Newspapers / Winston-Salem Chronicle (Winston-Salem, N.C.) / April 3, 1997, edition 1 / Page 2
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National leaders honor Percy E. Sutton: BLF gala draws public, private stars When the Black Leadership Forum Inc. (BLF) launches the first Awards Gala in its 19-year history April 10, 1997, at New York City's Tavern on the Green, honoree Percy E. Sutton will receive BLF's first annual Lamplighter Award for Leader ship. BLF Chairman Joseph E. Lowery, president of SCLC, will be assisted by the Gala's National Honorary co-chairs Coretta Scott King and Louis Gossett Jr. in making the pre sentation to Sutton. In addition to Lowery, most of the high profile black organizational presidents and CEOs who make up BLF's board of directors expect to be joined at the gala by hundreds of top leaders and luminaries from national corpo rations and businesses, and from the civil rights, service, advocacy and entertainment communities. Sutton, who served as the first African-American presi dent of the borough of Manhat tan, will be cited for his accom plishments as a businessman, communications industry mogul, attorney, civil rights leader and activist. During the 1960s he organized and led freedom rides, sit-ins, demon strations and protests to chal lenge opponents of civil rights and equity for blacks. For over 40 years, Sutton has practiced law in the United States and the Virgin Islands, representing and advising such national figures as 1984 and 1988 presidential candidate the Rev. Jesse L. Jackson, Sr. Percy Sutton is the founder and chairman emer itus of the Inner-City Broad casting Corporation. He is also chairman of Queens Inner-City Cable System (QUICS) and of Africom Telecommunications Inc., an African-based satellite company promoting telephone service to the African continent. He was the force behind restor ing the Apollo Theater in Harlem, where he currently pro motes new talent and produces the famous live televised "Show Time at the Apollo." In the international arena, Sutton was a delegate, along with other nationally recognized business leaders, to the G-7 Nations, Ministers and Leading Industri alists Roundtable on Telecom munications in Brussels, Bel gium. The Black Leadership Forum was founded in 1978 by 11 Black leaders including the Rev. Lowery and Mrs. King; Vernon Jordan, then head of the National Urban League: Dr. Dorothy Height, of the National Council of Negro Women; and several black elected officials and leaders of other advocacy organizations. Today, BLF consists of top leadership from 21 organiza* tions, and "... provides creative and coordinated black leader ship, diverse in membership but clear on its priority to empower African Americans to improve their own lives and to expand their opportunities to fully par ticipate in American social, economic and political life." During the past year, BLF's agenda has included negotia tions with Texaco, and dia logues with Eddie Bauer Inc. and several other corporations confronting problems of access and diversity; monitoring and intervening to assure black rep resentation in the Clinton administration; public educa tion on proposals for Welfare reform; involvement in voter education about California's Proposition 209 and also in assessing the process of disclo sure regarding reported illegal drug trafficking in that state. The April 10 first annual Lamplighter Awards Gala will launch a new BLF initiative to recognize, support, identify and assist in the advancement of new generations of black lead ers, into and within public and private institutions. Gala enter tainment will be provided by the Sherry Winston Band. Tick ets must be purchased in advance of the gala's 7:30 p.m. opening. Those interested in attending may call (202) 789 3505, or (212) 222-9400 for information and reservations. In addition to Chairman Joseph E. Lowery, the BLF offi cers and members are Vice Chairman Eddie N. Williams, president of the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies; secretary Hugh B. Price, presi dent of the National Urban League; treasurer Dr. Ramona H. Edelin, president of the National Urban Coalition; exec utive director and chief operat ing officer Dr. Yvonne Scruggs; Norman Hill, president of the A. Philip Randolph Institute; Oscar Eason Jr., president and CEO of Blacks in Government; William Lucy, president of the Coalition of Black Trade Unionists; Bishop Roy L.H. Winbush, chairman of the Con gress of National Black Churches; the Honorable Mar ine Waters, chair of the Con gressional Black Caucus; Dex ter King, president and CEO of the Martin Luther King Center for Nonviolent Social Change; Kweisi Mfume, president and CEO of the NAACP; Elaine Jones, Esq., director-counsel of the NAACP Legal Defense & Educational Fund Inc.; the Hon orable Mary Pinkett of the National Black Caucus of Local Elected Officials; the Honorable Lois DeBerry, president of the National Caucus of State Legis lators; the Honorable Emanuel Cleaver II, president of the National Conference of Black Mayors; Dr. Dorothy Height, president of the National Coun cil of Negro Women Inc.; Dorothy R. Leavell, president of the National Newspaper Pub lishers Association; Daily M. Wood, president of the National Pan-Hellenic Council; Dr. C. DeLores Tucker, chair of the National Political Congress of Black Women Inc.; Herman Art Taylor, president and CEO of OIC's of America Inc.; and the Rev. Jesse L. Jackson, president and CEO of Operation PUSH Inc. * : Electricity is something we just couldn't do without. Its depend able. Its affordable. And it makes our lives a lot easier. But it's a powerful form of energy. And it needs to be treated with respect. Especially is th Spring, when we're planting flowers i 1 /-\ i ? ? ? t t < ? or shrubs. Ur climbing ladders to paint or clean gutters. If your neighborhood has underground electric service, its important that you know where those lines are before you start digging. And you can find that wv w ' out by calling one of these numbers: in North Carolina, 1-800-632-4949; ? n I I ? in i>outh Carolina, 1-800-922-0983. This line locating service is absolutely free, and so is the call. And if you have overhead electric service, make sure you keep yourself and your ladder as far away from tfrpse lines as possible. Springs a great time to get out and get busy with a paint brush or shovel in your hands. But its important that you use your head, too. DUKE POWER
Winston-Salem Chronicle (Winston-Salem, N.C.)
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April 3, 1997, edition 1
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