the inner city, where they were given authorization to make as many arrests as necessary. In other words, his job was to arrest the small fish, not the big ones.


    The misleading, ill-conceived and terribly racist set of drug policies which defined the Reagan era has been absolutely devastating for the African-American community. The existence of gang warfare in South Central Los Angeles has left hundreds of thousands of youth with post-traumatic stress disorder, as the CIA was oblivious to the fact that drugs and guns were being openly delivered to a community that no one cares about. The Anti Drug Abuse Act of 1986 was the product of America's broad-stroke reaction to increased drug use of the 1980s. The law gave a sentence 100 times greater for possession of crack cocaine (more likely to be possessed by blacks) than the one given for powder cocaine (possessed in greater proportion by whites), creating a black incarceration rate of holocaust proportions.


    After sitting on the books for decades, the law was finally modified this year. Democratic Senator Dick Durbin and Republican Jeff Sessions did black people the "favor" of agreeing to reduce the sentencing disparity from 100-to-1 to 18-to-1. So, instead of getting a prison sentence that is 100 times longer for the same crime, we only get one that is 18 times longer. Gee thanks. I'm supposed to be happy about that one, huh? So, we're not good enough to demand true equality, and are instead forced to accept dysfunctional compromises with Republicans from Alabama? While some might call this political pragmatism, others might describe this outcome as the modern-day version of the Three-Fifths Compromise.

     

    Click to read




    Sunday, March 14, 2010

    Black News: Jay - Z Gets PushBack on His New Stadium

    by Dr. Boyce Watkins

    I curiously watched the press conference held last week to celebrate the New Jersey Nets (well, not quite New Jersey anymore) stadium set to be built in Brooklyn. A group of investors, led by Bruce Ratner, were joined by many prominent New York public figures to celebrate the ground-breaking of one of the highest impact economic endeavors in the history of Brooklyn. Jay-Z is part of the group of investors who bought the Nets, so of course he attended the ceremony.


    The excitement of bringing a professional sports team to a city is overwhelming. Teams can bring out a sense of community spirit and unity which ultimately helps provide a little meaning in a complex world. Cities compete to bring teams to their town because the fans want them. Cities give teams extensive tax subsidies and even offer to use eminent domain to take property away from residents who are not willing to sell their homes in order to have the stadium built. Sounds terrible, doesn't it? Well, sometimes it can be.

    Click to read




    Thursday, March 11, 2010

    African American Bloggers on Newsone.com - 3/11/10

    Rev. Al Sharpton

    Rev. Al Sharpton

    Founder and President of the National Action Network (NAN), Rev Sharpton is one of most-renowned civil rights leaders in the country. Pres Obama called him “the voice of the voiceless and a champion for the downtrodden."

    RSS

    Dr. Boyce Watkins

    Dr. Boyce Watkins

    The Bottom Line

    Dr. Boyce Watkins is a Professor at Syracuse University and author of the book, "Black American Money." For more information, please visit www.YourBlackWorld.com.

    RSS

    RK Byers

    RK Byers

    Rich's Rant

    Novelist, screenwriter and edtor RK Byers has spent a career speaking his mind on all topics from sports to news. His work has appeared in consumer publications including The Source and GIANT.

    RSS

    Elon James White

    Elon James White

    This Week In Blackness

    "This Week in Blackness" is a satirical look at race, politics and pop-culture in a so-called “post-racial” America.

    RSS

    Warren Ballentine

    Warren Ballentine

    Radio host Warren Ballentine, "The People's Attorney," will provide you with all the legal and financial advice you need to keep up in today’s fast-paced world. Visit his website at www.thetruthfighters.com.




    Tuesday, March 9, 2010

    Dr. Boyce Watkins: Scholarship in Action at an All Black Male Academy in Chicago

    by Dr. Boyce Watkins, Syracuse University

    There is one public, all-male, all-African American high school in the city of Chicago. That school is called The Urban Prep Academy for Young men, located in Englewood. The school recently got the attention of Mayor Richard Daley and Chicago Public Schools Chief Ron Huberman when they were able to get all of their 107 seniors accepted into 72 different colleges across the country.
    Huberman had this to say:
    "All of you in the senior class have shown that what matters is perseverance, what matters is focus, what matters is having a dream and following that dream."

    Click to read more




    Monday, March 8, 2010

    Tom Delay Says People Don't Want to Have Jobs

    Tom Delay

    by Dr. Boyce Watkins, Syracuse University

    If I were President Barack Obama, I would be break dancing in the Oval Office. Former Republican House Majority Leader Tom Delay applauded the actions of his Republican colleague Jim Bunning, who chose to block the extension of unemployment benefits for millions of Americans. In his comments, Delay effectively argued that Americans want to be unemployed, because having unemployment benefits gives them no incentive to go out and look for a job.
    Yes, I was stunned to hear these words. But then again, perhaps Delay has decided to officially marginalize himself and say all the things he wanted to say when he actually had a position of relevance within the federal government. Instead, he has allowed us to peek in to the minds of his colleagues, who are probably thinking the same way. Here are Delay's words based on his interview with Candy Crowley:

    Click to read




    Tuesday, March 2, 2010

    News: Prof. Boyce Watkins Addresses Stanford University NAACP

    From Your Black World

    Dr. Boyce Watkins, faculty affiliate at The College Sport Research Institute, is going to speak to the Stanford NAACP on Wednesday, March 3.  The topic of the conversation will be “Does the NCAA Represent an Opportunity or Exploitation?”

    Dr. Watkins is one of the leading authorities on NCAA compensation.  He has advocated for college athletes to be paid, and founded the group ALARM: The Athlete Liberation and Academic Reform Movement.  He is also the founder of the Your Black World Coalition, with 60,000 members nation-wide.