Ghana to play host to President Obania
* - * V ?
<GIN/NNP^\) - President Barack Obama's upcoming
African tour includes an official \ isit to Ghana but not
Nigeria where an 'all out war'
threatens the oil fields of the
Niger Delta and charges of fraud
cloud a recent regional vote
The purpose of the July trip. is
to "strengthen the I S relation
ship w ith one of our jnost trusted
partners in sub-Saharan Africa."
and also to "highlight the critical
role that sound governance and
civil society play in promoting
lasting development." the White
House said.
According to a White House
source, while Nigeria remains a
Obama
strategic partner of the US on African issues. Ghana has
earned greater merit with the US on its domestic success
es. including its successful transfer of power from one
party to another
Cleveland Urban League
closing after 92 years
CLEVELAND (AP) - The Urban League of Greater
Cleveland says it has lingering debt and w ill close after 92
years of serving the city's inner-city
residents and businesses. i ,
It is closing on May 29. The
agency's 15 full-time employees are
losing their jobs.
Chief Executive- Officer
Johnathan HoHfield says the affiliate
of the National Urban League has
52.75 million in debt, mostly on the
purchase of its headquarters in 2002.
He says that makes the nonprofit
organization unable to run its pro
grams to develop literacy, job skills
and economic opportunities.
H oilfield
Holifield says he doesn't know of any other city where
the Urban League is in a similar situation.
Latino gang accused of
targeting blacks near LA
HAWAIIAN GARDENS, California (AP) - A Latino
street gang waged a racist campaign to eliminate the city's
black residents through attempted murders and other
crimes, according to federal racketeering indictments
unsealed Thursday.
Five indictments- charged a total of 147 members and
associates of the Varrio Hawaiian Gardens gang, and feder
al and local agencies arrested 63 of them last Thursday.
U.S. Attorney Thomas P. O'Brien said at a news confer
ence:'" v
Another 35 defendants were already in custody on
unrelated charges. Weapon % and drugs worth more than SI
million also were seized in what O'Brien called "the
largest gang takedown in United States history."
The indictments detail attempted murder, kidnapping,
firearms, narcotics and other charges related to attacks by
the gang, which is predominantly Latino and mainly oper
ates in Haw aiian Gardens, a city of about 15.000 in south
eastern Los Angeles County. ' "''v
"(Varrio Hawaiian Gardens) gang members take pride
in their racism and often refer to the VHG Gang as the
"Hate Gang.'" the main indictment said. "VHG gang mem
bers have expressed a desire to rid the city of Hawaiian
Gardens of all African-Americans and have engaged in a
systematic effort to achieve that result by perpetrating
crimes against African-Americans."
The indictment alleges a string of attacks on black res
idents. including a shooting into a home with eight people
inside. The indictment does not say if anyone was hit.
Former commander to lead NASA
WASHINGTON (AP) - President Barack Obama on
Saturday named former shuttle commander Charles Bolden to
lead NASA at a critical time for the space agency.
The White House has ordered a complete outside review of
NASA's manned space program, including plans to return
astronauts to the moon.
Holder,
Boiden tlew in space four times -
twice as shuttle commander - and once
was assistant deputy administrator at
NASA headquarters in Washington. The
62-year-old Columbia. S.C.. native left
NASA in 1994.
If the Senate confirms Boiden. he
would be the space agency's first black
administrator and the second astronaut
to hold the post.
Obama also announced that he was
nominating Lori Garver to be NASA's
deputy administrator. Garver was
Obama s NASA transition chief and is a former associate
administrator at the agency.
"These talented individuals will help put NASA on course
to boldly push the boundaries of science, aeronautics and
exploration in the 21st century and ensure the long-term vibran
cy of America's space-. program." Obama said in a statement.
White House science adviser John Holdren said in early
May that the new panel will look at the design of new space
craft to replace the space shuttle and go to the moon, as well as
consider possible alternatives to the current design.
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Gold medal-winning swimmer
continues to promote water safety
BY kRLSTIt RIEKEN
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
HOUSTON - Cullen
Jones sternly burked orders
to the nearly half a dozen
children wading in the pool
"kick." he said to a
young girl in the flowered
swimsutt "Harder Come .
on, you can do it."
The group of elementary -
age children got a treat as
the Olympic gold medalist '
gave them a swim lesson to
launch a six-city event
called 'Make a Splash with
Cullen Jones."
The initiative, which is
sponsored by the USA
Swimming Foundation and
ConocoPhiJlips. is aimed at
reducing drownings among
minority youth by promoting
the availability of low. or no
cost swimming lessons.
Jones is the perfect
spokesman for the program,
after becoming the first
African American to break a
w orld record in swimming in
.an Olympic contested event
in 2006. His success contin
ued last summer in Beijing
when he won a gold medal
with the U.S. 400-meter
freestyle relay team.
His involvement in the
cause isn't for publicity; he
only learned to swim after
almost drowning at age 4
The incident at a water park
that left him unconscious
and requiring CPR spurred
his family to get him swim
lessons, which turned into a
career in the sport.
Drowning is the second
leading cause of death for
children ages 14 and under '<
Photo by Jeff SineT'Ouriottc Observe "MCT
Swimmer Cullen Jones made history at the 2008 Olympics.
in the United States. The
problem is most serious
among African-Americans
ages 5-14 who are more than
three times more likely to
drown than white children of
the same age range.
"Almost being part of the
statistic, it hits kind of close
to home." Jones said. "I've
just taken the torch and real
ly tried to run with it to help
diversity in swimming."
Recently, Jones spent
more than half an hour
teaching the 8-to- 10-year
olds swimming basics
including how to breathe
under water and the proper
way to kick. There was
splashing and laughing,
Jones made sure the four
girls and one boy understood
the importance of learning to
swim and using care near the
water.
"I have a lot of friends
who don't know how to
swim" said 8-year-old
Citizen Broome "Now I'll
tell them 1 learned about
swimming from someone in
the Olympics and they
should learn so they can be
safe."
Members of the Houston
Fire Department, who are
often the first responders to
See Jones on A8
NAACP condemns ACC taking event to S.C.
BY PETE IACOBELLI
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
COLL MBIA.S.C.- The
NAACP condemned the
Atlantic Coast Conference
for bringing its baseball
tournament back to South
Carolina, in defiance of the
civil rights group's nearly
decade-long boycott of the
state for flying the
Confederate flag.
"Dignity, decency and
most importantly respect
continue to be absent from
the action plan of the ACC,"
the NAACP said in the reso
lution, passed by its national
board last weekend.
The resolution is in
response to ACC leaders vot
ing to award its postseason
tournament to Myrtle Beach
for three years, starting in
2011.
The NCAA* has had a
moratorium on awarding
predetermined champi
onships to -South~~Carolina
since 2001. while the ACC
and Southeastern
Conference have largely
adhered to similar stances.
That changed with last
week's decision to play
along the Grand Strand, said
Lonnie Randolph, president
of the South Carolina con
ference of NAACP branches
"Initially, they supported
the cause of respect , decency
and equality for alf people,"
Randolph said. "Have they
resorted to their old policy
where they didn't always
feel that way?"
The NAACP said the
ACC did not contact state or
national leaders about the
move.
Davis Whitfield. ACC
associate commissioner of
championships, said his
league was told the Myrtle
Beach organizing committee
would talk with all groups
that had sensitivities regard
ing the flag.
"The bid committee
assured us that these conver
sations had taken place." he
said in a statement Thursday.
Last week. Whitfield,
speaking with The
Associated Press by phone
about Myrtle Beach's win
ning bid. said the climate
had changed in South
Carolina since the boycott
began in 20()0.
Then, the Confederate
flag flew over the Statehouse
r
and sanctions led to a leg
islative compromise where
the banner was taken down
and placed at a Confederate
soldier's monument in front
of the Capitol building.
Opponents said the new
location made the flag even
more visible and demanded
it be removed to a museum.
The boycott has continued
since .
Former state NAACP
See NAACP on A8
Rep. Clyburn
Randolph
Community Care Center
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