JEAH-a HJIRI.I
liilMiiiMiiliili
NO ‘DOUBT’ A STAR
Essence
magazine’s
Susan Taylor
headlines
Pantene
Total You
Tour IB
Who’ll
replace
Bemie as
Bobcats
coach?
1C
Volume 32 No. 31
The Voice of the Black Community
Ill
Also serving Cat
: i OF APRIL t9-25, 2007
Men
critical
to black
family
Urban League
study paints grim
picture of crisis
By Hazel Trice Edney
. NATIONAL NEWSPAPER
PUBUSHERS ASSOCIATION
Morial
WASHINGTON - The under-
achievement of black males is
among America’s greatest
crises, according to a national
survey.
"This state of underachieve
ment, with its
devastating
and far-reach
ing ramifica
tions, is the
most serious
economic and
civil rights
challenge we
face today,"
Urban League President Marc
Morial says in “The State of
Black America 2007; Portrait
of the Black Male." a 260-page
document, released this week.
"It’s a problem with a major
rippling effect. Not only does
it impact individual black
men. It also hurts their fami
lies and communities. It’s not
just a problem for the African-
American community. It’s a
problem for everyone in this
nation."
The report, an annual mea
surement of black progress,
outlines egregious statistics:
• Black men are more than
twice as likely to be unem
ployed as white men and
make only 74 percent as
much a year.
• Black men are more than
six times as likely than white
men to be incarcerated and
their average jail sentences
tend to be 10 months longer
than those of white men. .
■ At the end of 2001, 16.5
percent of black males had
been to prison compared to
7.7 percent of Hispanic and
2.7 percent of white men.
• Young black males
between the ages of 15 and 34
years are nine times more
likely to be killed by firearms
and nearly eight times as like
ly to suffer from AIDS.
• Of single-parent black
households in 2005, only 12
percent were led by men.
2S216 S12
Janes B. Duke Li^ary
100 Beatties Ford Ro
Charlotte NC 28216-5302
rusnidr
federal
slauery
apelegy
us. House panel considers
vote on national legislation
By Herbert L. V^hite
rierb.wTiife@fhecT'ortoffepo5f.com
The U.S. House of Representatives is con
sidering an apology for slavery.
U.S. Rep. G.K. Butterfield, (D-N.C.) is push
ing for legislation that would acknowledge
U.S. involvement in the slave trade. Several
southern states, including
Georgia and Virginia, have
adopted resolutions. North
Carolina’s House and Senate
have approved separate mea
sures..
"An apology on the part of
the federal government is
important and long overdue,
and there is a power in Butterfield
acknowledging an error and
I I mistake," Butterfield,
* An apology a resident of Wilson in
on the part of northeastern N.C.,
_ r I _ . said in a Statement.
the federal Butterfield has writ-
government is ten House Speaker
important
and long
overdue.* ’
• Nancy Pelosi urging
her to take up a bill
that would acknowl
edge the injustices
brought on by slavery
and segregation and
apologize for U.S. res
idents. Fifty lawmak
ers have signed on as co-sponsors and is
U.S. Rep.
G.K. Butterfield
Please see HOUSE/6A
Sudan OKs
f By Brandi M. Woodson
. THE CHARLOTTE POST
Is it misogyny or art?
• In Charlotte, the reviews
are mixed about whether hip
hop should be held account-
■ able for using words that got
radio host Don Imus fired.
While hip hip icons like
' Snoop Dogg tries to define
who rappers are referring to
as hos, others are outraged
' by the longtime use of
degrading words toward
black women.
"It’s despicable, and we put up
with it,” said
Johnson C. Smith
University com
munication arts
professor
Cassandra Wynn.
"They are pre
senting women in I
a way that is not
acceptable. We
should make a
Please see BATTLE/2A
ASSOCIATED PRESS VIA HARD ROCK CAFE
Hip hop star Nelly is one of several high-profile music artists who hove come under fire for
songs and videos that point women in on unflattering light. Nelly’s “Tip Drill,” In which he is
shown swiping o credit cord between o woman’s buttocks, is one of the most infamous.
• More than two-thirds of
black children live in one-par
ent households in 2005, the
majority headed by women.
• More than 42 percent of
female-headed black house
holds with children were
poor, compared to slightly
more than 9 percent of mar
ried black households.
"The absence of the black
man in the black family will
only lead to greater poverty
for our community as a
whole,” states Morial. "It helps
exacerbate the disparities
already existing between
minorities and whites in the
United States."
By Edith M. Lederer
NATIONAL NEWSPAPER PUBUSHERS ASSOOA7TON
UNITED NATIONS - Sudan agreed Monday
to let 3,000 U.N. peacekeepers deploy in
Darfur with attack helicopters, opening the
door to the first significant U.N. force to help
beleaguered African Union soldiers who have
been unable to halt the region’s four-year
war.
After five months of stalling, the govern
ment in Khartoum called for a speedy
deployment and hinted it could approve an
even larger U.N. force that has been demand
ed by the U.N. Security Council, the United
States and others.
But experts were cautious about chances
for creating that 20,000-strong force, noting
Sudan’s leaders have reversed course previ-
See DARFUR/2A
S.C. town braces for national
spotlight of presidential debate
By Cheris F. Hodges
cHeris.Hodges®fhechartoffeposf.com
ORANGEBURG. S.C. - South
Carolina State University
will be a part of election his
tory next week.
The Democratic
Presidential Candidates’
Debate will be broadcast live
from Martin Luther King Jr.
Auditorium on April 26 at 7
p.m., and will be produced
by NBC News.
SCSU President Andrew
Hugine Jr. said the debate is
a sign that historically black
colleges play a significant
role in the political process.
“This will have a positive
impact on South Carolina
State and give people a
greater knowledge of (the
university),’’ he said.
MSNBC, which has intensi
fied its focus on politics
with non-stop political cov
erage during the recent mid
term elections, will also pre
view the debate before the
forum. The network’s signa
ture political program,
“Hardball with Chris
Matthews," will air live from
Orangeburg with interviews
and analysis. The network
will also air comprehensive
analysis after the forum.
It’s the first time in SCSU
Please see S.C. TOWN/3A
PHOTO/SCOTT LEWIS
Barack Obama, campaigning in Florence, S.C., last week,
is among the Democratic presidential candidates sched
uled to participate in a debate next week in Orangeburg.
Bright idea: Improve
homes curt appeal
with lighting/5D
Life 1B
Religion SB
Sports 1C
Business 6C
A&E1D
Classified 3D
Please
Recycle
To subscribe: (704) 376-0496 FAX (704) 342-2160.© ^7 The Charlotte Post Publishing Co.
o