Obama Says Blacks Need a New Mindset

POTUS Lays Down Challenge in A Speech to NAACP:

According to NPR, "rousing up a friendly crowd, Obama made his first speech so directly linked with race since he took office; the White House says he worked on it for about two weeks. Implicit in his appearance: He is seeking the backing of the powerful NAACP and its members for his ambitious domestic agenda ... The president said that in the current down economy, blacks are suffering high unemployment and are afflicted with more diseases but are less likely to own health insurance. He said that the African-American child is about five times as likely as a white child to be sent to jail."

Though it was clear Obama's mission last night was to thank and to inspire, he did cite some of the efforts his administration is making to address the education and achievement gaps between blacks and whites, as well as to protect consumers against predatory lenders and reform health care, Black Voices Reports.

He pointed to the creation of the still-embryonic White House Office of Urban Affairs and also mentioned a recent report by New York City controller Bill Thompson that the number of unemployed blacks in the city rose four times as fast as the number of unemployed whites between early 2008 and early 2009. However, those looking for meat on the bones of efforts benefiting African Americans would go away hungry from the Spingarn dinner.

From a story called: Obama Says Blacks Need a New Mindset:
Instead, Obama seized the moment to exhort the group -- and all black Americans -- to take responsibility for overcoming the economic and social inequalities that still plague our our community, while acknowledging the role of institutional racism. "Government programs alone won't get our children to the Promised Land," Obama said. "We need a new mindset, a new set of attitudes – because one of the most durable and destructive legacies of discrimination is the way that we have internalized a sense of limitation; how so many in our community have come to expect so little of ourselves." He left the group with this message: "If three civil rights workers in Mississippi...could lay down their lives in freedom's cause, I know we can come together to face down the challenges of our own time. We can fix our schools, heal our sick, and rescue our youth from violence and despair."

Further reading:
Obama Delivers Thanks, Tough Love To NAACP NPR
At NAACP Convention, Obama Speaks of Progress and Continued Struggle Washington Post
Obama to NAACP: Progress made but much still to accomplish CNN

30 Minutes To Homemade SURE.JELL(R) Strawberry Freezer Jam

Notes:
Variation - CERTO Strawberry Freezer Jam

Omit water and boiling step. Mix 1 pouch CERTO Fruit Pectin and 2 Tbsp. lemon juice in bowl. Stir into fruit mixture in large bowl. Continue as directed. Makes about 4 (1-cup) containers.
How to Measure Sugar Precisely

To get exact level cup measure of sugar, spoon sugar into dry metal or plastic measuring cup, then level by scraping excess sugar from top of cup with a straight-edged knife.

Read the full story: 30 Minutes To Homemade SURE.JELL(R) Strawberry Freezer Jam

COMMUNITY FAIR AT NNU

Above: New students and their parents connect with vendors at the 2008 NNU Community Fair.

NAMPA, Idaho - Northwest Nazarene University invites Treasure Valley businesses, churches and other interested organizations to take part in the University's Community Fair on Friday August 28.

The event will be held in conjunction with New Student Orientation and is a time when local organizations will have the opportunity to meet and connect with up to 300 new NNU students as well as networking with local businesses and community organizations. Tables will be furnished including wireless internet upon request for the 8:30 am to 2:00 event held in the Brandt Center lawn on the NNU campus. Lunch and refreshments will be provided for up to two representatives from each organization.

The registration fee is $50 for businesses and $25 for non-profit organizations. Registration deadline is July 31. To register, please visit www.nnu.edu/communityfair. For more information please contact Bryon Knight at 467-8832 or BKnight@NNU.Edu.

Northwest Nazarene University, a Christian comprehensive university, offers over 60 areas of study, master's degree programs in eleven disciplines, accelerated degree programs, concurrent credit for high school students, and a variety of continuing education credits. In addition to its 85-acre campus located in Nampa, Idaho, the University also offers programs online as well as in Boise, Twin Falls, Idaho Falls, and in cooperation with programs in 10 countries. Founded in 1913, the university now serves over 1,900 undergraduate and graduate students, more than 10,000 continuing education students, and 1,900 high school students through the concurrent credit program.

Byron Yankey on what it takes to win an election

EXCERPT:

With a plethora of candidates coming out of the woodwork to challenge Governor Otter in the primary race, here is an important perspective. ... Viable candidates for all offices must not only craft a message, build a campaign, recruit volunteers, and a million other things, but they must raise substantial money to advance any strategy that might produce a winning outcome. ... the money needed to run credible campaigns ... has gotten out of hand. ... a barrier that prevents solid, potential candidates from running ...

Read the full story: $4000 a day.... by Byron Yankey

Umasked: The Final Years of Michael Jackson

Biographer Says Michael Jackson Was Gay

Journalist Ian Halperin predicted in December 2008 that Michael Jackson would be dead within six months. Exactly six months and one day later, Jackson died suddenly in Los Angeles.

Fittingly, the book Halperin was in the process of revising, retitled Unmasked: The Final Years of Michael Jackson, is out today. In it, the Canadian author and filmmaker documents the singer's struggles with charges of child molestation, the author's assertion that the Church of Scientology was behind Jackson's brief marriage to Lisa Marie Presley, and Halperin's own encounter with his subject while working undercover as a hairdresser.

Read the full story: Biographer Says Michael Jackson Was Gay

Related stories:
Charges Coming in Jackson Case
Photographer: 'Michael Moved Me to Tears'
Michael Jackson News Headlines

Obama address NAACP conference

It's a double celebration and a civil rights milestone: President Barack Obama tonight helps the NAACP celebrate its 100th anniversary, and the civil rights group celebrates the first African-American president of the United States.

Read: Obama address NAACP conference

and see:

Job worries for Obama at NAACP
President Obama’s speech to the NAACP on Thursday will be an emotional and historic moment, but some are looking for details...


NAACP weighs support of gays who want to marry
The NAACP, the nation's oldest civil rights organization, today will consider approving a task force's recommendation to support gays who want to marry, a step that one national board member hopes could move the group toward supporting same-sex marriage....

NAACP marks 100 years
The Associated Press Combining its century-old mission of fighting for equality with the instantaneous reach of modern-day technology, the NAACP has launched a program that lets people use their cell phones to report incidents of police misconduct.