WASHINGTON (NNPA)—It is estimated by the Chicago-based research firm, Target Market News, that African-American consumers will have spent $2.8 billion on new General Motors cars in this year alone. According to industry statistics, GM’s models, which include Chevys, Cadillacs, Saturns, Buicks, Pontiacs and GMC trucks, represented just above 18 percent of all the new cars purchased by African-Americans in just the first seven months of this year.
For the week of Nov. 5-11 November 5 1867—The first Reconstruction Constitutional Convention took place in Montgomery, Ala. In attendance were 90 Whites and 18 Blacks. Reconstruction would bring forth a period of tremendous political and educational advancement for ex-slaves after the Civil War. But Reconstruction was significantly undermined by the Hayes-Tilden of 1877 and the beginning of the anti-Black Jim Crow period. DOROTHY DANDRIDGE, NAT TURNER 1902—Etta Moten (Barnett) is born in San Antonio, Texas. She would become one of the first major African-American Broadway stars. She starred in “Porgy and Bess” and had a successful Broadway career.
by Laurie Kellman WASHINGTON (AP)—For Democrats determined to get a health care bill, Sen. Roland Burris is like the house guest who couldn’t be refused, won’t soon be leaving and poses a plausible threat of ruining holiday dinner. Suddenly, he can no longer be ignored. KEY PLAYER—Sen. Roland Burris, D-Ill., is interviewed by the Associated Press in his Capitol Hill office in Washington, Oct. 15.
MIAMI (AP)—A University of Connecticut football player who was fatally stabbed outside a campus dance was looking forward to being a father and wanted to be a part of his daughter’s life, the grandfather of the unborn child said Oct. 25. Family and friends of Jasper Howard filed through a small South Florida mortuary Sunday to pay their respects to the 20-year-old cornerback from Miami. Among them was David Nadal, the father of 18-year-old Daneisha Freeman, who is pregnant with Howard’s child. JASPER HOWARD
(NNPA)—Text messages between slain NFL star Steve McNair and his girlfriend show that he had affection for the woman and was not planning to end their affair, while she was distressed about money issues in the 24 hours leading up to their July 4 murder-suicide. Nashville, Tenn., police on Oct. 20 released approximately 50 text messages between former Baltimore Ravens and Tennessee Titans quarterback McNair and Sahel Kazemi as part of the McNair case file. The file, which includes notes from police interviews and crime scene observations, was made public shortly after results of the police investigation were questioned in a CBS News report. TRAGIC MURDER--SUICIDE —These photos show Steve McNair, left, in a 2003 file photo and Sahel Kazemi in this undated booking file photo from the Davidson County Sheriff.
by Ben Feller WASHINGTON (AP)—The same president who aggressively harnesses the power of the press to promote his agenda has taken to lacing his comments with criticisms of the media, with no bigger target than the gabby culture of cable television. President Barack Obama’s critique is biting: The media prefer conflict over cooperation, encourage bad behavior and weaken the ability of leaders to help the nation. MAXIMUM EXPOSURE—In this Oct. 2 photo, President Barack Obama pauses while speaking to members of the media in the Rose Garden of the White House.
October 29 1929—The Stock Market collapses, ushering in the Great Depression, bringing about Black unemployment rates ranging from 25 to 40 percent. The effects of the Great Depression would last until the start of World War II which created massive war industry jobs and a second mass migration of Blacks from the South to the industrial North. 1994—Famed dancer Pearl Primus dies. She blended African and Caribbean dance and music with Black American traditions of blues, jazz and the jitterbug to form a new vibrant dance form. She formed a dance troupe and she personally appeared in such early Broadway hits as “Showboat” and “Emperor Jones.” Primus was known for her amazingly high leaps. In 1991, the first President Bush awarded her the National Medal of Arts. PEARL PRIMUS
WASHINGTON (NNPA)—When it comes to people of color who run hotels in major urban centers, Thomas Penny is like a raisin in a bowl of milk, if you let him describe it. Except, this raisin has no wrinkles. Thomas Penny, general manager, Courtyard by Marriott Washington Convention Center At 34, Penny has the appearance of a fresh-faced executive who is still waiting on his MBA degree to be mailed to him by his school but the title on his business card says otherwise—“Thomas Penny, General Manager, Courtyard by Marriott Washington Convention Center.”
Week of October 22-28October 221906—Three thousand Blacks demonstrated and rioted in Philadelphia to protest a theatrical production of Thomas Dixon’s racist play—“The Clansman.” The play essentially praised the Ku Klux Klan while demeaning Blacks.1936—Black Panther Party co-founder Bobby Seale is born in Dallas, Texas.1953—Clarence S. Green becomes the first African-American certified as a neurological surgeon.
WASHINGTON (NNPA) —If it’s any consolation to President Obama, the controversy swirling around his recent naming as the 2009 recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize puts him in good company. The other African-American Prize winners, United Nations diplomat Dr. Ralph Bunche and civil rights icon Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., also had to weather their share of censure. FROM LEFT: RALPH BUNCHE, BARACK OBAMA and MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. “Those nominations were not without controversy,” acknowledged political analyst Ronald Walters.
