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In Our 24th Year Issue No. 1944 July 2006 www.theacphoenix.com Associate Consultants
Serving the Triad FREE
A PASSION FOR THE GAME
By Tammy Bankhead
WCP Communications®
“I know that I wouldn’t be
where I am today without God and
the love and dedication of my
mother,” said Michael Levondre
Rucker. Rucker, the son of Jesse
and Lauren Brown, has spent
most of his life in the sports arena.
He started playing football at the
age of five. He began his career in
the Pop Warner League, playing
for such teams as the Falcons and
Packers. Rucker does not limit
himself to the football field. He is
also an accomplished track star,
but football is his passion. When
asked what motivates him to excel
as an athlete...Rucker responded,
“You got to have passion for the
game and that’s what I have; a true
passion for the game.”
Rucker, who is naturally gifted
with the talent of athleticism,
knows that even natural talent
must be nurtured and developed.
He has attended a variety of
\C FRIENDS TO ASSIST
LIBERIA
Michael L. Rucker
camps to keep that competitive
edge over his colleagues. His
impressive list of training includes:
Ragsdales Combine, Nike Camp,
Duke Football Camp, Coastal
Continued on Page 31
AFRICAN LITERATIRE ASSOCIATION
MEETS IN GHANA
By Debra S. Boyd, Ph.D.
“Pan-Africanism in the 21st Century:
Generations in Creative Dialogue” was
the theme of the 32nd Annual Meeting
and Conference of the African Literature
Association (ALA) which took place May
17-21, 2006 at the La Palm Royal Beach
Hotel in Accra, Ghana West Africa.
Hosting institutions and conveners were:
the Institute of African and .African-
American Affairs at New York University
(Professor Manthia Diawara); the
CODESRIA African Humanities Institute
Programme at the University of Ghana-
Legon (Professor Kofi Anyidoho), the
NYU-in-Ghana Program (Professor Awam
Ampka). It was a profound season of
cultural and intellectual enrichment.
The festivities began with an official
opening ceremony that featured a traditional music and dance welcome followed by
statements from University of Ghana representatives and distinguished guests: Prof.
C.N.B. Tagoe, Ag. Vice-Chancellor, Univ. of Ghana; Prof. Yaw Nyarko, Vice-Provost
for Global and Multicultural Affairs at NYU and Professor Adzei Bekoe, Chairman of
the Council of State and former Vice-Chancellor, Univ. of Ghana. Dr. Debra Boyd,
President of the ALA also made opening remarks:
“Ghana, land of the stooldoms, kings and queens, Kwame Nkrumah, golden
spaces, the black man’s historical legacy and stellar protagonists in the human story.
We are proud to bask once again the aromas of our ancestors for this historic occa
sion. The year 2007 will mark the 50th Anniversary of Ghana’s independence from
colonial rule and also the bi-centennial of the abolition of slavery by the British. The
ALA presence in Ghana at this time is an appointment with destiny, a prelude to the
Continued on Page 16
Dr. Seth O. Larty
By Mel White
The Liberian Organization of
the Piedmont (LOP), under the
leadership of its founder and
current president James Y.
Hunder, Sr., has launched a
statewide effort to assist with the
reconstruction of the Republic of
FORSYTH COUNTY
HAS “HOLD OUT
THE LIFELINE”
Liberia,
other
Larry Womble
West Africa. LOP and
Liberian organization
around the world are rallying
behind newly elected Liberian
President, Her Excellency
Madame Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf.
President Johnson-Sirleaf is the
Continued on Page 7
Dr. Sarah Barbour, Dr. Debra S. Boyd,
Dr. Marolijn De Jaeyer
Saundra D. Todd
By Nakita Vanstory
“Train up a child in the way he
should go: and when he is old, he will
not depart from it.”—Proverbs 22:6
Although infant mortality affects
all racial and ethnic groups, this
epidemic has reached devastating pro
portions in the African-American and
Latino communities of Forsyth County.
According to recent statistics provided
by the Surveillance Unit of the Forsyth
County Department of Public Health,
Continued on Page 30
INSIDE
■ ■ ■
Project Reentry
Receives National
Recognition
. . .3
Do Not
Despair
. . .9
How Do You Want
to Be Remembered . .
. .13
Student Receives
President
Award
. .14
Florida Inmates
Donate to
Katrina Victims ....
. .16
Dancing
Her Way
to Nationals
. .35
Female Officer’s
Nightmare
. .37