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Thursday, January 26, 2012

Your vote DOES matter; start exercising it

by Andrea L. Zopp
During election season, some people watch the debates, attend forums, track endorsements and follow the polls. Others show little to no interest in the races. If you fall in the latter category and think your vote doesn't matter, then I would like to put something on your mind.
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Thursday, January 26, 2012

The power of the Black consumer “Red Tails”

by Dr. Leon Finney Jr.
When the African-American community heard George Lucas of “Star Wars” and “Indiana Jones” fame couldn't easily get "Red Tails" financed because of the all-Black cast, they promised to support the film in droves. The film placed No. 2 in box office sales over the weekend reaching $19.1 million in ticket sales. But the real story is why.
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Sunday, January 22, 2012

A Jobs Bail Out for Blacks!

by Dr. Leon Finney Jr.
According to a 2011 study by the Center for Labor Research and Education at the University of California, “Any analysis of the impact to society of additional layoffs in the public sector as a strategy to address the fiscal crisis should take into account the disproportionate impact of reductions in government employment has on the Black community.”
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Sunday, January 22, 2012

Birthday Wishes for 2012

by Lenny McAllister
People say that birthdays are for looking forward to gifts. Here are 40 I would like to see put in place for Dr. King's birthday in 2012 and beyond.
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Thursday, January 12, 2012

“On the Eve of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s Birthday”

by Dr. Leon Finney Jr.
These words and thoughts might very well be spoken by the late Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. as he challenged America four decades ago in preparation for the “poor people's campaign” of 1968. He urgently reminded America “that nothing will be done until people of good will put their bodies and their souls in motion.” Dr. King believed that, ultimately a great nation is a compassionate nation.
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Saturday, January 7, 2012

Re-enrolling dropouts is one way to end the cycle of poverty, prison

by Andrea L. Zopp
Three years ago, Chicago Public Schools student Devonta Roebuck was a sophomore cutting class, hanging out with the wrong crowd and on academic probation. Figuring he would never get his grades up at Kenwood Academy, he dropped out but re-enrolled in an alternative school called Innovations, where he has thrived.
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Saturday, January 7, 2012

The future of Black political power?

by Dr. Leon Finney Jr.
“I contend that for democratic progressive movements to thrive in the United States, a healthy black politics is indispensable. Black political movements historically have formed a leading edge, in many eras… the leading edge in American democratic and progressive movements.” - quote from the book, Not In Our Lifetimes: The Future of Black Politics by Michael C. Dawson, Professor of Political Science and Director of the Center for the Study of Race, Politics, and Culture at the University of Chicago)
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Saturday, December 31, 2011

Working for the community: A profile of a civic leader

by Wanda Carter, Special to the Defender
The Rev. Dr. Leon Finney is pastor of Metropolitan Apostolic Community Church and Chief Executive Officer of the Woodlawn Community Development Corporation (WCDC). Founded in 1971 by its parent organization, The Woodlawn Organization, WCDC's mission is to engage in community based economic development activities. Over the past three decades, WCDC has organized the investment of $300 million for mixed-income residential and commercial development in Chicago’s most economically depressed neighborhoods.
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Wednesday, December 7, 2011

My story

by U.S. Rep. Jesse L. Jackson Jr. (D-Ill.)
Last week the House Ethics Committee, according to the law and its on-going responsibility, released several items, including a 24-page report (plus exhibits) gathered in 2009 by the Office of Congressional Ethics (OCE). Independent of the House of Representatives, the OCE gathers information as a separate entity with no compulsory process - e.g., it collects newspaper clippings and court filings and conducts voluntary interviews - and sends its findings to the House Ethics Committee.
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Wednesday, November 23, 2011

History is trying to tell you something

by Andrea L. Zopp
I have always been fascinated by history. Civil rights history, I believe, in particular, provides us with teaching moments we can apply to today’s struggles. I recently visited the Civil Rights Museum in Memphis, Tennessee, formerly the Loraine Hotel, where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated.
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