New York Trend NYC: March 30 – April 5, 2023

NEW YORK TREND

March 30th, 2023 - April 5th, 2023

MAYOR DAVID DINKINS, REP. CHARLES RANGEL, HONORED WITH LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS

‘Greater Than Hate Coalition’ LAUNCHED TO FIGHT AGAINST POLITICAL EXTREMISTS

Eight of the nation's leading human rights and equality organizations – the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), Everytown for Gun Safety, the NAACP, the National Education Association (NEA), the National Women's Law Center, Equality Federation, Asians Fighting Injustice, and the National Center for Transgender Equality (NCTE) –announced the launch of the Greater Than Hate Coalition, a collective, multi-racial, multi-cultural movement with the aim of fighting back against extremist politicians and their growing and loud campaign of hate.

The Black Stars News 2015 Annual Awards Dinner will honor Mayor David Dinkins, Rep. Charles Rangel, Rep. Yvette Clarke, R. Donahue Peebles, Barbara Arnwine, Inez Barron, Sabrina Lamb, Dr. Rudy Crew, Stephen Byrd, Alia Jones, and the Central Park Five survivors of gross injustice on December 18 from 6:00pm –10:00pm at MIST Harlem, 46 West 116th Street

At a time when extremists dominate the news cycle and actively spread fear, the Greater Than Hate Coalition represents the vast majority of Americans who believe that hate has no place in our society and that everyone — no matter who they are, who they love, or how they identify — can live freely.

The Greater Than Hate Coalition will serve as a public education campaign and rapid response team that will:

 Call out the alarming surge of attacks against marginalized people;

“Each honoree chosen for recognition has demonstrated exceptional leadership and vision in her or his respective profession or endeavor and in some significant measure has contributed towards creating a more just society in this country,” says Black Star News founder and publisher Milton Allimadi. “Obviously much work needs to be done here and around the world.”

In Congress and in state houses across the country, extremists are enacting discriminatory legislation, banning books and abortion, spewing hateful rhetoric and propaganda, and preventing debate about sensible public safety measures that could protect the lives of queer and transgender people, people of color, women, people with disabilities, children, teachers, and public workers. Since January 1, 2023, 435+ antiLGBTQ bills, including more than 185 bills that specifically target transgender people have been introduced in state legislatures, according to the Human Rights Campaign

As of March 1 of this year, 37 state legislatures have introduced abortion bans that would ban all or most abortions. This hateful legislation and rhetoric has led to a staggering increase in violence and discrimination, especially directed towards women, people of color, and LGBTQ+ Americans. In 2022, for example, there was a 3x increase in anti-LGBTQ+ incidents and in 2021, there were at least 57 reported deaths of transgender and gender nonconforming people — 73 percent of these were with a gun. According to the National Abortion Federation, reports of violence against abortion clinics increased 125 percent from 2019 to 2020. In the same year, death threats against abortion providers more than doubled.

 Recruit more people to collective action

CELEBRATING30 YEARS!

Robinson, President of the Human Rights Campaign

"We're at a crossroads. Do we protect the most endangered and marginalized groups among us, or do we ignore them? Do we protect our reproductive rights, or allow them to be rolled back? Are we invested enough in our future to keep our schools and streets safe from violence? I believe we are. I believe we will. I know that we can. I know that together we are Greater Than Hate. I'm so energized to be part of the new coalition - because we have to work together to win."

The gala starts at 6:00pm with a cocktail hour to be followed by the dinner and awards ceremonies. There will be musical entertainment by opera singer Cassandra Douglas and from harmonica phenomenon William Galison. David Dinkins is honored for Lifetime Achievement — he was New York City’s first African American mayor and also welcomed Nelson Mandela to the city after his release in 1990. Rep. Charles Rangel, also honored for Lifetime Achievement, has served in Congress since 1971. He is a recipient of The Bronze medal for helping save soldiers behind enemy line during the Korean War Rep. Yvette Clarke is a Democratic member of the US House of Representatives from New York whose 9th district covers much of central Brooklyn. Before entering Congress in 2007, she

and;

 Bring to bear our collective power to stop dangerous anti-LGBTQ+, white nationalist, and anti-women proposals, and the extremist politicians and organizations trafficking in hate.

To accomplish these goals, the coalition will invigorate our base, identify opportunities for shared actions, and serve as a rapid response hub as extremist rhetoric continues. "The last several years have scared so many people to their core. We've watched as, both on the national stage and in many states, people have seen longsettled rights stripped away and looked on as their transgender and LGBTQ+ friends and family and colleagues have been targeted for who they are," said Kelley

estate firm with $3.5 billion worth of properties under development or management — he was one of the pioneering developerswho helped turn around and revitalize the once-blighted Anacostia neighborhood in Washington, D.C. A champion of African-American economic empowerment Peebles’ is contemplating a possible run for NYC mayor in 2017.

Honoree Barbara Arnwine, civil rights lawyer, is a champion of protecting voting rights of ethnic minority groups — the emerging

Transformative Justice Coalition. Arnwine was for 26 years executive Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under the Law. , honoree, formerly a member, is now council member and a champion of education for

people, people of color, and disabled people. These attempts to legislate hate just end up hurting us all. They can try to ban abortion, to ban books, even to ban transgender people out of existence, but in the end, they will fail. Together, our organizations, and the majority of people in the United States who believe in equality, opportunity, and freedom, will unite to stop the hate." said Fatima Goss Graves, President and CEO of the National Women's Law Center "Hate armed with a gun is deadly, and in a country where extremists have nearunfettered access to firearms it's far too often queer people, women, and people of color who bear the brunt," said Angela Ferell-Zabala, Senior Vice President for Movement Building at Everytown for Gun Safety "The fundamental truth is that hope is louder than fear, and the power of our coalition is greater than a hateful agenda. We are proud to stand alongside our partners in this fight, and we will continue to advocate tirelessly for a future where everyone is safe and no one's existence is up for debate."

Imhotep Gary Byrd is a legendary radio talk show host and executive producer, radio DJ, poet, songwriter, music recording artist and producer, rapper, writer and community activist. He began his career as a radio DJ in Buffalo at age 15. For over 30 years, he’s been a talk show host at WBLS and WLIB radio in New York City. He also has a Friday night radio talk show on WBAI

"The volume and intensity of hateful rhetoric, propaganda, and legislation attacking women, people of color, and LGBTQ+ individuals have been growing dramatically over the past few years. This hate results in the rollback of basic rights to bodily autonomy, violence against our communities, and the criminalization of learning the history of this country. Together, we say enough," said Fran Hutchins, Executive Director of Equality Federation "We must join together as a collective - across race, class, genderto stop extremists from furthering their campaign of hate. This fight needs all of us."

Honoree Sabrina Lamb, founder of World of Money, is a champion of financial literacy for youth-- she teaches knowledge about handling money, budgeting and planning.

"Politicians have decided hate is a winning strategy — at the expense of the health, safety, and even lives of women, LGBTQ+

York and a former chancellor of the New York public schools system. Pioneering producers Stephen Byrd and Alia Jones, through their company Front Row Production, brought “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof” and “A Streetcar Named Desire” with a multi-ethnic cast to Broadway. In 2016 they bring “Eclipsed” with Oscar Winner Lupita Nyong ’O to Broadway. Honorees, the so-called Central Park 5, are collectively and individually heroes. They are survivors of one of the ugliest miscarriage of justice in New York’s history; having been railroaded and unjustly convicted for a crime they did not commit and for which they served long prison sentences ranging from seven years to 13 years before being exonerated when the actual rapist confessed. They are: Yusef Abdus Salaam; Raymond Santana Jr., Antron McCray, Kevin Richardson, and Kharey Wise. The Black Star News, which focuses on investigative journalism, has been featured as a result of some if its news scoops, on CNN, The New York Daily News, The New York Post, The Village Voice, and Brill’s Content magazine.

"Educators are working hard every day to provide all students, regardless of their color, gender or ZIP code, with a great public school education that gives students the freedom to pursue their dreams," said NEA President Becky Pringle "But some politicians are injecting their culture wars into our public schools, dehumanizing transgender people, banning books and restricting what educators can teach and what students can learn — while ignoring the real issues facing students and public education. Across race and place, parents, students and advocates are coming together to demand the public schools our students deserve and make this a country where every child has the freedom to learn, grow and thrive."

Dr. Rudy Crew, honoree, is one of the nation’s leading educators. He’s president of Medgar Evers College of The City University of New

"Although AFI is currently focused on ending Anti-AAPI hate, we are Asians Fighting Injustice and not Asians Fighting Asian Injustice," said Derrick Leon, Executive Director at Asians Fighting Injustice "We fight against hate in all forms, and will stand with those being targeted because of what they look like, how much they make, what they believe in, or who they love. Our only hope of achieving a truly equitable society, is

Past Black Star News honorees have included: Gil Noble (Like It Is), Rep. Maxine Waters, Soledad O’Brien (CNN), Ms. Camille Cosby, Voza Rivers (New Heritage Theatre), Errol Louis (NY1 News), Amel Larrieux (Entertainer), Dr. William Pollard (Medgar Evers College), Herm Edwards (NY Jets), Nayaba Arinde (Amsterdam News), La-Verna Fountain (Columbia University), Lillian Roberts (DC37), Desiree Dancy (New York Times), Greg Floyd (Local 237), Rev. Al Sharpton (National Action Network), and many others.

"The NAACP stands firm in its commitment to our brothers and sisters in the LGBTQ+ community.”

 Derrick Johnson , President & CEO, NAACP

Photo Source: NAACP.com

NATIONAL STUDENTS JOIN ADVOCATES FOR LOAN CANCELLATION

By WISDOM COLE National Director, Youth & College NAACP

Education is supposed to be the key to financial freedom, not the barrier. This week, myself and a delegation of student loan borrowers from Howard University united with student debt cancellation advocates to support the fight against attempts to restrict those very freedoms.

Senator Cassidy announced his effort to overturn President Biden's plan and end the current student loan payment pause. I want to make one thing clear — student debt relief benefits everyone and would provide downstream economic relief for millions of people. Education is needed to advance the US economy and has always been considered an economic driver of the economy. The costs of a college education have risen disproportionate to salaries and incomes. Capitalization of interest has bound too many in debt far beyond the cost of the student

loan.

The NAACP will continue to do everything in our power to ensure the economic mobility of the 40+

million Americans depending on the survival of this Student Debt Cancellation program. We will ensure the voices and stories of

borrowers are heard. Many efforts to destabilize this fight through discriminatory narratives will rise, but know that our advocacy will rise higher.

NAACP RELEASES OFFICIAL STATEMENT ON REPARATIONS

The belief that we all have an equal chance to earn the type of riches that gives meaning to the words "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness," boldly expressed in the Declaration of Independence, is central to the concept of the American Dream. The American Dream implies that through hard work, a person may buy a home, start a company, and build a nest egg for future generations.

This concept, however, has been consistently rejected by the United States government's own regulations that denied African Americans wealth-building opportunities.

African Americans are the only minority that has not received reparations for state-sanctioned racial discrimination, despite the fact that slavery allowed certain white families to amass enormous riches. The justification for reparations can

be made on economic, societal, and moral grounds. The United States has had several opportunities to atone for slavery, each one a squandered opportunity to make the American Dream a reality, but has failed to take major action.

The NAACP has long stood in favor of financial reparations to African Americans and those of African Descent in the United States who are descendants of slavery and the

Jim Crow Era.

Established in 1991, the NAACP's original policy position, as embodied in H.R. 40, demands that the United States Government take immediate action to commence hearings and to establish a congressional commission to examine the issue of reparations for descendants of enslaved persons of African descent. In 1997, 1999, 2001, 2003, 2007, 2016, 2019, and again in 2022, the Association reaffirmed and continues to stand in favor of financial reparations for African Americans and those of African descent in the United States who are descendants of slavery and the Jim Crow Era.

The NAACP demands the U.S. Congress and President utilize all available procedural options to immediately establish a commission to study and recommend a comprehensive program of compensatory reparations policies for Black American descendants of persons enslaved in the U.S. for harms originating in chattel slavery and ongoing through multifaceted institutional and structural forms of anti-Black racism and discrimination. This is the official NAACP position on reparations. Any other position offered is in direct opposition to our aforesaid resolutions.

Photo Source: NAACP.com

Image Source: NAACP.com

SUIT FILED TO AID LOW INCOME FAMILIES FACING EVICTION

The South Carolina State Conference of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (South Carolina NAACP) and three of its members — Robynne Campbell, Marvin Neal, and De'Ontay Winchester — filed suit today in the U.S. District Court for the District of South Carolina to expand the free guidance available to low-income tenants facing eviction. Filed by the Institute for Constitutional evicted."

Advocacy and Protection (ICAP) at Georgetown University Law Center, the National NAACP, and the South Carolina-based Wyche Law Firm, the lawsuit argues that South Carolina's prohibition on the unauthorized practice of law violates the First Amendment rights of the South Carolina NAACP and its members to speak and associate together when that prohibition stops them from providing free, vetted, and helpful advice about the law to tenants facing eviction.

South Carolina has one of the highest eviction rates in the country. It also has one of the worst access-to-justice gaps in the country — more than 99% of tenants facing eviction in the state do not have representation. According to a statewide study released last month,

there is a "dire need for legal help."

"Tenants across South Carolina are desperate for assistance," said Brenda Murphy, President of the South Carolina NAACP "The South Carolina NAACP has more members than there are lawyers in our state. Working with legal service providers, we can bridge the gap and offer tenants some of the legal help they need to exercise their rights and avoid being unnecessarily

from providing this type of free advice. As a result, the South Carolina NAACP and its members would face the threat of criminal prosecution for attempting to implement this program.

"Plaintiffs seek to provide tenants with free and accurate guidance about what they need to do after receiving a notice of eviction," said ICAP Counsel Elise Baranouski "South Carolina's criminalization of Plaintiffs' intended

"In the eviction context, South Carolina has too much legal need and too few lawyers to meet that need," said Wyche Partner Jimmy Cox "In particular, tenants in our state need to be able to access free and accurate legal guidance. The Plaintiffs in this case can provide that advice and help stem the tide of evictions."

The lawsuit builds on NAACP activism inside and outside of the courtroom to ensure access to justice for all. Decades ago, cases involving the NAACP's efforts to desegregate the south established some of the First Amendment protections that are central to this case. Throughout the pandemic, the South Carolina NAACP has operated a series of housing advocacy programs to try to connect tenants to resources and keep them in their homes. Last year, it filed a path-breaking First Amendment lawsuit to allow it to automatically scrape court records so that it could reach out to tenants across the state as soon as they have an eviction action filed against them.

The NAACP is the nation's oldest and largest civil rights organization. Founded in 1939, the South Carolina State Conference of the NAACP is the leading civil rights organization in South Carolina. The NAACP and the South Carolina NAACP have fought for decades to secure equality and access to the courts.

The South Carolina NAACP has designed a program that would empower trained nonlawyer advocates to provide free and carefully tailored advice to tenants who are facing eviction actions. The advice, which has been vetted by a leading housing attorney in the state, is designed to ensure tenants do not default on those actions, are able to exercise their rights and raise certain defenses at a hearing, and have more time and a better chance to connect with legal service providers who might be able to represent them.

But South Carolina's prohibition on the unauthorized practice of law, as broadly interpreted by the South Carolina Supreme Court, prohibits nonlawyers

speech and association is at odds with the First Amendment and serves only to deprive tenants of the advice they need to access the courts."

"The NAACP is often the only place low-income tenants know to turn when they face eviction," said NAACP Assistant General Counsel Joe Schottenfeld "Volunteer NAACP leaders like Ms. Campbell, Mr. Neal, and Mr. Winchester already provide tenants in their communities with all sorts of vitally important assistance. But they can't provide the advice many tenants need most — about how to respond to an eviction action. That makes their advocacy less effective, with devastating consequences for the tenants they're trying to help."

The Institute for Constitutional Advocacy and Protection (ICAP) at Georgetown University Law Center uses strategic legal advocacy to defend constitutional rights and values while working to restore people's confidence in the integrity of their governmental institutions. More information about ICAP can be found at www.law. georgetown.edu/icap/ Wyche is a full-service law firm that has practiced law and served the community for over 100 years. In that time, Wyche has participated in landmark litigation, served as counsel on cutting-edge transactions, and provided community leadership that has helped shape and drive our region's growth and success. With offices in Greenville, Spartanburg, and Columbia, Wyche is the South Carolina member of Lex Mundi, the world's leading association of independent law firms.

Than Hate Coalition’ LAUNCHED

by uniting not dividing, which is why we are proud to stand with the Greater Than Hate Coalition."

"When extremist politicians spew hateful rhetoric against the transgender community, when they introduce and pass laws that strip away our rights, and when they send the message that we don't belong in society – these actions have real consequences," said Rodrigo Heng-Lehtinen,

executive director at the National Center for Transgender Equality. "Transgender people's very lives are being placed up for debate, and there is a direct link between this dangerous rhetoric and the increasing violence we experience. It is time for the many of us who believe in freedom and justice for all to rise together, across our diverse backgrounds, to demand change and end the political, social, and physical

violence against all our communities."

"The NAACP stands firm in its commitment to our brothers and sisters in the LGBTQ+ community," said Derrick Johnson, President & CEO, NAACP. The fight to thwart efforts to codify discrimination into law requires the inclusion and strength of members of all historically marginalized communities as civil rights activists and influencers. "The exciting formation of this new coalition allows us to

fight and defend their rights and dignity and dispel social and political attempts to uphold a hate culture in this nation."

The Greater Than Hate Coalition is a collective, multi-racial, multicultural movement united against the forces of violence and discrimination. For more information, visit: https://greaterthanhate. org/

‘Greater

TO FIGHT AGAINST POLITICAL EXTREMISTS (cont'd from cover)

Photo Source: NAACP.com

HUMANITIES NAACP JOINS BROOKHAVEN CHAPTER AGAINST WASTE TRANSFER STATION

NAACP Brookhaven Chapter President

Dr. Georgette Grier-Key, joined by NAACP NYS Conference President Dr. Hazel Dukes, today called on the State Legislature to reject the latest attempts by Winters Bros. and its Republican allies in Brookhaven to build the largest waste transfer station in New York State history in a potential Environmental Justice Area without seeking local zoning approval.

Republican Assemblyman Joe DeStefano and Republican Senator Dean Murray have introduced legislation (A05365 and S05215) to trample on a conservation easement in Brookhaven to make it easier for Winters Bros. to build and operate its massive and unnecessary waste transfer facility – which the company has said it intends to build without seeking local zoning approvals by securing a federal waiver of local rules.

“Republicans don’t go rogue in Brookhaven – not if they expect party support for their elections. So when Brookhaven Republicans in Albany line up to support Winters. Bros plans, we know it’s because their leader –Supervisor Ed Romaine – has given his tacit if not direct approval,” Dr. GrierKey said “This is just another attempt by Supervisor Romaine and his cronies on the Town Board trying to avoid taking any responsibility for quietly allowing Winters Bros. to build this massive facility. We killed this bill in Albany once and we will kill it again, and we will hold Supervisor Romaine to account for sending his allies in Albany to do Winters’ bidding once again.”

In the 2021 legislative session, Assemblyman DeStefano introduced similar legislation to trample on

conservation easements to support Winters Bros. plans but withdrew the legislation after pressure from the NAACP made clear the bill would never win approval in Albany.

“It’s time for Winters Bros. to stop playing games and trying to make an end run around the community to build its massive dump in a potential

(STB) because it would ship the waste off Long Island by rail. The STB has the power to waive local zoning laws if it decides a project is “rail related,” completely cutting out the Town Zoning Board. Currently the property is not zoned for a waste transfer facility.

In addition, Winters Bros. also falsely claims that Long Island faces a waste

simply worked with the Long Island Railroad and won the approvals they needed.

Second, the two new facilities when fully built will be able to handle nearly 1.3 million tons of construction and demolition waste every year – almost double the amount of similar waste now going into the landfill. The landfill will continue to take ash waste from the burning of household garbage through 2026 and neither the newly permitted facilities nor Winters Bros. is seeking to accept ash waste.

Yet Winters Bros. continues to claim its proposed facility – which would accept 6,000 tons a day from more than 350 trucks every day six days a week for a total capacity of more than 1.8 million tons a year – is needed to solve a socalled “crisis” on Long Island. In fact, Winters Bros. plans to consolidate four existing facilities it operates into the proposed facility – and bring about 1,000 tons they currently accept. That leaves 5,000 tons a day that Winters Bros. would need to accept to make its plans work.

Environmental Justice Area,” Dr. Dukes said. “The NAACP has blocked Winters Bros. in Albany and we will block them in Washington too. There is no getting around the community, and it’s time that Winters Bros. – and Supervisor Romaine and his allies – accept that reality.”

Winters Bros. has peddled a false narrative for years in a weak effort to convince stakeholders that it must seek a federal waiver of local zoning from the federal Surface Transportation Board

crisis with the closure of the Brookhaven Town landfill in late 2024 so its facility should win easy approval. The facts make clear this narrative is also completely false.

First, two new waste transfer facilities in Brentwood and Medford have been fully permitted by the state Department of Environmental Conservation – the Medford facility was approved just this month – that will export waste by rail. Neither facility needed nor sought STB approval to access the rail lines. They

“We know Winters Bros. plans to make Brookhaven the home of NYC garbage – there is nowhere else to get the trash to fill its capacity and make the project work financially,” Dr. Grier-Key said.

“That is the dirty secret they refuse to admit – but don’t deny – and it’s exactly why they want to avoid this conversation in front of the Town Zoning Board Winters Bros. needs to stop the lies and face the community if it wants to build anything here. It’s also time for Supervisor Romaine to call out Winters Bros. and stand with the community – loudly and proudly in public – and end the backroom dealing with this disingenuous company.”

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BUSINESS

BLACK - OWNED TITLE COMPANY CLOSES $2 BILLION IN REAL ESTATE DEALS

A milestone of $2 Billion in closed real estate transactions has been accomplished by National Standard Abstract (NSA), a Nassau County-based Black family-owned real estate title insurance firm headed by Founder and President Osei Rubie and his son and partner Nadir Rubie

“Title insurance is the glue in being able to thwart any question marks of ownership. This includes unsatisfied mortgages, liens, judgments or other recorded claims against the property. Claims can arise through easements, use restrictions or other existing covenants, as well as hidden risks like fraud or forgery in previous documents, improperly executed deeds or deaths in the chain of title,” explained Osei “Title insurance gives the new owner, the buyer, a marketable and clean title so they will be able to sell the property based upon the information at that time.”

National Standard Abstract, founded in 2015, is a New York City and New York Statecertified MBE and the New York metro area’s only Black-owned father-son title insurance company that has closed over $2 Billion. The company has extensive title insurance knowledge in residential and commercial real estate transactions that encompass homes, office space, affordable and faithbased housing complexes, amusement parks, hospitals, market-rate developments, and public-private partnerships.

When Black real estate developers and builders in New York and New Jersey seek title insurance for their major multi-milliondollar commercial housing projects, they partner with NSA. The projects have been valued between $24 million to $43 million each in the first year of operation. The range of transaction value has increased to upwards of $300+ million per transaction. In Brooklyn, NSA worked with developers on 461 Alabama Avenue, Ebenezer

Plaza, Alafia, Regina Pacis Apartments and CHS. Other projects included: Calvary Baptist Church and Archer Green Apartments in Queens; Mount Hope Preservation Apartments in the Bronx and Balton Commons in Harlem

“Black developers are at the top of the

affordable housing,” said Osei “They have a tremendous amount of power to be able to empower people like us.”

Nadir is a third-generation Black entrepreneur. His father, Osei, was raised by his Costa Rican father Bernardo Rubie, and his Jamaican mother Yvonne Rubie, who

“I grew up in a family legacy of Black entrepreneurship. I am proud of what my father and I have accomplished by being true to ourselves,” said Nadir “This $2 billion accomplishment in closed real estate transactions serves New York metropolitan’s predominantly Black communities, organizations, and companies.”

Amoy Chin, Vice President of Closing Operations at National Standard Abstract, has over 25 years of experience in real estate. “Every problem solved brings us one step closer to our mutual goal of transforming communities,” she said. The Osei Rubie Charitable Fund is the philanthropic arm of NSA. Over $175,000 in grants have been awarded to racial justice organizations specializing in education, youth, entrepreneurship, and community development. “Every deal we close, whether residential or commercial, we put aside monies to empower Black organizations and institutions we know it’s our responsibility as Blacks to ensure that we create empowerment, leadership and positive images as my parents did with Huggy Bean dolls. So, philanthropy wasn’t a long decision process. It was something we knew that we would do.”

Recent donations have included 27 laptops to students at Harlem’s Thurgood Marshall Academy, Jamaica Queens Rosedale Jets football team and cheerleading uniforms, Growing4ward scholarships for the young Black men mentorship program, Future Leaders of Jamaica teen academic scholarships, the Liberian Mural Foundation in Harlem and the establishing the Lincoln University Osei Rubie Endowment Scholarship at Osei’s HBCU alma mater.

real estate hierarchy. They are decisionmakers who are developing and executing these projects and bringing their visions to life. They are coordinating with various agencies of the government. They are doing

were serial entrepreneurs. Golden Ribbon Playthings produced and marketed products focusing on African pride from Afrocentric clothing to the award-winning Huggy Bean, America’s top-selling Black character doll.

For more information on National Standard Abstract, check out www. nationalstandardabs.com

CIVIL RIGHTS MUSEUM DEBUTS MEMPHIS ARTIST

Waddell, Withers, and Smith: A Requiem for King is a multimedia exhibition by three Memphis-born artists opening at the National Civil Rights Museum at the Lorraine Motel on April 4, on the 55th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s assassination at the historic site. As the first artistic reactions to the assassination, these pieces offer a unique perspective on a pivotal event in American history.

The exhibition unites the powerful creations of James M. Waddell, Jr., a Black self-taught

sculptor deeply connected to the Civil Rights Movement; Ernest Withers, a renowned Black civil rights photographer whose work has documented key moments in the Movement and Black cultural life; and Dolph Smith, a mixed-media artist whose family attended the Memphis Cares tribute to King three days after the assassination as the only White family present.

Over 20 images and objects showcase the evocative works of three pioneering artists, all born and raised in Memphis, who were

among the first to respond to the tragedy in their city through their art. The artists explore their lives in segregated Memphis, the military, and coping in the aftermath of Dr. King’s death. The works display the transformative power of art in the face of adversity, as these visionary artists captured the spirit of a defining moment in American history.

“This year marks the 55th anniversary of Dr. King’s assassination,” said Dr. Noelle Trent, museum Director of Interpretation, Collections, and Education. “The museum is honored to bring together three Memphis artists’ perspectives of Dr. King, his death, and the impact of the assassination on our community.”

Having the exhibition at the National Civil Rights Museum has a distinct meaning for the families of Waddell and Withers and artist Dolph Smith, now an eighty-nine-yearold living in West Tennessee. “It was my time in the military that taught me to use my hands to convey a message,” said Smith “My father’s sculptures of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. are not just works of art,” said Gebre Waddell, the son of James Waddell “They are a reminder of the power of activism and the importance of standing up for what’s right.”

Rosalind Withers, conservator/director of the Withers Collection Museum &

Gallery reiterated, “My father’s purpose was tied to his passion. He was a man of his community.”

Waddell, Withers, and Smith is on display at the museum until August 28, 2023 and is included with admission. For more information, visit the museum’s website. The NATIONAL CIVIL RIGHTS MUSEUM, located at the historic Lorraine Motel where civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated, is the only museum of its kind that gives a comprehensive overview of the American Civil Rights Movement from 1619 to the present. Since opening in 1991, millions from around the world have come, including 90,000 students annually. As the new public square, the Museum examines today’s global civil and human rights issues, provokes thoughtful debate, and serves as a catalyst for positive social change.

A Smithsonian Affiliate and an internationally acclaimed cultural institution, the Museum is recognized among USA Today's Top 10 Best American Iconic Attractions; Named in the Top 1% of TripAdvisor Attractions; Top 10 Best Historical Spots in the U.S. by TLC's Family Travel; Must See by the Age of 15 by Budget Travel and Kids; Top 10 American Treasures by USA Today; Best Memphis Attraction by The Commercial Appeal and Top Tourist Attraction by Memphis Business Journal

(Photo provided)

ENTERTAINMENT

HOLLYWOOD SHOE DESIGNER CELEBRATES SUCCESS

By ANN BROWN

LØVCHLD designer, artist, and photographer Latoya Shaw wants to share her celebrity-collected shoes she paints by hand that are flying off the shelves and onto the red carpet. In addition to custom shoe commissions, she sells one-of-a-kind designs in various sizes on her website, www. lovchld.com

No human is alike, and therefore, no shoe is alike. Each shoe Lotoya designs highlights the individuality of the person wearing them—a celebration of life to journey through proudly with a flare of liberation and wit. The ingredients include bright colors and edgy tones –an attempt to create an ethereal appeal with punk qualities.

When Latoya established LØVCHLD, it came from a place of immense grief. She had never really been faced with a more accurate understanding of her ability to overcome heartbreak until someone she loved and connected to passed away. She wanted to find peace, and in doing so, found herself transmuting her feelings onto various shoe canvases, meditating through creative exploration and using different techniques of organizing colors to create a captivating visual experience. Thus, encouraging people to feel a sense of joy as they forge ahead on any given path.

Growing up in a single-parent household in Sydney, Australia, and being among one of the only Biracial students at the Private School she attended made it impossible to be like everybody else. On this journey, she reclaimed her strength by tuning into her inner child and

embracing everything that set her apart. This is the message that Latoya aims to encourage through her shoe designs. The difference is critical.

Throughout her life, she found that the people she respected most were the

ones that were willing to go against the grain to live their lives with integrity. In a homogenous world, LØVCHLD allows the inner child to emerge so you can remember and walk in the shoes of the human you are.

©2023 New York Lottery

HBCU GRADS Behind FAST - GROWING CHAIN

Meet the team behind America’s fastest-selling pizza, now delivered nationally. The famed Black-owned hip-hop-inspired gourmet pizza chain Slim + Husky’s is ranked #5 in The Daily Meal’s “101 Best Pizzas in America.”

The three remarkable owners dish out innovative pizza creations to underserved communities. These best friends share the mission to empower communities while using pizza as their vehicle to engage, offering quality food, employment opportunities, and community events as Slim + Husky’s expand across the nation.

The three Tennessee State University grads and football players Clint Gray–CMO, Derrick Moore-Chief Development Officer, & EJ Reed–CEO, started Slim + Husky’s to serve unique pies and provide jobs to their neighborhood

in North Nashville. Now, they have expanded locations across the country and offer build-your-own pizzas, take-out options, catering services, and national delivery. This includes opening the first Black-owned restaurant to open on Broadway in Nashville.

Their motto, “Pizza. Art. Music” sums up their founding beliefs to create change and opportunities within underserved communities, while embracing the music culture. Crowds flock to their Tennessee, Atlanta, and Sacramento locations (with additional locations opening throughout 2023) to indulge in artisan pizza while vibing to Hip Hop and R&B classics. Their famed pizzas are also overnighted nationally to a cult following. The owners consider their biggest accomplishments opening the flagship Slim & Husky’s restaurant in their North Nashville

SMELL GAS? ACT FAST.

neighborhood, the ability to provide a substantial number of jobs, and the ability to live out their dream while providing a real impact on their community.

When they aren’t perfecting their product, Clint, Derrick & EJ are hosting community events

and participating in speaking engagements at local schools, nonprofits, small businesses, and organizations. From hosting events to support local artists to honoring area teachers, they strive to recognize and promote positivity wherever they go.

MUSIC HARLEM SONGFEST II DEBUTS

The Harlem Chamber Players (Founding Executive and Artistic Director Liz Player) will mark its 15th Anniversary and Black Music Month with a musical extravaganza Harlem Songfest II, celebrating Black opera singers and the music of Black composers, including women, on Friday, June 9, at 7 p.m. at Miller Theatre at Columbia University (2960 Broadway at West 116th Street in Manhattan). Multifaceted artist Damien Sneed will serve as music director and conductor for the event, which will also feature arias from the European canon. The special concert is hosted by WQXR radio personality and Harlem Chamber Players (HCP)

Artistic Advisor Terrance McKnight and presented in association with the Manhattan School of Music. Tickets for Harlem Songfest II — ranging from $20-$40, with $50 VIP tickets — will go on sale on April 1 at https://bit. ly/HCPSongfestII. They  can also be purchased by calling 212-854-7799 (Wed-Fri from 2 p.m.-6 p.m.).

Soprano Janinah Burnett, soprano Jasmine Muhammad and baritone Kenneth Overton — currently on the roster of the Metropolitan Opera — and tenor Martin Bakari and mezzosoprano Lucia Bradford will join HCP’s 45-piece orchestra for the performance.  Harlem Songfest II builds on the success of the HCP’s 2018 Harlem Songfest, which featured arias solely from the European canon. The sequel concert features arias, spirituals and songs by Black composers, including women, as well as classics from European composers Georges Bizet, Gustave Charpentier, Gaetano

Donizetti, George Frideric Handel, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Richard Strauss and Giuseppe Verdi and America‘s favorite, George Gershwin. The program will include the works of Black composers, including He’s Got the Whole World in His Hands by Margaret Bonds (arranged by Sneed); Voodoo Queen aria, by Harlem Renaissance’s Harry Lawrence Freeman, a work the HCP helped revive from 87 years of obscurity in a 2015 staging; the Overture to Tremonisha by Scott Joplin (arranged by Sneed); There is a Balm in Gilead from Spiritual Sketches by Sneed; and the 4th of July Speech by Dorothy Rudd Moore (arranged by Sneed), a piece inspired by Frederick Douglass’s renowned 1852 speech “What to the Slave is Fourth of July.” My Son, My Child from Emmett

Till by the 89-year-old composer Mary Watkins will also be performed.

“The Black community and the Harlem community especially adores and appreciates singers, and The Harlem Chamber Players is determined to give them what they want at this concert, which will showcase some incredible voices and stars of opera stages everywhere,” said Ms. Player, who heads up the ethnically diverse classical orchestra. “We are centering the Black artists who have traditionally been

marginalized in classical music.”

The concert is being presented with the generous support of the National Endowment for the Arts, Howard Gilman Foundation, M&T Charitable Foundation, West Harlem Development Corporation, Columbia Community Service, New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA), New York City Department of Cultural Affairs and the Mosaic Fund

Praised by Opera News as "vocally charismatic" and a "golden tenor,” Martin Bakari has given acclaimed performances in opera, musical theater, oratorio, and art song in major venues in cities throughout the world including NYC, Chicago, Washington DC, Atlanta, Seattle, Munich, Hamburg, Frankfurt, Tel Aviv, Bari, and Matsumoto. www. martinbakari.com

full season.

Internationally renowned and Grammy Award winning baritone, Kenneth Overton made his Welsh National Opera Debut last fall. Kenneth has sung at the Metropolitan Opera, San Francisco Opera and this season will return to the Kennedy Center, David Geffen Hall and Carnegie Hall

His sophomore solo album A Bright Tomorrow, debuted in the top 10 on Billboard Classical Crossover Charts.

Damien Sneed (conductor/musical director) is a pianist, vocalist, organist, composer, conductor, producer, arranger, recording artist, instrumentalist, and arts educator whose work spans multiple genres. He has worked with musical legends including the late Aretha Franklin and Jessye Norman (featured on Norman’s final recording, Bound for The Promised Land), Wynton Marsalis,

currently commissioned to compose his fourth opera, a reimagined adaptation of Scott Joplin’s Treemonisha, which premieres May 20 to open OTSL’s season.

The Harlem Chamber Players is an ethnically diverse collective of professional musicians dedicated to bringing high caliber, affordable, accessible live music to people in the Harlem community and beyond. Founded in 2008, the orchestra annually presents a rich season of formal live concerts, indoors, outdoors, and online. It also promotes arts inclusion and equal access to the arts, bringing live music to underserved communities and promoting shared community arts and cultural engagement. Artists-in-residence at the Harlem School of the Arts, The Harlem Chamber Players have presented culturally relevant programs at numerous venues throughout the city and collaborated with many other arts organizations. The orchestra has been featured on WQXR as well as The Greene Space at WQXR and WNYC

The Harlem Chamber Players have also been covered in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Guardian, Musical America and on NPR, NBC and Here and Now on ABC

The group was awarded the 2022 Sam Miller Award for the Performing Arts from the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council

Mezzo soprano Lucia Bradford has starred in Bizet’s La Tragedie de Carmen, Puccini’s Suor Angelica, Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess, William Grant Still’s Troubled Island, Mary Watkin’s Emmett Till and Nathaniel Dett's The Ordering of Moses Lucia performs many genres including contemporary opera, jazz, gospel and blues.

Visionary performance artist Janinah Burnett is a principal artist at the Metropolitan Opera. She is a versatile singing actor, musician, writer, and educator. Burnett’s Broadway credits include Carlotta in the closing cast of Phantom of the Opera. Her albums include Love Color of Your Butterfly, from her record label ‘Clazz Records’ featuring innovative arrangements of opera, spirituals, jazz and more.

Lyric soprano Jasmine Muhammad is a multi-genre vocalist, bridging the gaps between the opera house, harmonic space of background vocals and intimate recitals. Her work spans traditional opera repertoire to tackling new works, The Metropolitan Opera to Hollywood Bowl. This season she joins The Metropolitan Opera chorus for their

Stevie Wonder, Diana Ross, Ashford & Simpson, J’Nai Bridges, Lawrence Brownlee, and more. Sneed has served as music director for several Grammy Award-winning gospel artists. He is a 2014 Sphinx Medal of Excellence recipient, a 2020 Dove Award winner, and a 2021 NAACP Image Award winner for his work as a featured producer and writer on the Clark Sisters’ recently released album, The Return Sneed is currently a faculty member of the Manhattan School of Music and Artist-in-Residence at Michigan State University. During the 2018-2019 season, he served as music director, composer in residence, and cover conductor for the staff of the Houston Grand Opera, who commissioned him to compose a new chamber opera about the life of Marian Anderson, Marian’s Song, which had its world premiere in 2020. Other commissions include the original score for Testament, a contemporary response to the 60th Anniversary of Revelations, for Alvin Ailey Dance Theater’s first virtual season; and a chamber opera, The Tongue & The Lash, for Opera Theatre of Saint Louis (OTSL) in 2021. He is

Liz Player (Founding Executive and Artistic Producer) founded The Harlem Chamber Players in 2008 with the late violist Charles Dalton. Inspired by the late Janet Wolfe, long-time patron of musicians of color and the founder and executive director of the NYC Housing Symphony Orchestra, Ms. Player dedicated herself to continuing the legacy of Wolfe in creating opportunities for musicians of color, particularly Black and Brown classically trained musicians, who are to this day grossly underrepresented in classical music. With a background in industries farremoved from classical music, Ms. Player was able to leverage her unique skill set to build The Harlem Chamber Players from the ground up. After earning her first bachelor’s degree in computer science, she worked as a programmer/analyst for more than eight years before making a return to music. Ms. Player has also worked in philanthropy, marketing and events planning and has served on various panels in New York City, including grant panels for the New York State Council on the Arts, the NYC Department of Cultural Affairs, and panels for “Diversifying Orchestral Music in New York State” convened by NYSCA Player

In 2022, Musical America named Ms. Player among the 32 Top Professionals of the Year. Ms. Player also produced the critically acclaimed, sold-out performance of the rarely performed R. Nathaniel Detts’ oratorio The Ordering of Moses, as part of The Harlem Renaissance 100

THE ARTS BLACK POWER TO BLACK PEOPLE AND MADE IN JAPAN

POSTER HOUSE , the first museum in the United States dedicated to the global history of posters, will present its two main exhibitions for the spring season.

and Angelina Lippert, Chief Curator and Director of Content at Poster House will be available for interviews.

Black Power to Black People:

and slogans that captured a shift in tone in the fight for civil rights. Artists whose posters are exhibited include: Emory Douglas, Dorothy Hayes, and

Japanese designers began to address social issues through their art at the end of the twentieth century, such as climate change and global

The press preview for Black Power to Black People: Branding the Black Panther Party and Made in Japan: 20th-Century Poster Art,will be on March 2, 2023 from 9:00 AM to 11:30 AM at Poster House, located at 119 West 23rd Street and Sixth Avenue in Manhattan.

Es-pranza Humphrey, Curator of Black Power to Black People; Erin Schoneveld and Nozomi Naoi, Curators of Made in Japan;

Branding the Black Panther Party (March 2, 2023 –September 10, 2023) features 37 works dating from 1932 to 1980, that chronicle how the Black Panther Party (BPP), one of the most influential militant groups of the 1960s civil rights movement, devised a specific graphic language to reclaim Black humanity and decommodify Black life. The exhibit includes heroic images of party members, printed materials like The Black Panther newspaper, and political campaign posters. The BPP branded a new movement that relied heavily on the use of bold language, striking graphics, and powerful photographs of its members wearing black-leather jackets and carrying exposed firearms. The BPP’s posters were important for the dissemination of information to the public, widely sharing radical images

Danny Lyon, among others. Made in Japan: 20th-Century Poster Art (March 2, 2023 –September 10, 2023) features 73 works that highlight the cultural and political shifts within modern Japan that influenced the messaging of its iconic advertising and promotional posters. The exhibition showcases posters throughout the twentieth century, beginning with the Second SinoJapanese War and World War II, with images designed to inspire patriotism, circulate propaganda, and encourage consumer restraint in support of the war effort. As Japanese corporations became global brands following World War II, Japanese artists conceived new forms of graphic media that mixed aspects of traditional Japanese aesthetics with Western design idioms. The exhibit also highlights how

peace. The exhibit will include works by artists such as Yusuka Kamekaru, Ikko Tanaka, and Tadanori Yokoo, among others. Both exhibitions come to Poster House through a generous loan from the Merrill C. Berman Collection

In addition to the main exhibitions, two mini exhibitions are currently on view until April 16, 2023 – With My Little Eye: Warnings for the Homefront, curated by Tim Medland, and Schoolgirls at War: French Propaganda Posters from World War I. On April 27, 2023 two new mini exhibitions will open to the public for the spring season

– Advertising Type: Women in Digital Design and The Revolution Will Be Digitized: Typefaces from Emigre & FUSE, both curated by Angelina Lippert

PITCHBLACK FORUM AND AWARDS

Black Public Media (BPM) will hold its sixth PitchBLACK Forum — the largest pitch competition for Black, independent filmmakers and creative technologists in the United States — on April 25 and 26. Winners of up to $150,000 in project funding for new documentary filmmaking and immersive media projects will be announced at the PitchBLACK Awards on April 27, honoring award-winning filmmaker and educator Yoruba Richen and emceed by Baltimore-based comedian Sir Alex PitchBLACK and the PitchBLACK Awards will take place at The Green Space in Manhattan. PitchBLACK will be supported in 2023 and 2024 by Netflix’s Fund for Creative Equity, a dedicated effort to help build new opportunities for underrepresented communities within entertainment. This new grant from Netflix builds on previous support awarded in 2020 to BPM, a major funder for and champion of Black filmmaking, and helped make the formerly biyearly event an annual industry opportunity for Black creatives.

“We are so happy to have Netflix continue its work with our organization through this partnership,” said Leslie Fields-Cruz, Executive Director of BPM “Just as Netflix helped change the way audiences find and consume their entertainment, we at BPM are confident that this partnership will help us continue our work to help Black and independent storytellers and creative technologists forge new paths.”

Since it launched PitchBLACK in 2015, BPM has awarded more than $1.5 million to 17 different projects, some of which have premiered on PBS, WORLD Channel, Create and PBS Digital. Program alumni have produced for PBS, CNN, Showtime, Netflix, HBO, BET, NBC, The CW and more.

The PitchBLACK Forum is a highstakes funding competition for documentary and immersive media producers/directors developing new projects about the Black experience. Producers and technologists vie for awards of up to $150,000 in funding in front of a panel of media professionals and an in-person and virtual audience of funders, distributors and industry leaders. This year’s forum culminates BPM’s 360 Incubator+ program, an intensive three-month fellowship under the mentorship of veteran producers offering participants an opportunity to develop a film, web series or engagement project. The event includes the PitchBLACK Film Forum on Tuesday, April 25; and the PitchBLACK Immersive

Forum on Wednesday, April 26. Winners will be announced the evening of Thursday, April 27, during the PitchBLACK Awards honoring Richen, whose works have captured the joys and trials of Black life, with films about Rosa Parks, Harry Belafonte, the killing of Breonna Taylor, and more. With the honor, Richen joins the ranks of other BPM Trailblazer Award winners Orlando Bagwell, Joe Brewster, Michèle Stephenson and Marco Williams BPM also will present the Nonso Christian Ugbode Fellowship to a yet-to-be announced recipient. The fellowship is named after BPM’s late director of digital initiatives. The PitchBLACK Immersive Forum and PitchBLACK Awards will stream live on BPM’s social media channels. The PitchBLACK Film Forum is invitation-only.

Additional sponsorship opportunities are available by contacting Alisa Norris, BPM’s fund development and corporate partnerships manager, at alisa@blackpublicmedia.org

Entertainment industry executives and funders wishing to attend the PitchBLACK Forum in person may request access at https://forms.gle/ XpcR5MUWEzL667zS8

PitchBLACK 2023 is sponsored by Netflix and Gimlet Media, with additional support from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting

For more information on BPM, visit blackpublicmedia.org. Follow the organization and watch the events at

@blackpublicmedia on Instagram and Facebook and @BLKPublicMedia on Twitter

ABOUT 

Yoruba Richen is an award-winning documentary filmmaker and educator whose work has been featured on multiple outlets including PBS, Netflix, MSNBC, HULU, HBO, Frontline, Field of Vision and New York Times Op Doc. Her recent films include: The Rebellious Life of Mrs Rosa Parks, which was nominated for a Critics Choice award; American Reckoning (2022), part of Frontline’s award-winning multi-platform series Un(re) solved; Emmy nominated How it Feels to Be Free (2021); Peabody and Emmy nominated The Sit In: Harry Belafonte Hosts the Tonight Show (2020); and The Killing of Breonna Taylor (2020). Her 2019 film, The Green Book: Guide to Freedom, premiered on the Smithsonian Channel; and her films The New Black (2013) and Promised Land (2010) won several awards before being broadcast on PBS’ Independent Lens and POV, respectively. Yoruba has won a Clio, the Creative Promise Award at Tribeca All Access and was a Sundance Producers Fellow. In her role as the founding director of the documentary program at City University of New York’s Newmark Graduate School of Journalism, she is preparing future generations of documentary storytellers. She also is

a featured TED Speaker, a Fulbright fellow, a Guggenheim fellow and a 2016 recipient of the Chicken & Egg Breakthrough Filmmaker Award

In 2014, Yoruba was named to the Root 100s list of African Americans 45 years old and younger; and in 2020, she was recognized among BPM’s 40 Game Changers as part of the organization’s 40th anniversary celebration of influential and prolific Black media storytellers.

Comedian Alex “Sir Alex” Robinson hails from Baltimore. He has been featured on Kevin Hart’s and Comedy Central’s “Hart of the City” series. Alex also produces and hosts one of the longest operating biweekly attractions in Baltimore. Every other Sunday night, you can catch live entertainment with “Sunday’s @ The Port” in the Baltimore area. Follow Sir Alex to continue to keep up with his shows and events at @Sir_AlexR on all social media platforms!

Black Public Media (BPM) supports the development of visionary content creators and distributes stories about the global Black experience to inspire a more equitable and inclusive future. For more than 40 years, BPM has addressed the needs of unserved and underserved audiences. BPM continues to address historical, contemporary, and systemic challenges that traditionally impede the development and distribution of Black stories.

BPM TRAILBLAZER AWARD HONOREE YORUBA RICHEN

END NOTES

AFROPOP TAKES DEEP DIVE INTO BLACK ART

The popular documentary series AfroPoP: The Ultimate Cultural Exchange is celebrating its landmark 15th season with a deep dive into Black art, the first time the series is presenting an entire season centered around a single theme. The award-winning public media series about Black culture and life, co-produced by Black Public Media (BPM) and WORLD Channel, will immerse viewers in the worlds of internationally recognized artists including trailblazing choreographer/dancer/ director Bill T. Jones, international recording star and activist Angélique Kidjo, trailblazing visual artist Bill Traylor, traditional Mozambican dancer and storyteller Atanásio Nyusi, and iconic jazz musician Thelonious Monk The season premiere, Can You Bring It: Bill T. Jones and D-Man in the Waters, will stream exclusively on Black Public Media’s YouTube channel starting at midnight ET on Monday, April 3, and broadcast at 8:00 p.m. ET on WORLD Channel later that day. New episodes of the series, which is distributed and co-presented by American Public Television (APT), will premiere weekly on WORLD Channel through May 1.

“When we created AfroPoP: The Ultimate Cultural Exchange it was our hope that we would be able to bring stories of modern Black life to public media audiences and help augment viewers’ ideas of what Black life is and can be,” said Leslie Fields-Cruz, BPM Executive Director and AfroPoP Executive Producer

“Witnessing the series reach its 15th season, a landmark that is the result of the work and drive of so many people over the years, is an awe-inspiring and humbling moment that fills me with great gratitude.”

The series, which shines the spotlight

on all corners of the African diaspora, premiered in 2008. With this season, it will have presented 87 feature and short films from noted creatives such as George Amponsah, Joel Zito Araújo, Violeta Ayala, Samuel “Blitz the Ambassador” Bazawule, Yaba

the power of Black art, this season of AfroPoP transports viewers to Benin, France, Mozambique, and the United States with the following films:

 Can You Bring It: Bill T. Jones and D-Man in the Waters, Rosalynde LeBlanc and Tom Hurwitz’s study of

on her journey from her roots in Benin to her musical reign as African music legend (April 10).

 Bill Traylor: Chasing Ghosts, Jeffrey Wolf’s portrait of the life of a unique American artist who, in his late 80s, started to draw and paint, both his memories from plantation days and scenes of a radically changing urban culture (April 17).

 The Sound of Masks, Sara CF de Gouveia’s illustration of a prize-winning dancer of Mapiko — a traditional masked dance done exclusively by male members of the Makonde community of northern Mozambique as a tool to challenge colonization during the Mozambican War of Independence — and his work to keep the rituals alive. (April 24).

 Rewind & Play, Alain Gomis’s exposé of the glaring disrespect shown to legendary jazz musician Thelonious Monk during a 1969 appearance on French state television while the iconic pianist was in Paris for the end of his European tour (May 1).

Blay, Barron Claiborne, Rebecca Richman Cohen, Bobbito Garcia, Thomas Allen Harris, Eric Kabera, Terence Nance, Raoul Peck, Sam Pollard, Michèle Stephenson and Marco Williams.

"WORLD Channel is enormously proud to have been the home of AfroPoP since 2010, and to have joined forces with BPM to executive produce the series in recent years,” said Chris Hastings, Executive Producer for WORLD Channel at GBH in Boston. “As this one-of-a kind series celebrates its 15th anniversary with a spotlight on the contributions of Black artists to global culture, we are excited for what the future holds for new and untold stories.”

Spanning the globe to spotlight

eminent choreographer Bill T. Jones’ masterpiece ballet “D-Man in the Waters.” The groundbreaking work of art was first performed by the Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Company in 1989 in response to the devastating impact the AIDS crisis had on its members and friends. Decades later, former company member turned dance professor LeBlanc — and Jones — work to bring the dance to life with contemporary students born well after the height of the global health crisis (April 3). The 90-minute film is an AfroPoP special presentation.

 Queen Kidjo, Claire Duguet’s enlightening exploration of the career and global impact of international superstar and activist Angélique Kidjo The film follows Kidjo as she reflects

Denise A. Greene is AfroPoP’s Producer/Director, Carol Bash is series associate producer and Ashton Pina is the series writer.

AfroPoP: The Ultimate Cultural Exchange can also be viewed on WORLD Channel’s YouTube channel and on all station-branded PBS platforms, including PBS.org and the PBS Video app. The program is available on iOS, Android, Roku streaming devices, Apple TV, Android TV, Amazon Fire TV, Samsung Smart TV, Chromecast and VIZIO. APT will release the season to public television stations across the country on Monday, May 1. For viewing information, check local listings.

REVENGE TRAVEL : NYC HOT THIS SPRING

According to new survey data from Vacasa, a vacation rental company, nearly two-thirds of Americans (65%) are planning to travel this spring season;an increase from the 56% who traveled in 2022. Travelers are eager to book spring getaways they’ve missed out on in years past, but that doesn’t mean they have to break the bank. With so many free and affordable touristic activities, it’s no wonder New York City is one of the top destinations for spring travel. Here are NYC’s most affordable hotels for this season.

 CROWNE PLAZA HY36: A 251-room hotel adjacent to the up-and-coming Hudson Yards neighborhood with some of the largest guestrooms in Manhattan.

 RADIO HOTEL: Washington Heights’ first-ever full-service boutique hotel

with 221 guest rooms that artfully reflect the neighborhood’s vibrant culture.

 THE BENJAMIN ROYAL SONESTA NEW YORK: With its classic decor and intimate boutique setting, The Benjamin Royal Sonesta New York exudes old-world Manhattan with oversized rooms and suites, (many with kitchenettes, living rooms and private terraces) providing a sense of sophisticated glamour in New York City.

 THE SHELBURNE SONESTA NEW YORK: A boutique hotel in the heart of Murray Hill, The Shelburne Sonesta New York offers warm interior designs with touches tied to New York City.

 THE FIFTY SONESTA SELECT NEW YORK: The Fifty Sonesta Select New York is a refreshingly energetic Midtown Manhattan Boutique hotel.

Bill T. Jones in a scene from Can You Bring It: Bill T. Jones and D-Man in the Waters

8 kids a day are accidentally killed or injured by FAMILY FIRE.

FAMILY FIRE is a shooting involving an improperly stored gun, often found in the home.

ENDFAMILYFIRE.org