A Black History Moment: Synthia St. James, Fine Artist, Illustrator, Designer, Author

by Rev. Irene Monroe Synthia Saint James (1949 – ) Fine Artist, Illustrator, Designer, Author You may not know her name, but you have seen her paintings everywhere from gift bags in Macy’s Department Store to a 2’8″x150 foot tile mural for Ontario International Airport. Synthia Saint James is an internationally known artist whose illustrations …

Artist Captures Artists in Local Show, B. jAXON wants to keep the legacy of African American blues and jazz alive.

By Jim Caroompas The faces say it all – the sorrows, passions, joys, pain, are all there in the folds of the face, and most of all in the eyes. The faces are portraits of singers, musicians, fighters, actors and comedians. Most all of them are African American, and all are legends. And they can …

Pianist Kimberly Cann, 29, makes a musical mark on Asheville

How does a young classical pianist new to Asheville find a place in this area’s flourishing, some would say crowded, music scene? For 29-year-old Kimberly Cann, who moved here two years ago, the answer might be, “Ask not what your community can do for you, ask what you can do for your community.” With an …

Ala. Amistad Murals to go on nationwide tour

Ala. Murals depicting the famed slave revolt aboard the trading ship Amistad, which have hung on the campus of Talladega College for more than 70 years, are soon going on a nationwide museum tour. Now valued around $40 million, the paintings by artist Hale Aspacio Woodruff were commissioned in 1938 and the first three panels …

Keeping a Bucks sculptor’s legacy alive

A new scholarship this fall at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts honors the late Selma Burke, a Bucks County sculptor whose work is familiar if you’ve ever studied your change.That picture of Franklin Delano Roosevelt on the dime? It bears an uncanny resemblance to a bas-relief that Burke formed of FDR. Until her …

Thornton Township Black History Program Honors Dr. Margaret Burroughs

Tuesday, March 8, 2011 9:14 AM CST Thornton Township paid tribute to the late Dr. Margaret Burroughs, artist, poet, teacher and co-founder of the DuSable Museum of African American History during their annual Black History Month celebration held on Feb. 25. Those whose lives she touched shared their stories. The celebration also included performances by …

Malcolm X’s Daughter Extradited to New York

By Kirsten West Savali Malikah Shabazz, youngest daughter of iconic human rights activist, El Hajj Malik el-Shabazz (Malcolm X), has been extradited from North Carolina to New York City to face criminal charges stemming from the 2009 identity theft of a family friend. Shabazz, who holds a Ph.D in Educational Administration and Human Development, will …

Benjamin Alvin ‘Al’ Drew Jr. Performs 2 Spacewalks as Part of Final Discovery Mission

By Jeff Mays As the Space Shuttle Discovery makes its final descent from the International Space Station Wednesday morning and then heads to the Smithsonian Institute to be preserved for history, Benjamin Alvin “Al” Drew Jr. will be able to say that he was part of a historic moment. The retired Air Force colonel is …

Usher joins Beyonce, Nelly Furtado in donating Qaddafi money

By Ruth Manuel-Logan R&B crooner Usher (pictured above) is the most recent A-lister celeb who is hanging his head low after learning that he accepted “blood monies” from Libyan terrorist dictator Muammar Abu Minyar el-Qaddafi (pictured below middle). Share Usher released a statement on Friday, saying that although he was paid for only appearing at …

Former Black Pizza Chain CEO Herman Cain Wants to Be President?

By Paul Shepard Herman Cain (pictured), former part-owner of the Godfather’s Pizza chain, wants to be president; yet, the 65-year-old Atlanta man is a stranger to most Americans. That will likely prove to be a blessing and a curse as the field of Republican challengers to President Barack Obama sorts itself out over the next …

President Clinton Honors Little Rock Nine

By: Manning Marable President Clinton joined members of Congress in presenting Congressional Gold Medals to the members of the “Little Rock Nine” (left) in recognition of the selfless heroism they exhibited and the pain they suffered in the cause of civil rights when they integrated Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas in 1957. “We …

The Murder Of Emmett Louis Till The Spark that Started the Civil Rights Movement

By: Keith A. Beauch Unless you know the story of Emmett Louis Till, you do not know the racial dynamics that led to the Civil Rights Movement. The murder of Emmett Till was the first media event of the Civil Rights Movement. It demonstrated the horrors of racism in an event circulated throughout America and …

African-American Shakespeare Company Closes Season with TWELFTH NIGHT

Closing African-American Shakespeare Company’s 16th season is a spellbinding take on Shakespeare’s TWELFTH NIGHT. Acclaimed actor and African-American Shakespeare Company Artistic Director L. Peter Callender directs TWELFTH NIGHT, featuring an original jazz score by renowned Bay Area jazz musician and composer Marcus Shelby. TWELFTH NIGHT plays April 1 through May 1 (press opening: April 1) …