For Over 10 Years, Chicago Couple Stays Loyal To Obama

In politics, the second try is not always easier than the first.

As President Obama campaigns for re-election, his agenda has shifted from the "hope" and "change" of his 2008 campaign to "moving forward" in 2012. Just three years earlier, thousands gathered in Washington for the historic inauguration of America's first black president. Now, some of those same people are wavering in their support for the head of the executive branch. Democratic voters are beginning to share some of the same complaints as their Republican counterparts.

But there are still a faithful few with passion for the President.

John Presta and his wife, Michelle, have been there for Obama since his run for Congress in 2000. The two were running their bookstore, Reading On Walden, when Obama's campaign organizers asked for their help. In time, the Prestas helped build a grassroots organization consisting of over 300 volunteers. From that, they earned a nickname which inspired the title of Mr. Presta's recent book: "Mr. & Mrs. Grassroots: How Barack Obama, Two Bookstore Owners, and 300 Volunteers Did It," published in January by The Elevator Group.  

As a lifelong participant in politics, the 59 year-old community activist knows about the power of grassroots firsthand. At seven years old, Presta developed a love for politics from the campaign of John F. Kennedy--who later won the presidency. And over 50 years later, his political life remains more active than ever.

Presta says that the response for the book "gets stronger as time goes by." He adds that a large number of schools have used it for class discussions including the University of Michigan, the University of North Carolina, and the University of Wisconsin-Madison. As both Obama and Romney reach out to young voters, the book could give Democrats a potential advantage.

"[The book] can be a great motivating tool for President Obama's re-election," Presta explains.

"In his speeches, the President constantly talks about 'grassroots' and doing the little things that add up. That little seed will become a field of grass."

As November approaches, Presta--along with Obama's campaign team--is hoping that voters view the grass as greener on their side of the ballot.

~ Zack A. Isaacs

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20 Years Later, Radio Talk Show Revisits L.A. Riots

The stories were interwoven, as if part of a historic vignette.

On Saturday evening, both guests and the host of "The Mo'Kelly Show" on KFI (AM-640) shared their personal accounts of what happened in Los Angeles on April 29, 1992, after the verdict was announced in the Rodney King case. 

The host, Mo'Kelly, remembered leaving 9th and Hill in downtown Los Angeles and heading towards the intersection of Florence and Normandie--which is now known for being the starting point for the unrest. 

One guest, Blair Taylor--president and CEO of the Los Angeles Urban League-- was leaving work at Pepsi feeling "incredulous." He moved to the city in 1988 to attend business school and spoke of being pulled over by the LAPD once a month "for no reason." But Taylor made it clear that while he did not condone the violent acts of the riots, the tense relationship between black residents and the police created the atmosphere.

"These riots were about underlying discontent. All of those things came bubbling forth in that cauldron and the spark that ignited it was Rodney King," he said. "If we can learn from history, the 1992 riots will not be something that happened in vain." 

[Check out the entire show below]

 

Yet, the show was not just devoted to the past but giving relevance to the present. 

Another guest, Hyepin Im, gave listeners information about a special commemorative event occurring on the anniversary. Im is the founder of Korean Churches for Community Development, an organization which helps churches develop economically. In her role, she has helped not only Korean churches in the Los Angeles but over 3,000 across the nation. 

From a financial perspective, it appeared to some as if Rodney King benefited the most. While the city of Los Angeles suffered $1 billion in property damage, King received a multi-million dollar settlement from the city.

Attorney Milton C. Grimes, who successfully represented Rodney King in the civil trial and landed his plaintiff the punitive judgment, spoke about the differences between the past and the present. He spoke about how technology has allowed for acts of injustice to be more easily recorded. "Everybody has the capability of a cell phone with a camera and video at the touch," the prominent lawyer explained. 

Grimes also expressed disagreement about whether the Trayvon Martin situation could be compared to the civil unrest occurring after the Rodney King riots. He said that the King incident involved abuse by the police, while the Martin case involves death at the hands of another citizen. However, the active esquire reminded listeners that there is more work to be done across the board.

"I think there is a long way to go, but there has not been enough change in the respect of law enforcement for young African-American men."
 

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Chicago Mom Honored For Community Work

Diane Latiker wants "no child left behind."

For the past 10 years, the youthful grandmother has opened her doors to young people in Chicago's troubled Roseland neighborhood. As the founder of Kids Off The Block, Mrs. Latiker has helped turn around the lives of over 100 young people by keeping them busy with positive things. The organization started in her home on 116th and Michigan, but two years ago it moved to a renovated storefront two doors down. But even with a new location, Kids Off The Block was in need of funding to go to the next level.

Then, a surprise call came from CNN last fall.

Mrs. Latiker learned that she was one of 10 finalists for the  2011 CNN Hero Awards. All of the finalists were given $50,000 and would compete for the $250,000 grand prize.  On December 11, she and her family attended the live, televised ceremony in Los Angeles--which featured a surprise introduction by rapper/actor Ice Cube. 

And the accolades keep coming.

She was recently honored by the Chicago chapter of American Red Cross as a 2012 Community Impact Hero. Gerald Sprattlin, a young man whom she helped years before, nominated her for the award.

Both are featured in the following video:

~ Zack A. Isaacs

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'Five Heartbeats' Actress Starts Performing Arts Troupe

Tressa Thomas might not be a household name just yet, but she is no stranger to Hollywood and its politics.

 

In 1991, she charmed the hearts of millions as the bubbly pre-teen who couldn't stop singing in Robert Townsend's Motown-inspired period drama, The Five Heartbeats.  

Now, Thomas is a full-grown woman with a mission to help full-figured women achieve their full potential. As founder of the ThYck Troupe Organization, she works to give full-figured women opportunities for careers in the performing arts. Given her extensive background in entertainment, 33 year old actress feels qualified to be the one to open doors for women who have previously been discriminated against because of their size.

In a recent interview, she told LaShawn Williams of Gaper's Block that the troupe was inspired by a combination of knowing what could be done and what wasn't being done.

"We have a right to voice our complaints, but the best way to facilitate change is to make the change happen," Thomas said.  

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Robert Glasper: Changing The Music Landscape Through Black Radio

Robert Glasper has been getting a lot of buzz for his recently released album, Black Radio.  He describes his album as “more of an urban, hip-hop, soul kind of vibe, but the spine of it all is still a jazz spine.”  An all-star line up of artists are featured including Lalah Hathaway, Erykah Badu, Bilal, Musiq Soulchild, Chrisette Michelle, Lupe Fiasco, yasiin bey (formerly mos def), Meshelle Ndegeocello, Ledisi, Shafiq Husayn (Sa-Ra), Stokley Williams (Mint Condition), and new female trio KING.  

Black Radio is already being called "Album of The Year" by many music experts.  And at Glasper's concerts, one can find a contrast of fans from 20-something black females to  50-something white males which shows how his music extends across genres and bridges audiences.  His integration of various musical styles--including jazz--has helped him to establish a distinct sound.

The integration of jazz with other musical genres is not a new concept.  Hip hop includes samples of every genre of music possible from Nina Simone’s Misunderstood to Harry Belafonte’s The Banana Boat Song.  Many hip hop albums like Guru’s Jazzmataz fuse jazz within their work.  

Glasper, who also began playing gospel music in the black church, previously worked with most of the artists who were on this new album, many of whom have a background in jazz and infuse jazz within their work as well.  Glasper points out that studying jazz gives artists a certain mastery of their instruments .  The role of jazz in the neo-soul movement is unquestionable with Erykah Badu, Ledisi, and Bilal, for instance, all having jazz backgrounds.

Likewise, a few jazz artists have integrated other genres within their music.  Glasper believes he took Roy Hargrove’s album RH Factor to the next level.  To add, by including songs like the rock classic, Smells like Teen Spirit by Nirvana, the album combines different cultures and styles.  Black Radio displays, as Anthony Mark Neal puts it, “the sounds of cosmopolitan blackness.” 

 The jazz heads, the hip hop heads, the neo soul heads, and just the “I like good music” heads can relate to this album.  The album debuted #1 on the jazz charts and #4 on the R&B/Soul charts behind Tyga, Rihanna, and Drake, which by itself speaks to the album’s unique crossover quality.  Additionally, within the context of people asking, “Where’s the love in R&B?”, Robert Glasper answers through Lalah Hathaway’s sultry, hypnotic contralto phrasing, Bilal’s scatting lullabies, and Chrisette Michelle and Musiq Soulchild’s intimate exchanges on love and commitment.  

Glasper and Esperanza Spalding who just released the similar jazz-pop album, Radio Music Society, have become the fresh-faced poster children for hip more relatable jazz-spined music.  Glasper pronounced jazz as a “sending our grandfather out to the playground” genre that has “become less black and more European” and needs to “catch up and be more relevant."  He said by changing the music, he is changing the audience.  He is attracting and connecting audiences of different races, ages and backgrounds who get exposed to genres they may not have naturally gone to before.  By creating what some call a “post-genre” of black music, he showcases and attracts others back to the expansive repertoire of black radio.

~ Christina Armstrong

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Should The National Media Cover Rekia Boyd?

For weeks, the Trayvon Martin case has been a top story for major news network programs. MSNBC, BET, and CNN have aired specials dedicated to the case. [Headline News host Nancy Grace saw a ratings bump from covering the teenager's death.] Additionally, there have been rallies held and a "one million hoodie" movement promoted to increase awareness about the case. But there is another tragic incident which has drawn outrage with activists in Chicago: the shooting death of 22 year-old Rekia Boyd. It has left some wondering if her case will get the same coverage that Martin has received.

Rekia Boyd

On March 21, Boyd was hit in the head by shots fired from an off-duty Chicago police officer; she died from her injuries 36 hours later. 

Since then, police officials have acknowledged that Boyd was not the intended target and was unarmed. The woman's family and friends have aligned with civil rights leaders such as Rev. Jesse Jackson to stir up support for a federal investigation into her death. Yet, it leaves open the idea that the same national news coverage which propelled the Trayvon Martin case to a more visible platform could benefit Boyd as well. 

Former television reporter Amani Channel believes that such a task will be difficult unless the national assignment editors see something unique. While working in the industry, he covered stories for CNN, HLN, and Fox News in addition to working for the Fox affiliate in Tampa. Thus, he knows firsthand how news stories get selected or rejected.

 "You have to remember that the even the Trayvon Martin case was largely ignored at first," the 37 year-old journalism instructor said. "As more people raise attention to an issue, there is a greater chance that the [national media] will cover it."

But the young woman's killing has not been given much local attention. Only a few media outlets have been providing regular coverage about Rekia Boyd including The Chicago Defender, WLS-TV, and Huffington Post. In turn, the likelihood of this death investigation being presented to a national audience becomes slim to none. 

Still, family members and friends continue to protest and rally until they see progress with the investigation. 

Funeral services for Boyd will be held tomorrow (Tuesday, April 3) at St. Columbanus Catholic Church on 71st and Calumet in Chicago at 6 P.M.

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Filmmaker Brings Positivity to Chicago

Recently, filmmaker and director Noel Calloway visited Chicago for the screening of his first film and directorial debut, Life, Love, Soul. The film, which stars actors Jamie Hector and Chad Coleman (“The Wire”), Tami Roman (“Basketball Wives”), Terri J. Vaughn (“Meet the Browns,” “The Steve Harvey Show”) and newcomer Robbie Tate-Brickle, centers on the challenges involved with father and son relationships—an often misunderstood dynamic in not only the black community, but also society at large. 

"What I wanted to do was give a story that gave both perspectives,” said Calloway. "I think that's a void sometimes in our portrayals and in our discussions as well--we don't get all the sides." 

  

Life, Love, Soul tells the story of 17-year-old Roosevelt Jackson who, after the sudden death of his mother and younger brother, is forced to live with his estranged father (Coleman). Throughout the story, the father and son’s strained relationship is played out on-screen; they engage in heated exchanges while challenging each other along the way, ultimately culminating in a mutual understanding and respect for one another. 

This film is no Boyz N The Hood or Menace II Society; Calloway is clear to illustrate that not all stories involving black fathers and sons have to contain a negative, violent or murderous undertone—that through communication, and pushing machismo and ego aside, young black men don’t have to succumb or perpetuate societal stereotypes. And with the current plethora of stories in the news that are highly unflattering to black youth, the film is indeed a welcomed treat. Life, Love, Soul opens in select cities on Friday, April 13; for the Chicago area, it will be screened at AMC Loews in Norridge, Illinois. While that is obviously a little beyond the city’s limits, it is worth the drive for two very important reasons: to support independent black film and to possibly, save a black life. 

For more information, visit the film’s website.

~ LaShawn Williams

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Chicago Minister Previews Gospel Music For 2012

Tonight, Steve Harvey will host the popular annual event, "Celebration of Gospel", on BET at 8/7 Central.

In the city of Chicago, gospel music is part of the daily routine for many of its African-American residents. Many of them start their mornings listening to Pastor John Hannah and Angela Martin on WGRB-AM (Inspiration 1390) or playing religious tunes on their iPods. And while the Windy City is not the exclusive place for gospel, it does have a unique distinction being the birthplace of modern religious music.

Minister Kathryn B. Kemp, author of the gospel history book "Make A Joyful Noise"  spoke with The Z City's Zack The Producer about some of the "unsung" heroes last month at Connection Community Church. 

" The first person I think of is [the late] Delois Barrett Campbell of the Barrett Sisters," says Minister Kemp. "Although they are acclaimed somewhat, I don't think they've ever received the acknowledgment that they deserve." 

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