(NNPA) -- An official apology for slavery and Jim Crow from the U.S. House of Representatives provoked mixed emotions in Philadelphia last week.
For J. Whyatt Mondesire, president of the Philadelphia Chapter of the NAACP, the apology was a publicity stunt.
"It's too late, too little," said Mondesire. "It was a stunt."
Emphasizing that he was speaking personally and not for the NAACP, he continued by saying that a more appropriate gesture would be "a serious conversation about reparations. But I don't think that will happen."
The House formally apologized to African-Americans and their ancestors for slavery July 29. The House of Representatives acted alone with the Senate remaining silent.
For Karen Warrington, a spokeswoman for Rep. Bob Brady, the vote was a first step.
"I think that the vote was a step in the right direction and that America has to acknowledge the evils of slavery," said Warrington, she was speaking personally, not as Brady's representative.
If the apology opens a dialogue on slavery and its evils, then it will have been a good thing. The road to real healing will be long and complicated, she said, but it is necessary....

ATLANTA (AP) -- The number of Americans infected by the AIDS virus each year is much higher than the government has been estimating, U.S. health officials reported, acknowledging that their numbers have understated the level of the epidemic.
The country had roughly 56,300 new HIV infections in 2006, about a 40 percent increase from the 40,000 annual estimate used for the past dozen years.....

DETROIT- Last week Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick was forced to post bond and ordered to take a drug test after allegedly assaulting Wayne County Sheriff's Deputy Brian White, who was serving a subpoena at the mayor's sister's house in connection with the criminal case against him ...

On Monday August 4th 2008 The Qwest Foundation presented a $20,000 check to the Northwest African American Museum to support educational outreach efforts through the "Educational Traveling Trunks Program."
Pictured, left to right, are James Kelly, president and CEO of the Urban League of Metropolitan Seattle; Ezra Teshome, Northwest African American Museum board member; Barbara Earl Thomas, museum acting director; Brian Carter, education director; Warren Mickens, Qwest vice president of wholesale markets; Association of Black Telecommunications Professionals President Kyle Stansberry, and Qwest Washington President Kirk Nelson.

Whereas millions of Africans and their descendants were enslaved in the United States and the 13 American colonies from 1619 through 1865;
Whereas slavery in America resembled no other form of involuntary servitude known in history, as Africans were captured and sold at auction like inanimate objects or animals;
Whereas Africans forced into slavery were brutalized, humiliated, dehumanized, and subjected to the indignity of being stripped of their names and heritage; ...

WASHINGTON -- The Congressional Black Caucus Foundation (CBCF) and the Congressional Black Caucus Spouses will recognize the significant contributions of three outstanding individuals in the visual and performing arts, as well as students pursuing careers and opportunities in those areas during the 12th Annual Celebration of Leadership in the Fine Arts.
Legendary "King of the Blues" musician B.B. King, visual artist Betye Saar and noted Muhammad Ali photographer Howard Bingham will be feted during the event set for 8 to 10:30 p.m., Wednesday, September 24 ...

Following a tour of the Multnomah Drainage District's Pumping Station, MDD Executive Director Bob Eaton stops for a closer look at the Sentinal statue that stands out in front of the MDD office with, from left, Dickie Anderson, 15, Albert Garcia, 16, Luella Anderson, 11, and Amarsharae Anderson, 13, who are participating in the N/NE Minority Youth and Young Adults Being Connected program. The program's goal is get young people together to raise environmental awareness about the Columbia Slough through educational workshops like this one as well as hiking and other outdoor activities.

As plans progress to build the interstate bridge across the Columbia River – a transportation project with one foot rooted in historically Black neighborhoods — observers are increasingly pointing to the lack of minority development firms contracted to help in the construction.
Despite the fact that the Oregon Department of Transportation last year published a study showing that Black-owned construction companies had been "underutilized" for the past seven years, the Columbia River Crossing project is on track to worsen the situation – using taxpayer dollars.
Less than 1 percent of all contract dollars allocated in the Columbia Crossing project so far have been awarded to Black-owned firms.
"Even after they got that study they went ahead with that bridge project," said James Posey, president of the National Association of Minority Contractors of Oregon. "Even knowing we had those dismal numbers, they went ahead and approved the contracts and the funding so that Black companies had almost zero involvement. Hello?"
In an interview with The Skanner this week, U.S. Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-Ore. ...

After years of being accused of taking minority voters for granted, the Democratic Party of Oregon is actively trying to include minorities and other underrepresented groups in positions of leadership.
This year, Oregon's delegation to the Democratic National Convention is more diverse than it ever has been. The delegation includes six African Americans (with two alternates); seven Hispanics; two Native Americans; four Asian/Pacific Islanders (with one alternate) and five representatives from the GLBT community.
Meredith Wood Smith, the chair of the Democratic Party of Oregon, said the party actively courted groups of people not normally involved in politics ...

After a district-mandated audit into its operations, Jefferson High School's much-vaunted high-tech academy system has officially been disassembled.
Portland Public Schools announced last week that Jefferson High School's leadership will be changed once again after two of the school's academies merge into one.
Lavert Robertson, administrator for the Academy Arts and Technology, has been named vice principal at Franklin High School; Macarre Traynham, administrator for the Academy for Science and Technology, is now vice principal at Lincoln High School; and interim Young Men's Academy administrator Marshall Haskins is now vice principal at Wilson High....