The District of Columbia National Guard celebrated the graduation of its first African-American female pilot.
First Lt. Demetria Elosiebo earned her Army aviator wings in February after completing Initial Entry Rotary Wing Flight School at Fort Rucker, Alabama. “This is an extraordinary, historical event for us,” said Maj. Gen. Errol R. Schwartz, commanding general of the D.C. National Guard. “We’re extremely proud of Lt. Elosiebo. She’s a fine officer, and now, an Army aviator.”
Schwartz said every pilot who graduates from Fort Rucker’s rigorous aviator training course – male or female, regardless of their race or ethnicity – has accomplished something special. He added that the military has moved well past the days when such accomplishments were unusual. “The diversity of our armed forces is what makes us strong,” Schwartz said.
While completing the course is no cake walk, Elosiebo had a leg up on most other students at Fort Rucker. In her civilian career, she previously earned her FAA commercial pilots license and became a certified flight instructor.
Elosiebo follows in the path of the famous Tuskegee Airmen, the first African-American fighter pilots. Before World War II, black pilots were barred from earning their wings in the Army Air Corps. The Pentagon’s rationale was that African-Americans could not be taught to fly. But after being forced to go through pilot training three times before being sent to the fight, they became the best of the best. In the bomber escort missions they flew in Europe, they never lost a bomber.
Elosiebo has a strong connection to the Tuskegee Airmen. She received one of her many scholarships from one of their association chapters, and they supported her when she began pursuing her private pilot’s license at age 19. In addition, she has worked with, and been mentored by these living legends, including Herbert Jones, who formed the first African-American-owned airline in the U.S.
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Instead of growing Afros, staging riots or organizing sit-ins, this generation of protesters are crafting witty digital projects to rally themselves. Back in November, several black students at the University of Michigan launched a social media campaign on Twitter, using the hashtag #BBUM, an acronym for “being black at the University of Michigan,” to describe their unique and often irritating experiences as black students at a predominantly white school. Among their frustrations were the usual: hearing how they gained admission because of affirmative action policies; not being “black enough” because they achieved excellent grades and “sounded white”; having to be the spokesmen and -women for black America in history class; or, on the other side of that spectrum, being ostracized because they weren’t acclimating to their new settings fast enough and instead were choosing to be rowdy, urban or culturally demonstrative on campus.
News of the campaign spread, and black students from peer schools like Cornell University and Duke University adopted the idea to articulate their own sentiments. But as is the norm for high-achieving students, these digital protests could no longer be contained in 140 characters and are now evolving beyond tweets. The black students at Harvard and Georgetown universities are kicking up the effort a few notches and incorporating a visual element into their respective demonstrations.
At Harvard, several black students took pictures of one another holding up signs with statements and questions that have been posed to them by their white peers (and, at times, by other black students). Their campaign is hosted on Tumblr and is promoted and shared using the #itooamharvard hashtag. There’s also an accompanying video production about the campaign that will premiere on March 7. The visuals are compelling narratives and all relate to race:
WASHINGTON (AP) — First lady Michelle Obama is bringing together an impressive group of female artists for a White House concert celebrating women of soul. The lineup for Thursday’s concert includes Aretha Franklin, Patti LaBelle, Melissa Etheridge and Janelle Monáe. Also performing will be The Voice winner Tessanne Chin, Ariana Grande and Jill Scott. The show will be streamed live Thursday night on the White House website and broadcast April 7th on PBS stations as Women of Soul: In Performance at the White House.
It is designed to celebrate what the White House describes as great “foremothers” of American music, with songs exploring the struggles and achievements of women. In connection with the concert, the White House will hold a workshop for students to learn about the history of women in soul.
article via newsone.com
Black community leaders are taking a stand against the controversial “Stand Your Ground” law. On March 10, 2014 in Tallahassee, Florida, leaders across the country including Reverend Al Sharpton and the National Action Network are gathering in the Sunshine State to rally and a hold a prayer vigil in protest of SYG.
Sharpton will also be joined by Attorney Ben Crump and the parents of Trayvon Martin and Jordan Davis. The march begins at 9:30am ET at the Tallahassee Leon County Civic Center, located at 505 W Pensacola St, Tallahassee, FL 32301. After the march is completed, the rally begins at the State Capitol located at 400 South Monroe St, Tallahassee, Florida, FL 32301.
article via blackamericaweb.com
Sharpton will also be joined by Attorney Ben Crump and the parents of Trayvon Martin and Jordan Davis. The march begins at 9:30am ET at the Tallahassee Leon County Civic Center, located at 505 W Pensacola St, Tallahassee, FL 32301. After the march is completed, the rally begins at the State Capitol located at 400 South Monroe St, Tallahassee, Florida, FL 32301.
article via blackamericaweb.com
At an event that felt like a black church service at times, President Barack Obama spoke in deeply personal terms yesterday about growing up without a father and urged the entire country to get behind his newly-launched “My Brother’s Keeper” program to help young black and Latino men. “I didn’t have a dad in the house and I was angry about it, even though I didn’t necessarily realize it at the time,” the president said of his childhood, with 20 black and Latino boys standing behind him in the White House’s East Room.
He added,”I made bad choices. I got high without always thinking about the harm that it could do. I didn’t always take school as seriously as I should have. I made excuses. Sometimes I sold myself short.” But Obama said he was able to be successful because he had a mother, grandparents and teachers who would “push me to work hard and study hard and make the most of myself.”
As the president delivered a speech that alternated between talking about public policy and simply giving advice to both the minority boys behind him and those he hoped would watch the speech on television, a predominantly black audience of several hundred that included luminaries like Magic Johnson and Colin Powell several times shouted “amen” and “yes sir.”
“Yes, we need to train our workers, invest in our schools, make college more affordable — and government has a role to play. And, yes, we need to encourage fathers to stick around, and remove the barriers to marriage, and talk openly about things like responsibility and faith and community. In the words of Dr. King, it is not either-or; it is both-and,” Obama said.
The event was the formal launch of “My Brother’s Keeper,” which aims to pool resources of the federal government and also raise money and create new initiatives through businesses and foundations to target black and Latino males. Studies show men of color are less likely to graduate from high school, attend college or get jobs than white men or their female peers.
Learning nonprofit edX is partnering with Facebook to help bridge the digital divide and bring online education to the unconnected world. The new pilot initiative, named SocialEDU, was revealed Monday at the Barcelona-based Mobile World Congress, and will provide students in Rwanda with free access to “a collaborative online education experience,” according to a statement fresh from the Facebook newsroom. The program is being released under the umbrella of Internet.org, a global partnership focused on bringing Internet to the two-thirds of the world’s population living without it.
The social media giant will be working with the Harvard-and MIT-founded platform to build a mobile app that is integrated with Facebook. Through SocialEDU, students will receive free data plans for accessing edX’s massive open online courses, which stem from 32 of the world’s leading universities, including Dartmouth, U.C. Berkeley, TU Delft, Australian National University and the University of Hong Kong. The platform will allow students to ask questions, interact with teachers, participate in group discussions and engage with their peers. What’s more, the Rwandan government will work with edX to adapt the course materials, thereby creating more locally-relevant content, as well as expand its free Wi-Fi in campuses throughout the East African country.
As part of SocialEDU, Facebook is also partnering with telecommunications company Airtel and Nokia. The former is providing a year’s worth of free educational data to registrants, while the latter is offering discounted smartphones to all those participating in the program. If the pilot is deemed successful, SocialEDU will expand beyond Rwanda.
Jason Collins made history Sunday when he became the NBA’s first openly gay player. On Tuesday, his jersey was the league’s top seller online. Collins’ No. 98 jersey for the Brooklyn Nets outsold NBA powerhouses like LeBron James and Kevin Durant. Monday, a league official told the New York Times the demand for merchandise that bore Collins’ name was “unprecedented.” Tuesday’s sales proved it.
Collins plays in his second game Wednesday night after signing a 10-day contract with the Nets. The team beat the Lakers 108-102 in his debut. Collins tallied 10 minutes and, more importantly, 5 personal fouls in the victory. In addition to solid interior defense, giving “hard fouls” has become Collins trademark since entering the league in 2001. He’s not an All-Star and the Nets don’t need him to be. Ten minutes and five fouls could come again Wednesday night against the Blazers.
The Nets are in the midst of a 6-game road trip.
article via thegrio.com
One of Massachusetts’ most important historical figures, former slave Elizabeth Freeman, is being honored at the State House in Boston today. Freeman, formerly known as Mum Bett, was one of the first black slaves in Massachusetts to file a “freedom suit” and win in court under the 1780 state constitution.
“In the Berkshires, Mum Bett is pretty well-known,” said state Rep. William “Smitty” Pignatelli. “Beyond our county, that’s not the case. I think Black History Month gives us a great opportunity for people outside the Berkshires to hear this amazing story.”
Massachusetts Chief Justice Roderick Ireland will give the keynote speech. In addition, actress Tammy Denease will present a 15-minute reenactment of the story of Mum Bett.
Denease is a Connecticut-based actress who specializes in reenacting the stories of prominent black women from history. In addition to Mum Bett, her characters include Elizabeth Keckly, another former slave who won her freedom, and Bessie Coleman, the world’s first African-American aviatrix.
Bett was born a slave and was owned by the Col. John Ashley family of Sheffield. Ashley was, by all accounts, even-tempered. His wife, Hannah, however, was not. Hannah Ashley at one point struck Bett with a red-hot coal shovel, scarring her face. This moved Bett to travel to nearby Stockbridge, where she sought the assistance of Stockbridge attorney Theodore Sedgwick. Through Sedgwick, Mum Bett and another slave, Brom, won their freedom in 1781, a legal victory that essentially led to the end of the slave trade in Massachusetts in 1789.
First lady Michelle Obama’s “Let’s Move” initiative turns four years old this month, and by any measure it’s been a resounding success. While critics cried “nanny state” when Mrs. Obama first proposed her campaign to focus on youth obesity, the program has undoubtedly raised awareness about a critical problem and affected our nation’s nutritional standards. Thanks to the first lady’s efforts, our country’s school lunch program has been reformed and several major corporations have pledged to put more of an emphasis on fruits and veggies in their store chains. Mrs. Obama has also practiced what she preaches, remaining physically fit and active at the age of 50.
article via thegrio.com
LOS ANGELES — Jason Collins, a 35-year-old center, signed a 10-day contract with the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday afternoon and played against the Lakers hours later, appearing in an NBA uniform for the first time since last spring, when he announced that he was gay. The signing represents a significant step toward transforming North American professional sports into a more welcoming environment for gay athletes. Until Sunday night, no NBA game had taken place with an openly gay player on the floor. The NFL, Major League Baseball and the NHL — the continent’s other three traditional major sports leagues — have never had a publicly gay participant.
The very act of Collins’s suiting up and stepping onto the court — he entered the game to warm applause in the second quarter — represented a milestone in the effort to change a sports culture that some feel has lagged far behind society at large in acceptance of gay people. Collins played 11 minutes in the Nets’ 108-102 victory, finishing with no points, two rebounds, a steal and five fouls.
Collins said he had little time to process it all. He awoke Sunday morning to text messages from his agent and Nets Coach Jason Kidd alerting him to the move, and hours later he was signing his contract. A few hours after that, he was taking his physical and preparing to play his first game since April 17. “Right now, I’m focused on trying to learn the plays, the game plan assignment,” Collins, sitting at a lectern, said less than an hour before the game Sunday night. “I don’t have time to really think about history right now.”