Voices In Color

Today's Black Fact

On this day in 1912, Gordon Parks, filmmaker & photographer, was born.

'America's Most Wanted' Features Missing Person, Norman, Case

The Latasha Norman investigation is getting the national attention many people close to the case had hoped for. The Jackson State student disappeared from campus on November 13th. Now her case is being featured on a national program known for its success.

Watched in six to seven million households across America every week, America's Most Wanted doesn't measure success with just viewership.

Senior Correspondent Tom Morris says, "We're somewhere near 970 captures, and we've done 915 shows, so we've solved a crime pretty much every week for 21 years."

Now A.M.W. is focusing on the Norman case. It's shooting an episode in Jackson, talking with investigators, and hoping to bring clues to the surface to solve the case.

Source: WLBT3

Today's Black Fact

On this day in 1955, Alice Childress becomes the first African American woman to receive an Obie Award for her play, "Trouble in Mind".

Black Ministers Back Clinton In S.C.

Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton picked up endorsements from dozens of black ministers Tuesday in South Carolina, an early voting state where she and rival Barack Obama have been courting the critical black vote.

The clergy were drawn to the New York senator for her views on health care, jobs and other issues, said a state representative who helped organize the endorsements. "They felt this was the best candidate addressing their concerns," said state Rep. Harold Mitchell, a Democrat from this northern part of the state.

Source: cbsnews.com

Young Black Girls Appear To Be Maturing Earlier

There is growing anecdotal evidence that young children, especially African American girls, are reaching puberty at earlier and earlier ages.

St. Louis Children's Hospital pediatric endocrinologist Bess Marshall says the apparent trend is sending "a panic through parents."

Nationwide, experts in the field believe they are seeing increasing numbers of females entering puberty as young as age eight and Black girls appear to be reaching puberty a year earlier than white girls.

Read More: EURweb.com

Why Is Bad News About African Americans So Popular? - Three Reasons & Two Solutions!

Last year the federal government's Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta issued a report showing that the steady increase in the HIV/AIDS infection rate for African Americans had actually declined.

This was very good news! It suggested that at least in the area of slowing down the spread of a killer disease Blacks as a group were doing something right. Thus, as a journalist who stays pretty well abreast of what is taking place in the media, I was saddened and disappointed when this news received virtually no mention in the mainstream media and very little coverage even in Black media.

History teaches that if the news had been negative or the HIV/AIDS infection rate had increased significantly, it would have been given widespread coverage. The episode prompted the following question: Why is virtually all the news receiving massive coverage and specifically relating to African Americans usually negative?

Read columnist, Robert Taylor’s, three primary reasons and his solutions here.

Source: The Louisiana Weekly

Today's Black Fact

On this day in 1942, Richard Wright, author of "Native Son" and "Black Boy", dies.

ABC, Easy As 1-2-3…

The Jackson Five, the group that launched the career of pop superstar Michael Jackson, are planning to reunite for a tour as early as next year, Jermaine Jackson told the BBC on Monday.

Speaking to BBC Radio, Jermaine Jackson -- who appeared on British reality television show "Celebrity Big Brother" earlier this year -- said that Michael would take part, and concert dates had been discussed.

"Michael will be involved," he told the broadcaster.

Source: Yahoo! News

New Controversial Book Reveals Why Black People Struggle To Lose Weight

There is a national epidemic of obesity, but research shows that the African American community has the worst track record. According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC), 52% of Black women and about 30% of Black men are obese. This is the highest amongst all ethnic groups.

Makeisha Lee, an African American alternative health expert, is on a mission to change these horrific statistics. As monumental as it is, she has decided to take on the responsibility of repairing the physical and mental sickness that exists within urban communities when it comes to health.

Best known as a health columnist and nutritional advisor, Lee has recently authored a new book entitled Why Black People Can’t Lose Weight: The Psychology, The Challenge, and The Solution To Overall Wellness. The book addresses common lies and misconceptions about diet schemes, and also uncovers the psychology behind why Blacks fall victim to these.

Lee authored her book with a Bill Cosby style of writing; she cuts no corners and does not hesitate to expose the dirty laundry when it’s necessary to do so.

“African Americans are the smartest and most talented people in the world, but we are also the most laziest when it comes to our health. Due to obesity-related illnesses and unhealthy lifestyles, we have unnecessarily lost thousands of lives including notables such as Gerald Levert, Luther Vandross, Yolanda King, and James Brown,” Lee comments.

She continues, “We need to re-engineer the way we think, the way we live, and how we handle life’s stresses. There is a way to accomplish this, and it’s not very complicated.”

Why Black People Can’t Lose Weight is an extremely controversial book because it sidesteps the nonsense that is taught to people about weight loss pills, weight loss surgeries and other diet scams. Independent thinkers will be enlightened by the content of the book, as it also delves into how the U.S. government is involved with suppression of proper health education.

Source: Source: BlackNews.com

Movie: “This Christmas” Earns $27M, Takes 2nd Place At The Weekend Box Office

This goes back to my previous post, Is Black The New Green?