Insight News ::: 3.25.19 by Insight News, Inc

WINNER: 2018 NNPA MERIT AWARDS: 3RD PLACE BES T COLUMN WRITING

WINNER: 2019 GENERAL EXCELLENCE, 3RD PLACE, COLUMN WRITING, 2ND PLACE

Insight News March 25, 2019 - March 31, 2019

Vol. 46 No. 12• The Journal For Community News, Business & The Arts • insightnews.com

Quiet Enigmas & Familiar Love

Leslie Barlow’s collection of portraits, “Quiet Enigmas and Familiar Love”, captures members of the artist’s family in everyday life, focusing on the multiethnic family dynamic. The collection is on display beginning April 13 at Le Meridien Chambers Hotel in downtown Minneapolis, 901 Hennepin Ave.

BA RL OW 7 BARLOW

Page 2 • March 25, 2019 - March 31, 2019 • Insight News

insightnews.com

for your life.

introducing We know you love to save money! So we’re making it even easier! Save more with BONUS promotions, now available on the Cub app and online at cub.com/kickbacks. Check back often for new and exciting ways to save on your favorite brands. VALID 03/21/19 - 04/03/19 • CUB COUPON

for

Kraft American Singles 12 oz or Natural Sliced Cheese 7-8 oz

VALID 03/21/19 - 04/03/19 • CUB COUPON

999

Gain Liquid Laundry Detergent 75-100 oz, Flings 35 ct, or Scent Boosters

Save 50¢

Save $1.00

on ground beef when you buy any 3 Pepsi 2 Liters VALID 03/21/19 - 04/03/19 • CUB COUPON

649

Bellatoria or Real’Za All Natural Pizza 12.76-23.53 oz

14.8 oz, select varieties

Save 50¢

on one pound of apples when you buy any baco VALID 03/21/19n- 04/03/19 • CUB COUPON

for

Frito-Lay Party Size 13.5-18 oz, Variety Pack Chips 10-12 ct,

Tostitos Dip or Salsa 23-24 oz

VALID 03/21/19 - 04/03/19 • CUB COUPON

188

Kellogg’s Kid’s Cereal 10-15 oz

or Pop-Tarts

VALID 03/21/19 - 04/03/19 • CUB COUPON

1744

VALID 03/21/19 - 04/03/19 • CUB COUPON

449

Charmin Bath Tissue

Duke’s Smoked Sausage

12 super mega or 18 mega rolls

5 oz, select varieties

599 Cameron’s Coffee

10-12 oz or 12 ct K-Cups, select varieties

VALID 03/21/19 - 04/03/19 • CUB COUPON

for

Hostess Donettes

9.5-11.25 oz, select varieties

VALID 03/21/19 - 04/03/19 • CUB COUPON

299

Nabisco Family Size Cookies or Crackers

for

Kraft Mayo or Miracle Whip 22-30 oz, select varieties

8 ct, select varieties

VALID 03/21/19 - 04/03/19 • CUB COUPON

for

V8 Splash

64 oz or 6 pk, 5.5 oz, select varieties

VALID 03/21/19 - 04/03/19 • CUB COUPON

for

Kraft Dressing 14-16 oz, select varieties

10-24 oz, select varieties

VALID 03/21/19 - 04/03/19 • CUB COUPON

599

Kemps Ice Cream 132 oz

VALID 03/21/19 - 04/03/19 • CUB COUPON

899

Puffs Facial Tissue 6 ct, select varieties

VALID 03/21/19 - 04/03/19 • CUB COUPON

399

Aquaﬁna

24 pk, 16.9 oz btls

or Bubly Sparkling Water 12 pk, 12 oz cans

insightnews.com

Insight News • March 25, 2019 - March 31, 2019 • Page 3

WINNER: 2018 NNPA MERIT AWARDS: 3RD PLACE BES T COLUMN WRITING

WINNER: 2019 GENERAL EXCELLENCE, 3RD PLACE, COLUMN WRITING, 2ND PLACE

Insight News March 25, 2019 - March 31, 2019

Vol. 46 No. 12• The Journal For Community News, Business & The Arts • insightnews.com

Bush Foundation selects 2019 Bush Fellows By Harry Colbert, Jr. Managing Editor harry@insightnews.com The Bush Foundation announced the selection of its 2019 Bush Fellows. The 24 Fellows include six individuals representing the African diaspora and hail from communities in Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota and the 23 Native nations that share the same geography. The 2019 Fellows are Siad Ali, Minneapolis, Heather Cusick, Minneapolis, Kate Davenport, St. Louis Park, Norma Garcés. Richﬁeld, Maisha Giles, Oakdale, Jana Gipp, Fort Yates, N.D., Miigis Gonzalez, Duluth, Ashley Hanson, Granite Falls, Austen Hartke, St. Paul, Hudda Ibrahim, St. Cloud, Jeannie Krull, Moorhead, Rose McGee, Golden Valley, Joseph McNeil, Fort Yates, N.D., Nawal Noor, Minneapolis, Sarah Pierce, Black Hawk, S.D., Maria Regan Gonzalez, Richﬁeld, Tony Sanneh, Bloomington, Amie Schumacher, Waite Park, Michaela Seiber, Sioux Falls, S.D., Alex

West Steinman, Plymouth, Bo Thao-Urabe, Eagan, Ia Xiong, White Bear Lake, Tou Ger Xiong, Woodbury and KaYing Yang, St. Paul. The Bush Fellowship provides fellows with up to $100,000 over 12 to 24 months to pursue learning experiences that help them develop leadership skills and attributes. The fellowship allows fellows to articulate what they need to become more eﬀective and agile leaders. Fellows can use the funding to pursue advanced education, networking opportunities and leadership resources, workshops and trainings. “The Bush Foundation believes the well-being of our region is directly impacted by investing in individual leaders,” said Bush Foundation Leadership Programs Director Anita Patel. “We look to these 24 Fellows to help shape a better future for their communities.” A total of 684 people applied for the 2019 Bush Fellowship. The 24 fellows were selected through a multi-stage process involving Bush Fellowship alumni, Bush Foundation staﬀ and established re-

Siad Ali

Maisha Giles

Hudda Ibrahim

Rose McGee

Nawal Noor

Alex West Steinman

gional leaders. Applicants described their leadership vision and passion and how a Bush Fellowship would help them think bigger and become more effective leaders. The Bush Foundation will accept applications for the 2020 Bush Fellowship beginning Sept. 24. The Bush Fellowship is open to anyone age 24 years and older who lives in Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota or one of the 23 Native nations that shares the same geography. More than 2,300 people have benefited from the fellowship. The Bush Fellowship counts among its alumni playwright August Wilson, James Beard Foundation Book Award winner Sean Sherman, former Minnesota Gov. Arne Carlson, author and storyteller Kevin Kling, Amelia Franck Meyer, named one of People Magazine’s 25 Women Changing the World, South Dakota poet laureate Lee Ann Roripaugh, Minneapolis City Council Member Andrea Jenkins and former special assistant to President Obama for Native American affairs Jodi Gillette.

Dashboard tracks racial disparities Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman Thursday demonstrated for the county board a new statistical dashboard that is likely the most revealing of any prosecutor’s office in the country. “The Hennepin County Attorney’s Office has made it a priority to build strong data practices systems to promote transparency and to help guide thoughtful decision making in the daily operations of the office,” Freeman said. “Anybody can go to our website and look at the data without having to make a special request.” Dashboard data is updated every night, so the information is never more than 24 hours old, reflecting the most recent status of cases. The years shown on the dashboard are

Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman 2014 through 2018 and as each year ends, such as 2019, its data will be added to the dashboard. The dashboard also allows anyone to track racial disparities. According to census numbers, the Hennepin County population is approximately 69 percent white, 13 percent Black, 7 percent Hispanic/Latino, 7

percent Asian and .7 percent Native-American. However, on average, the composition of our felony and gross misdemeanor cases is 33 percent white, 54 percent Black, 2 percent Asian and 5 percent Native-American. Hispanic/ Latino is not consistently available. The racial data comes from the arresting police departments. Freeman said the oﬃce continues to work on narrowing that disparity gap and hopes that the full impact of changes to Minnesota drug laws in 2016 and changes in charging policies for low-levels of marijuana within the county attorney’s oﬃce will start to show up in the 2019 data. “We expect the number of drug cases to drop, as it should,” Freeman told the

commissioners. One area of success is the Juvenile Prosecution Division’s school crime referrals, which saw a 10 percent decrease in Black or African-American referrals in those five years. The data comes from the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office case management system. The Minnesota Criminal Code contains hundreds of distinct offenses. For the dashboard, many similar offenses have been condensed into offense categories for a more accessible overview. The county attorney’s office began working on the dashboard in mid-2016. The dashboard can be found at www. hennepinattorney.org/about/ dashboard/data-dashboard.

NAACP joins NABJ’s call for civil rights audit, diversity within CNN’s news leadership WASHINGTON, D.C. – The NAACP issued a March 6 statement supporting the National Association of Black Journalists’ (NABJ) call for a civil rights audit and examination of executive-level diversity at CNN. NAACP President Derrick Johnson offered his support to NABJ President Sarah Glover by phone and tweeted. “Until concrete steps are taken by @CNN, the @NAACP stands firmly with @NABJ and asks @ WarnerMediaGrp to conduct a diversity and inclusion audit of all its news divisions. We›ll continue to hold the media industry accountable for their insufficient responses and actions toward diversity,” Johnson wrote on Twitter. On Tuesday (March 5), NABJ issued a statement urging CNN to diversify its news leadership, after preliminary research determined that there were no Black people

Sarah Glover who directly report to CNN President Jeﬀ Zucker and that there were no Black executive or senior news leaders within CNN’s news operations. Zucker refuses to meet with NABJ’s

I2H

Major prostate cancer research targeting African-Americans set to begin

PAGE 4

four-person delegation and has yet to provide documentation of black representation within the news leadership ranks. The NAACP noted in the statement it released that

the organization is “oﬀended” that Zucker is reluctant to address NABJ’s concerns. The NAACP also stated, “It is vital that news organizations reﬂect the diversity of our country, which includes people of color in key decision-making roles which are responsible for shaping news coverage and providing nuanced perspectives, especially around issues directly impacting Black America. CNN’s lack of Black representation in leadership roles is troubling and another example of the media industry’s reluctance to address an issue that continues to plague newsrooms across the country.” After NABJ’s statement and call to action garnered international attention, CNN said it refused to meet with NABJ because CNN does not want to meet with one of the members of the NABJ delegation. NABJ maintains CNN’s

TURN TO 6

Celebrating Women’s History (Herstory) Month

Profile in Excellence:

Meghann Oglesby By Harry Colbert, Jr. Managing Editor harry@insightnews.com Meghann Oglesby is changing the face of classical music. In a genre that skews older, white and male, Oglesby is none of that. Young, gifted and Black, Oglesby is the producer of American Public Media Group’s “Performance Today,” the largest syndicated classical music program in the nation. The program can be heard on more than 300 NPR aﬃliates spanning 41 states. Oglesby is the only Black female producer in the nation of a syndicated classical music program. In her role since October of 2017, the Rust College (Mississippi) graduate with a master’s from Arkansas State selects the music heard on the program, writes program scripts, voices scripts and creates digital content for social media. Oglesby’s impact … and imprint … is noticeable. The show’s “My Name Is” series – a series highlighting Black classical music artists – was the brainchild of Oglesby. It debuted last year during Black History Month. “I wanted people to know who these (Black artists) are,” explained the producer. “I want the classical music world to know these people exist and

they are incredible artists.” Another initiative of Oglesby was to diversity the program’s “Young Artist in Residency” series. Prior to Oglesby’s involvement the series was heavily dominated by white males but that too has evolved. “This year we have two Black women … one just 15 years old … one person of Chinese origin and another of Italian origin,” said Oglesby, who also initiated a celebration of Hispanic classical artists. “We had our first harpist and first trombonist. Part of my responsibility to the program is to be inclusive in our content. I feel passionate that we demonstrate diversity; as our audience, too, is diverse. We have to show our audience that we have artists who look like them, sound like them and come from a similar place as them.” The Park Center High School graduate, who is a native of Chicago, said she has always had an appreciation for classical music and grew up playing the clarinet and piano. “I always liked classical music, but it wasn’t a part of my daily life like it is now,” said Oglesby, a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. With her efforts, classical music will become a part of more people’s daily lives … more people of color who might not have been exposed to the genre if it were not for Oglesby.

News

How a St. Paul artist fights gentrification through his art

PAGE 6

Leslie Barlow examines ethnicity in the family dynamic in new collection

PAGE 7

Page 4 • March 25, 2019 - March 31, 2019 • Insight News

insightnews.com

Insight 2 Health Major prostate cancer research targets African-Americans By Stacy M. Brown NNPA Newswire Correspondent @StacyBrownMedia For African-American men, prostate cancer is real. Health statistics paint disturbing trends, including that 60 percent of Black males are more likely to develop prostate cancer than any other race. Just as unsettling, AfricanAmerican men are twice as likely to die of prostate cancer than any other ethnic group. The seriousness of this disparity isn’t lost on a national network of prostate cancer researchers and experts who have joined forces to study prostate cancer in African-American men. The team has received a $26 million grant as part of former Vice President Joe Biden’s Cancer Moonshot Initiative to conduct the largest study ever to look at the underlying factors and reasons that put AfricanAmerican men at higher risk for developing and dying from prostate cancer. The initiative is called the RESPOND study – Research on Prostate Cancer in Men of African Ancestry: Deﬁning the Roles of Genetics, Tumor Markers, and Social Stress. Over the next four years, 10,000 African-American men with prostate cancer will be recruited from cancer registries in seven states – California, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Maryland, New Jersey, Texas and throughout the Detroit Metropolitan area in Michigan. Cancer registries are located in each of the 50 United States. “Lots of people don’t know about cancer registries so when we contact people that we’ve identiﬁed through the registry sometimes they are angry,” said Denise Modjeski, the study coordinator for RESPOND at the Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California Department of Preventive Medicine. “We

iStockphoto/NNPA

African-American men are twice as likely to die of prostate cancer than any other ethnic group. tell them it is very complicated process that grants access to the contact data, and it’s all for the greater good. But, of course we honor people’s wishes and if they tell us they don’t want to participate in any study ever, we never contact them again.” H o w e v e r , the RESPOND study counts as a little diﬀerent. “Most cancer registries like this only send out ‘letters of invitation’ to people from the study’s local cancer registry,” Modjeski said. “RESPOND will also include volunteers, which means they can

hear about us and either contact us through the website or through our toll-free number.” Volunteers can reach out from all over the country with the only requirement being they identify as African-American or Black and have been diagnosed with prostate cancer in the United States from Jan. 1, 2010 or later. Participants will answer a 12-page survey, and if they’re willing, do additional parts of the study which include providing a saliva sample and, or signing a HIPAA form to allow researchers to get a piece of tissue that has been removed

and stored at their medical facility. The study isn’t a clinical trial, as researchers aren’t testing any new drug, device, procedure, or protocol. There are no doctor visits required and participants can complete the survey on paper or online. “To bring credibility to this important initiative, we are [also] looking for partners willing to lead the way in advocating for this study and cause,” Modjeski said. “With one in ﬁve African-American men developing prostate cancer in their lifetime, we hope this is an issue that resonates with

the African-American community and advocacy groups. With your help we can make a difference with research that will have life changing consequences for future generations of African-American men.” RESPOND officials say they’re not being restrictive with volunteers who reach out, however individuals the team is identifying through the cancer registries will have an upper age limit of 79 at the age of diagnosis. For the participants identified through the registries, researchers are concentrating on diagnosis years of

2015 through 2018. Recruitment is scheduled to begin in April. “We recruit the people identiﬁed through the registries in batches since we can’t handle everyone at one time. We’ll send out about 100 to 200 letters of invitation including the printed survey every couple of months,” Modjeski said. “We hope that many of the people who receive these letters and surveys from us over the next few years will have already heard about the study.” For more information about the study or to sign up, visit www.respondstudy.org or call (888) 425-0521.

Disproportionately high rates of heart disease By Anisa Shomo NNPA Newswire Contributor Heart disease is the number one killer of men and women in the United States. Generally, heart disease is considered a man’s disease, but more Black and white women die of heart disease than all cancers combined. About 610,000 men and women die of heart disease each year and it accounts for 1 in 4 deaths in both genders. Coronary heart disease is the most common type and accounts for over half of these deaths. Coronary heart disease increases the risk for heart attacks and causes more than 700,000 Americans have heart attacks each year. Like other serious health issues, African-Americans have disproportionately high rates of heart disease. The three largest risk factors that lead to fatal heart disease are high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and smoking. Diabetes, obesity, poor diet, physical inactivity and excess drinking are other risk factors. There are other lifestyle concerns that can also lead to high blood pressure and obesity such as poor sleep and high stress levels. Heart disease signs and symptoms are chest pain and discomfort, nausea, lightheadedness, shortness of breath, sweating, upper body pain or discomfort (jaw, arms, neck, upper back, upper stomach). If

NNPA

Dr. Anisa Shomo you or a loved one are experiencing these symptoms you should call 9-1-1 immediately. Now that I have your attention at least for a moment, there are speciﬁc ways to improve your heart health. Know your heart-related numbers. Get your primary care doctor at least once per year to check your blood pres-

sure, heart rate, BMI (body mass index) and cholesterol. High blood pressure or hypertension is called the “silent killer” because many people have no symptoms of their blood pressure being high. Your doctor will also screen you for depression and other conditions depending on your age and risk factors.

Check your weight at home often (daily, weekly, monthly) to make sure that you are not gaining weight. Many people gain five pounds per year without awareness and that adds up over the years. The goal is a blood pressure under 130/80 and a heart rate between 60 and 80. Smoking cigarettes is not good for your health and in particular, smoking is not good for a healthy heart. Consistent exercise is also important to keep your heart healthy. Be active for at least 30 minutes a day for five days per week. Think about how you can move naturally in your home. Can you walk more in your home? Can you routinely bike or lift weights or stretch? Make a plan to walk more by setting goals for how much you want to walk, how often, and how you will track your progress (pedometer, stopwatch, timer, calendar, etc.). Eat a “heart healthy diet.” Of course, there will always be a range of strategies and objectives to help maintain having a healthy heart. Diet is another user-friendly item. In other words, you can control your personal daily diet. Avoiding becoming overweight and obesity are both related to diet. Studies have concluded that a “Mediterranean Diet” has consistently been shown to be the preferred diet for heart health. It is not actually a diet but the way that people in Mediterranean cultures eat. It consists of small amounts of meat, fish and dairy, but is mostly plant based. Weight is directly

related to diet and physical exercise. Maintaining a healthy weight is a factor in sustaining a healthy heart. This is a somewhat controversial because as recent studies have shown that weight is not as important to heart health as diet and

duce stress in your life. Work to not overcommit yourself to family, friends, work and tasks. Selfcare is key and learning how to say “no” is part of self-care. Work on your mindset and how you view your world and stressful situations. Learn

“About 610,000 men and women die of heart disease each year and it accounts for 1 in 4 deaths in both genders.” exercise. That is to say that whether your weight is low or high, you should still be working to have a healthy diet and stay active. If you do desire to weight loss, talk with your doctor about long-term plan. We all should strive to have quality sleep. Most adults need seven to nine hours of sleep each night. If you have trouble falling asleep try setting a regular bedtime, avoid long naps during the day, get rid of the television in your bedroom and leave your cell phone on the other side of your bedroom. Lastly, we emphasize the critical importance of managing stress to prevent heart attacks and heart disease. Stress may cause heart attacks and death even in people with normal cholesterol and coronary arteries. It is very important to re-

how to let go of things that are out of your control. Utilize mindfulness, journaling, talk therapy, meditation, yoga, exercise to help clarify what is important to you and ﬁlter out the things that may be causing your goals and vision to be clouded. All of the previous advice and recommendations will help you to focus on keeping your heart healthy and strong. Again, for AfricanAmericans the health of our hearts will determine the health of our families and communities. Our heart heath is vital. Dr. Anisa Shomo is the director of Family Medicine Scholars at the University of Cincinnati and is a health columnist for the NNPA. She can be reached at drshomoknows@ gmail.com.

insightnews.com

Insight News • March 25, 2019 - March 31, 2019 • Page 5

MORE ORGANIC. MORE LOCAL. Your neighborhood choice for fresh, natural foods. msmarket.coop

fresh • local • organic Your neighborhood source for local and organic foods and wellness products

2823 E. Franklin Ave. | Minneapolis & 317 E. 38th St. | Minneapolis w w w. s e w a rd. co o p

Page 6 • March 25, 2019 - March 31, 2019 • Insight News

insightnews.com

Community by design

How a St. Paul artist fights gentrification through his art By Brittany Wright Contributing Writer Mychal Batson, known artistically as Myc Dazzle is a freelance graphic designer, illustrator, emcee, and music producer who has uses his many talents to fight gentrification while traveling the globe. In the past two years he’s lived in six different countries and is currently working from South Africa. He maintains a permanent residence in the Frogtown neighborhood of St. Paul where he’s lived for the past nine years. With a deep connection to his hometown roots, Myc Dazzle has been working on various community development initiatives in the Frogtown/ Rondo neighborhood for several years now. His most recent collaboration is with the Frogtown Community Center (Formerly Scheffer Recreation Center), set to open this fall. “This is such a win for the community. With gentrification hitting Frogtown/ Midway/ Rondo (so) hard, having space like this in the community

INSIGHT NEWS www.insightnews.com

Insight News is published weekly, every Monday by McFarlane Media Interests. Editor-In-Chief Al McFarlane Publisher Batala-Ra McFarlane Associate Editor & Associate Publisher B.P. Ford Managing Editor Harry Colbert, Jr. Culture and Education Editor Dr. Irma McClaurin Associate Editor Afrodescendientes Carmen Robles Associate Editor Nigeria & West Africa Chief Folarin Ero-Phillips Director of Content & Production Patricia Weaver Content & Production Coordinator Sunny Thongthi Yang Distribution/Facilities Manager Jamal Mohamed Receptionist Lue B. Lampley Intern Kelvin Kuria Contributing Writers Maya Beecham Nadvia Davis Fred Easter Abeni Hill Timothy Houston Michelle Mitchum Latisha Townsend Artika Tyner Toki Wright Photography David Bradley V. Rivera Garcia Uchechukwu Iroegbu Rebecca Rabb Artist Donald Walker Contact Us: Insight News, Inc. Marcus Garvey House 1815 Bryant Ave. N. Minneapolis., MN 55411 Ph.: (612) 588-1313 Fax: (612) 588-2031 Member: Minnesota Multicultural Media Consortium (MMMC), Midwest Black Publishers Coalition, Inc. (MBPCI), National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) Postmaster: Send address changes to McFarlane Media Interests, Marcus Garvey House 1815 Bryant Avenue North, Minneapolis,

Artist Myc Dazzle

Artwork for the new teen center, Teentopia, by artist Myc Dazzle.

Myc Dazzle sounds a bit like progress,” said Myc Dazzle. The artist’s contribution to the new community development is a mural in the new teen center (Teentopia). His inspiration behind the mural is the diverse community within Frogtown. Reﬂecting on his own upbringing in the St. Paul neighborhood he wanted the youth of today to see themselves in his artwork.

“It’s super necessary for youth in under-resourced to see themselves reﬂected – to have access to programming and spaces they wouldn’t otherwise,” said Myc Dazzle. This personal, reﬂective, and community-centered art is a reoccurring theme in Batson’s work. Prior to designing the mural, he was commissioned by Frogtown Neighborhood Association to create the Frogtown

Small Area Plan, an evolving planning document that allows the community to give input on what they’d like to see in their neighborhood over the next decade. Through community feedback and support from the City of St. Paul, Batson was able to illustrate the 126-page live document to be “absorbed” into the City’s 2040 Comprehensive Plan. Unlike most urban planning documents, Frogtown’s

Small Area Plan reads like an in-color comic strip with characters, dialogue, neighborhood highlights and future projections all designed by the hometown illustrator. This radical shift in the way that community visioning is documented increases the accessibility of neighborhood planning by amplifying the voices of residents and reducing literacy barriers. It also opens the door of urban planning to allow non-tra-

ditional players to have a seat at the table, i.e. artist Myc Dazzle. “My art is an example for people who look like me, that art can be a legitimate – even honorable – path to take. Through my art, I aim to provide my community with (some) muchneeded reﬂection,” said Batson. For more info on the community-centric artist visit www. MycDazzle.com.

Comcast launches Afro and Cleo, Black-centric networks By Stacy M. Brown NNPA Newswire Correspondent @StacyBrownMedia During a star-studded evening complete with a red-carpet entry at the Newseum in Washington, D.C., Comcast formally announced the addition of two television networks that highlights the company’s commitment to diversity. TV One’s Cleo TV and Afrotainment’s Afro are the latest independent channels to receive broad distribution on Comcast’s cable systems. “African-Americans have stories to tell and we’re not monolithic people, we come from diﬀerent backgrounds,” said Michelle Rice, the general manager at Cleo TV. “I’m excited that this is by us, for us and there’s going to be a lot of great content that reﬂects our lifestyle.” Rice joined cast members from various Cleo TV shows, executives from Comcast Afro and others to celebrate the launch of the new channels at the Newseum on March 14. Cleo TV is billed as a lifestyle and entertainment network that targets millennial and Gen X women of color. Derived from the name Cleopatra,

Rice said Cleo will offer quality content that “defies negative and cultural stereotypes of today’s modern women.” Rice, a TV One veteran, has overseen and led all business, operational and creative aspects of the network and she’s also credited with green-lighting and premiering successful series like “Uncensored,” “We’re the Campbells,” and “ATL Homicide.” Among the many duties at TV One, Rice handled domestic and international program sales and distribution for the network. “We’ve put together upbuilding and aspiration entertainment for millennial and GEN X women of color. We all recognized that there were still more room for quality content for GEN X and women of color,” Rice said. Meanwhile, Afro also offers a culturally diverse peek into the global Black community, said Yves Bollanga, the CEO and founder of Afrotainment. “Afro celebrates the richness and diversity of the Black culture with original and exclusive content. It is important to recognize that the African-American community is not a homogeneous group. They are Afro Caribbeans, Africans or Afro Hispanos who are young, educated, greatly underserved and represent substantial long-term revenue

Urban One founder Cathy Hughes (left) with Urban One president and CEO Alfred Liggins III (center) and Cleo TV “New Soul Kitchen” star chef Jernard Wells. growth opportunities,” Bollanga said. “We are excited to showcase all shades of the black culture to millions of Xﬁnity viewers both live and on demand.” When Bollanga moved to the United States from Cameroon in 2000, he said he turned on the television and immediately noticed a void for Black viewers. “There was nothing that really looked like us or captured our culture,” he said. “I felt this unfulﬁlled demand for Black content and our vision was and continues to be to produce and broadcast Afro-centric original content to as many devices and households as we possibly can.”

Bollanga previously founded several media companies, one of which is AB Roll, a video production company based in France. He also co-founded Telesud with a childhood friend, Constant Nemale. Telesud was the ﬁrst Pan-African TV channel in Europe and Africa. In 2005, under Bollanga’s leadership, Telesud launched in America on DISH. Later, he partnered with Shafquat Chaudhary to found Afrotainment and the company now features 10 channels: Afro, Afrotaiment, Afrotainment Plus, Africa Box Oﬃce, Haiti HD, TV Naija, Yebo, Oui TV, Afrotainment Music, Afro Sports.

“Comcast is excited to add both Afro and Cleo TV,” said Keesha Boyd, the executive director, Multicultural Products at Comcast Cable. “We remain committed to delivering a wide array of programming by partnering with independent networks, such as (Cleo and Afro), to better serve our increasingly diverse customer base,” said Boyd, who was among the many to attend the launch at the Newseum. Attendees included Urban One founder Cathy Hughes, “Sister Circle” hosts Rashan Ali and Syleena Johnson, singer Brave Williams, “Project Runway” winner Liris Crosse, Chef JJ and April Reign of “Cleo Speaks.” After evaluating more than 50 proposals, Comcast said in choosing Cleo and Afro that its main criteria were the content of the network; whether the network was fully financed; and whether the network’s ownership and/or management group(s) are well established, have relevant experience, and are substantially owned by African-Americans. “The offerings from both Afro and Cleo TV serve as an excellent complement to the growing catalog of programming choices we offer about global black communities,” Boyd said.

Have you seen our missing Black girls? By Stacy M. Brown NNPA Newswire Correspondent @StacyBrownMedia Have you seen Iniaya Wilson? Just 14, Wilson has been missing from her Columbus, Ohio home since Jan. 25. She’s African-American, has brown hair and brown eyes; standing 5 feet 6 inches tall and weighing 120 pounds. Thankfully, Skylar Mannie from Lancaster, Calif., was found on March 9. Prior to that she was last seen on Feb. 14. The two are among the estimated 64,000 Black girls and women across the United States that have gone missing. Wilson remains among an unfortunately growing number of young people listed in the “critically missing” section of the expansive database of the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children. That includes girls and women of all backgrounds, an important distinction because of the lack of media coverage of African-Americans who’ve gone missing. That has spurred activists and some in Congress to action. In eﬀorts to address the problem of missing Black

NABJ From 3 response is a diversion from fo-

children nationwide, Reps. Bonnie Watson Coleman (DN.J.), Robin Kelly (D-Ill.), and Yvette D. Clarke (D-NY) initiated the Congressional Caucus on Black Women and Girls in 2016. Through the caucus, they hope to create public policies that “eliminate signiﬁcant barriers and disparities experienced by black women.” According to BlackNews.com, members of the caucus believe that more federal assistance and collaboration is needed to further eliminate the problem. “I feel like knocking on every attic, every garage to see where those girls are,” House Majority Leader Nancy Pelosi said. “Let’s be an example to the world that we can’t rest until these girls are found.” Further, the nonprofit Black and Missing but Not Forgotten, also has focused its attention on spotlighting and ﬁnding missing African-Americans. Since 2007, the organization has sought to develop relationships with media, government agencies and the public to ensure that missing African-Americans receive prompt attention and concern to garner the best possible outcomes for each case. A 2010 study about the media coverage of missing children in the United States dis-

covered that only 20 percent of reported stories focused on missing Black children despite it corresponding to 33 percent of the overall missing children cases. The report revealed that missing Black youth – especially Black girls – are underreported in the news and it seems that many people don’t even care. The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children said that in 2018 alone, there were 424,066 reports of missing children made to law enforcement around the country. John and Revé Walsh and other child advocates

founded the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children as a private, non-proﬁt organization to serve as the national clearinghouse and to provide a coordinated, national response to problems relating to missing and exploited children. Walsh, who formerly hosted “America’s Most Wanted,” now does similar work with his show, “In Pursuit.” The show, which airs on the Investigation Discovery network, has remained relentless in its pursuit of missing children. So far, the nonproﬁt has helped law enforcement

cusing on the issues that matter most – diversity, inclusion and equity. In an email to members, NABJ leadership wrote, “As anticipated, CNN has chosen to divert attention away

from answering the critical diversity and inclusion questions that NABJ is asking. NABJ’s outreach and meeting requests are focused on CNN›s workforce and the lack of diversity within its news leadership, as

indicated by preliminary research. NABJ has held and has scheduled meetings with all other networks with no issue or conﬂict.” NABJ initially requested a meeting with execu-

An estimated 64,000 Black girls and women across the United States that have gone missing. Iniaya Wilson (right) and Skylar Minnie are also among an unfortunately growing number of young people listed in the “critically missing” section of the expansive database of the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children.

find more than 284,000 missing kids, and NCMEC’s 24/7 Call Center has handled more than 4.8 million phone calls and has access to 190 languages. Walsh founded NCMEC nearly 35 years ago after his 6-year-old son, Adam Walsh, was abducted and later found murdered. According to multiple reports, when Black girls go missing, it’s often unclear whether they have run away from home, were inflicted violence, abducted, sent into the sex industry, among others. Essentially, according to BlackNews.com, their safety and assurance to be brought back home was commonly ignored and not an utmost concern. That concern heightened when investigators in California announced that they were trying to identify the body of a young Black girl who was found dead inside a duffel bag in a suburb of Los Angeles. The girl was eventually identified as Trinity Love Jones. The boyfriend of Jones’ mother, Emiel Hunt, 38, has been charged with her murder. The discovery of Jones, combined with the lack of any new missing person reports that match the girl’s description, shed further light on the plight of missing Black girls.

tives at AT&T, CNN’s parent company. That invitation has been extended again and NABJ said it is awaiting a response.

insightnews.com

Insight News • March 25, 2019 - March 31, 2019 • Page 7

Celebrating Women’s History (Herstory) Month

Leslie Barlow examines ethnicity in the family dynamic in new collection By Harry Colbert, Jr. Managing Editor harry@insightnews.com There’s a warmth that exudes from Leslie Barlow … there a genuineness … it’s authentic. It’s that warmth and authenticity, which shines though in her creations, that is drawing people to the works of the 29-year-old emerging artist. If she were in the culinary arts Barlow’s works would fall under the category of elevated comfort food. Almost anyone can make an egg; there are few who can imagine and pull oﬀ a crab, lobster, sea bass and scallop omelet. The latter is Barlow. Barlow’s emergence in the art community almost didn’t happen … and is a tale of why representation matters. Although one of the earliest photos of Barlow – at age two or three – is of her standing next to an easel, she didn’t grow up envisioning a career as an artist.

Artist Leslie Barlow surrounded by some of her works, many of which will be on display beginning April 13 at Le Meridien Chambers Hotel in downtown Minneapolis, 901 Hennepin Ave.

“It wasn’t until I was in college that I considered art as a career path. I don’t know about you, but I didn’t know any artist, so it was hard for me to envision it as a job,” said Barlow. “It was in college that people were like, ‘You’re pretty good at this. This shouldn’t be just a hobby for you.’” With that suggestion Barlow majored in ﬁne arts and graduated with her bachelor’s from the University of Wisconsin-Stout in 2011. After graduation she accepted an unpaid internship with the Soap Factory, a contemporary art gallery in Minneapolis. Although not paid monetarily, the artist who works primarily in oil, but now incorporates textiles, drawing and photo transfer into her works, said she was paid in experience and exposure. “It gave me support of the artist community and being exposed to other artists,” said Barlow. “It made me more comfortable in showing my own work.” Still not where she wanted to be professionally, Barlow enrolled

in a master’s program, eventually earning her master’s from the Minneapolis College of Art and Design. “I wanted to reach a wider audience and have a larger impact. I wanted to talk about more complex issues like race and identity and I wasn’t there yet in my maturity,” explained Barlow. Barlow’s most recent work, “Quiet Enigmas and Familiar Love” does just that. The collection of portraits captures members of Barlow’s family in everyday life, focusing on the multi-ethnic family dynamic. The collection will be on display beginning April 13 at Le Meridien Chambers Hotel in downtown Minneapolis, 901 Hennepin Ave. Along with a mentor, fellow artist Tricia Heuring of Public Functionary, the two have started Studio 400, an artist collaborative in the Northrup King Building at 1500 Jackson St. N.E. in Minneapolis. To view more of Barlow’s work, go to www.lesliebarlowartist.com.

Celebrating Women’s History (Herstory) Month

The art of dance showcases inner beauty of area choreographer By De’Vonna Pittman Contributing Writer Women’s History Month is a time to commemorate and acknowledge those who have paved the way. It is also a time to empower young rising stars who have undeniable passion, drive, and talent. Tazz Bentley is among the rising stars. She is a dancer who is unapologetic about her craft and what that looks like to anyone else. Her tenacity got her ﬁred-up in 2018 when she founded and launched Entice by Tazz – pop-up dance classes that she hosts several times a month in studios across Minnesota. She describes her dance style as a blend of hip-hop, Zumba, sensual, low and high impact moves that inspire individuals to not only move their bodies, but to love and embrace them as well. For as long as she can remember she’s been dancing … her ﬁrst dance recital was

there were no extracurricular activities that inspired young girls of color. It was for that reason she founded the school’s first step team and began performing and representing the school at events and talent shows. In college she continued to refine her craft by dancing every chance she could find between classes and late at night. Dance is where she found peace, creativity, and solitude. “At a young age, I allowed others’ opinions to consume me,” admits Bentley. “I was insecure about my body, my looks, and even the way I spoke. The one thing that brought me joy was dance, and no one could tell me I couldn’t dance.” Since 2018, Bentley has evoked the love of movement in hundreds of men and women, while empowering them to freely move their bodies to melodies and musical beats. This style of dance is sexy, it burns calories, but, it sort of tricks the brain into believing it’s not exercise. Bentley works to ensure men and women of all ages that they

doing. When my parents told me to go to college, I did. When they told me to get a job, I did. But, I wasn’t comfortable in any job I held. My passion was relentless, and it called to me. The law of attraction was clearly at play, and before I knew it, I was teaching dance full time, every second of my day.” Entice by Tazz was created to inspire women to embrace their inner goddess and their femininity simply by moving their bodies. “Dance enables you to ﬁnd yourself and lose yourself at the same time. It is amazing how sensual and free one can feel just by moving their body,” said the dance artist. “Fast or slow paced, with or without heels, you can conquer any song or dance. Being sexy is about more than how you look. It is about how you feel. It›s being comfortable in your own skin and challenging ideals and what you believe sexy looks like. I encourage individuals to challenge their own capabilities on the dance ﬂoor. Every choreo-

her heart was beating fast, she’d been trying to calm her nerves most of the day. These days were both exciting and filled with anxiety. She knew her first students would be waiting with great anticipation. Not one of them were to leave disappointed. That was always her goal, and that caused slight anxiety. She arrived a half hour early, and the class was already half full. Several people were on the floor stretching, some were on their phones, others were simply excited for what they knew would be an invigorating and electrifying experience. They all smiled when their instructor arrived. There was laughter in the air … there was community. At 6 p.m. Bentley stood boldly before her students who she

now calls the Queens and Kings of Entice. Although only 5’2” the 3-inch heeled boots empowered her stance, her presence was bold and magnetic. The class was at capacity. You could hear a pin drop when her voice covered the perimeter of the studio. “Welcome to Entice by Tazz. Tonight’s class is not about looking or dancing exactly like me. It is about being comfortable with your own body and embracing who you are and being conﬁdent,” she said. “Just slay, be sexy … your own kind of sexy.” The Queens and Kings of Entice were exuberant. They felt it, and immediately they didn’t compare themselves to the person next to them, insecurities ﬂoated through the

ceiling and out of the room. In that moment, they were just as honored to be in the room as she was to have them there. This was about transferring love, acceptance and the power of dance to those who were bold enough to receive it. At the end of the class, Bentley high-ﬁved everyone, posed for photos, and just like most evenings, she was oﬀ and running to yet another dance rehearsal. This narration was delivered with the unique perspective of a mother, De’Vonna Pittman, being able to speak to her daughter’s journey of self-discovery and triumph. To learn more about Tazz Bentley go to www. TazzBentley.com.

19 APRIL

7:30

Choreographer Tazz Bentley held at Richﬁeld Community Center. She was ﬁve years old. She then trained at Hollywood Studio of Dance in Minneapolis for several years. As a student at St. Michael Middle School, she realized

are their own kind of beautiful. She believes music and movement not only connects us to our bodies, but also to our ancestors. “I’ve been dancing my whole entire life, it is the one thing I’ve always felt comfortable

graphed piece is created to empower kings and queens to embrace their very own royalty.» This past February, Bentley walked into the ﬁfth-ﬂoor dance studio at the Cowles Center for Arts in downtown Minneapolis;

APR 2–7

ORDWAY.ORG 651.224.4222