2010 Heroes and new date for gala concert and awards presentation.

June 9, 2010 — The Magic Johnson Foundation/Black AIDS Institute HIV/AIDS partnership is pleased to announce the 2010 inductees into the Heroes in the Struggle AIDS exhibition. Since 2001, Heroes in the Struggle has celebrated the achievements of individuals and organizations that have made heroic contributions in the fight against HIV/AIDS in Black communities. This year’s heroes include: President Bill Clinton, founder of the William J. Clinton Foundation and the 42nd President of the United States (accepting via video), award-winning actor Blair Underwood, Academy Award winning producer and director Lee Daniels, award winning CNN correspondent and producer Soledad O’Brien, AIDS activist Marvelyn Brown, and HIV/AIDS trailblazer Frank Oldham.

Heroes In The Struggle is a photographic tribute to Black people who have made heroic contributions in the fight against HIV/AIDS. Since it’s debut on World AIDS Day, Dec. 1, 2001, The Heroes In The Struggle exhibit has traveled around the world, raising awareness about HIV/AIDS, challenging individuals and institutions to get involved in their communities, and generating critical conversations about HIV testing, prevention, research, and treatment.

Each year, new Heroes are added into the exhibit. Portraits of this year’s heroes will be unveiled at a Gala 10th anniversary concert and awards presentation hosted by Cookie and Earvin ‘Magic’ Johnson on Wednesday, December 1, 2010. The theme of this year’s Gala is “We are Greater than AIDS.” Black people have been greater than any challenge we have confronted in the past. We were greater than the Middle Passage. We were greater than slavery. We were greater than Reconstruction. We were greater than Jim Crow. And, we are greater than AIDS as well. Proceeds from the gala will benefit the new Magic Johnson Foundation/Black AIDS Institute HIV/AIDS partnership.

The Magic Johnson Foundation/Black AIDS Institute HIV/AIDS partnership is a new long-term collaboration between the Magic Johnson Foundation and the Black AIDS Institute to fight HIV/AIDS in Black communities. The new partnership will focus on advocacy efforts related to the National AIDS Strategy, expansion of HIV awareness under the “Greater Than AIDS” campaign, expansion of HIV testing thru the Test 1 Million campaign, collaborative fundraising opportunities, and joint programming activities in conjunction with the 30th anniversary of HIV/AIDS in 2011.

“The Institute is proud to partner with MJF. We are at a critical crossroad in the history of the AIDS epidemic in this country. If we are to be serious about ending the AIDS epidemic in our communities, we have to come together, leverage our skills and talents, and maximize our resources. That is what this new partnership between MJF and the Institute is all about. I can’t think of a better way to launch our joint venture than celebrating 10 years of Black Heroes in the Struggle,” said Phill Wilson, President and CEO of the Black AIDS Institute.

On behalf of the Magic Johnson Foundation, we are excited to work more closely with the Black AIDS Institute – an organization that continues to be on the cutting edge in the fight against AIDS,” said Towalame Austin, President of the Magic Johnson Foundation. “HIV/AIDS is detectible, preventable, and treatable. Together, we bring 30 years of training and capacity building, advocacy and mobilization, awareness and education, and philanthropic experience in fighting HIV/AIDS in Black communities to this battle. The bottom-line is together, the Institute and MJF are stronger, better and more effective at ending AIDS in our community. That is what Heroes in the Struggle is about and that is what this partnership is all about.”

For more information regarding the event or corporate sponsorship opportunities email HITS@BlackAIDS.org or visit www.HeroesInTheStruggle.com.

About the Magic Johnson Foundation

The Magic Johnson Foundation was established in 1991 as a single-disease organization that worked to raise funds for community-based organizations dealing with HIV/AIDS education and prevention programs. The Foundation has since expanded the mission to focus on developing programs and supporting community-based organizations that address broader educational, health and social needs of ethnically diverse, urban communities. Learn more at: www.magicjohnson.org.

About the Black AIDS Institute

Founded in May of 1999, the Black AIDS Institute is the only national HIV/AIDS think tank focused exclusively on Black people. The Institute’s Mission is to stop the AIDS pandemic in Black communities by engaging and mobilizing traditional Black leaders, institutions, and individuals in efforts to confront HIV. The Institute interprets public and private sector HIV policies, conducts trainings, offers technical assistance, disseminates information and provides advocacy and mobilization from a uniquely and unapologetically Black point of view.

What?? Clinton’s a Sigma?? You think he’ll join the step team…LOL!

Bill Clinton marks history as the first President of the US to later become an inductee into a black fraternity.

Other honorary inductees included singer/musician Stevie Wonder, jazz musician Ramsey Lewis, activist Rev. Al Sharpton, weather/news anchor Al Roker.

(additional inductee names from wgntv.com, blackamericaweb.com)

If you know of any other inductees please use the CONTACT form at the upper right corner of this blog or leave a comment.  I would like to post a full list, if available.

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 10, 2009

(BLACK PR WIRE) July 10, 2009 – New Orleans, LA —- Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc., in session, at its 95th Anniversary Conclave in New Orleans, LA, voted to induct the Honorable William Jefferson Clinton, the 42nd President of the United States of America, as an honorary member of the organization. Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity’s International President Paul L. Griffin, Jr. commented “It is a high privilege and a matter of great significance that we the members of Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc. accept and welcome the Honorable William Jefferson Clinton into our wondrous band.”

President Clinton has been focusing on the activities of the William J. Clinton Foundation since he left the White House. He wanted the Clinton Foundation to address the areas where he could make the most difference as a private citizen. The Foundation has grown into a global non-governmental organization with more than 1,400 staff and volunteers in more than 40 countries and with offices in New York City, Little Rock, Ark., Boston, Mass., and other cities around the world. The Foundation, working in collaboration with governments and other partners, makes a significant impact in the lives of hundreds of millions of people around the world.

Phi Beta Sigma’s programs, including Bigger and Better Business, Social Action and Education are compatible with the mission of the Clinton Foundation. The Alliance for a Healthier Generation, a partnership between the Clinton Foundation and the American Heart Association to help combat childhood obesity, is in alignment with Phi Beta Sigma’s partnerships with the March of Dimes, and the American Cancer Society. The Clinton HIV/Aids initiative is right on target with Phi Beta Sigma’s partnership with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) which provides awareness and prevention strategies through its Conversation Among Brothers Series (CABS). Clinton’s Economic Opportunity Initiative embraces the same values that have been core to Phi Beta Sigma’s Bigger and Better Business program since its inception in 1925.

Congressman John Lewis (D-GA), a long-time member of Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc. responded “I am so pleased and delighted that President Bill Clinton has accepted membership in my fraternity. As a true servant-leader it is fitting for him to join the ranks of civil rights activist and labor leader A. Philip Randolph, Atlanta businessman Herman Russell, former U. S. Secretary of Education Rod Paige, former NAACP Leader James Weldon Johnson and renowned scientist George Washington Carver. My heart is warmed today.”

Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity is an international organization dedicated to the principles of Brotherhood, Scholarship and Service, founded in 1914 at Howard University in Washington, DC, comprised of college and professional men, predominantly of African American origin, open from its inception to men of all race, religion, class and national origin. The Fraternity holds as its motto, “Culture for Service and Service for Humanity.” With over 150,000 alumni and collegiate members, located in over 500 chapters throughout the United States, the Caribbean, Africa and Asia, the organization has its international headquarters in Washington, DC. It conducts national programs in the areas of Education, Social Action and Bigger & Better Business, a youth mentorship program of Sigma Beta Clubs for young men from 8 to 18, and a Sigma Wellness program in partnership with the American Cancer Society and the March of Dimes. Notable members include James Weldon Johnson, George Washington Carver, Congressman John Lewis (GA), Congressman Edolphus Towns (NY), Former Mayor Harold Washington (Chicago), and African Presidents: Kwame Nkrumah (Ghana), Benjamin Nnamdi Azikiwe (Nigeria) and William Tolbert (Liberia). For more information, visit www.pbs1914.org.

Poor Obama can’t catch a break anywhere…That’s what you get when you try to break into the largest old boys network…The White House. Take your licks like a good boy and hope that Black America won’t hang you on a cross like Jesus after all is said and done…Meanwhile, tell Hillary all that glitters ain’t gold. If she manages to win the democratic nomination, the repubs will be all over her like Monica was on her husband’s magic stick (ooh! no she didn’t!).

While Obama gets chastised about the use of the word “bitter”, I was wondering about the same word in a totally different situation (how’s that for a clumsy segue?)…

I randomly got copied on some email from the breeder of the doggie I bought. She was replying to someone who was questioning her decision to name one of her dogs “Sambo”. She said it was an affectionate term and not intended to be racist. All the while, the message is not to me or for me, I’m just copied on her reply.

What the hell? Why is she even copying me? I bought my dog almost 2 yrs ago. Granted she’s a little (ok a LOT) whacko, but what can I expect from someone that breeds really tiny dogs for a living in some tiny remote town in Ohio?

Did she want me to weigh in on her situation? I have enough unsolicited drama dropped in my lap on the regular and have no interest in joining hers.

I’m even conflicted now if I should ever recommend her business or if I should ever consider getting another dog from her.

What do you think about this whole scenario?

One of my sisters forwarded this to me and I thought I’d post it.  Spike doesn’t break it down to anything super deep, but I playfully like his rationale.  If I were him, that’s all the logic I’d need.

…btw, I officially turned “black” after seeing  Do The Right Thing during the summer of 1989 (I’m assuming ’89 as I recall the words to that Public Enemy song).  Memories… I saw it with some friends down at the movie theater that used to be in downtown Baltimore, nearish to Harborplace.  I know it’s long since been shut down…Seriously though, that movie was definitely a defining moment for me.

Check out the short interview below…