PRETORIA, South Africa – Most of the leaders and dignitaries who converged on this capital city last Monday from around the world to attend the official memorial service for former president Nelson Mandela have departed, but grateful South Africans continue to fill the streets by the thousands to honor their beloved icon. Thousands continued to […]
Author Archives: George E. Curry
NNPA Editor-in-Chief
Posted inAfro Briefs
Obama Praises Mandela as ‘Great Liberator’
SOWETO, South Africa (NNPA) – President Barack Obama described Nelson Mandela, South Africa’s first Black elected president, as “the last great liberator of the 20th century” and thanked the grieving nation for sharing their beloved former leader with the rest of the world. Speaking Tuesday at a rain-soaked memorial service here attended by nearly 100 […]
Posted inCommentary
What Would Republicans Do on Healthcare?
Many ardent conservatives are critical of the Affordable Care Act or what they derisively call “Obamacare.” But what are they proposing that proves that they care about uninsured Americans? The Tampa Bay Times’ “Pundit Fact” team discovered some interesting findings when they approached that question indirectly. Specifically, the newspaper looked at the main Republican alternatives […]
Posted inCommentary
GOP Big Government Fear is a Myth
The Republican push to reduce the federal deficit solely through spending cuts is based on mythology rather than fact. That was clearly demonstrated by a series of reports issued recently by the non-partisan Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP). In a report issued Oct. 28, CBPP stated, “As a new budget conference committee seeks agreement on […]
Posted inNational News
Obama Signs Bill to Reopen Government and Avoid Default
WASHINGTON (NNPA) – President Barack Obama signed a bill into law early Thursday morning that ended the 16-day government shutdown and averted an impending financial crisis by raising the debt ceiling. After Obama and Democrats defeated repeated efforts over the past two weeks by House Republicans to repeal the Affordable Care Act, the president’s signature […]
Posted inCommentary
Dr. Ben Carson: ‘Gifted Hands,’ Foot in Mouth
Dr. Ben Carson became the darling of conservatives earlier this year by stridently attacking the Affordable Care Act with President Obama sitting just a few feet away. Carson, who was serving as the keynote speaker at the National Prayer Breakfast at the White House, said: “Here’s my solution: When a person is born, give him […]
Posted inAfro Briefs
Senate Leaders Reach Deal to End Government Shutdown and Avoid Default
WASHINGTON (NNPA) – Despite their well-known animus for each other, Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.) and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) reached a last-minute deal Oct. 16 that will end the federal government shutdown and raise the debt limit through Feb. 7. The House and Senate are expected to vote on the compromise […]
Posted inNational News
Jesse Jackson: U.S. Must Make Next Move to Return Vet from Colombia
HAVANA, Cuba (NNPA) – Jesse Jackson says now that Colombia President Juan Manuel Santos has rejected an unconditional offer from rebels to turn over a captured former military veteran to the civil rights leader, it is now up to the United States government to pressure Santos to allow the transfer. In an exclusive interview here […]
Posted inAfro Briefs
Government Shutdown Harder on Black Workers
WASHINGTON (NNPA) – Although the shutdown of the federal government that began Tuesday is affecting all Americans, a disproportionate portion of the 800,000 furloughed federal workers are African Americans, according to the U.S. Office of Personnel Management. Because government jobs have been more available to Blacks than private sector employment over the years, especially under […]
Posted inCommentary
Selling Out Black College Football to Make a Buck
I cringed as the scores came in over the weekend. Ohio State 76, Florida A&M 0. Florida State 54, Bethune-Cookman 6. Miami 77, Savannah State 7. Our HBCUs have traded their proud, rich football heritage for money. And I don’t think it’s worth it. There’s only one reason our HBCUs schedule games against schools whose […]
Posted inAfro Briefs
Black Media Slighted as Spending Power Exceeds $1Trillion
Although annual Black spending is projected to rise from its current $1 trillion to $1.3 trillion by 2017, advertisers allot only 3 percent of their $2.2 billion yearly budget to media aimed at Black audiences, a new Nielsen report has found. The study, “Resilient, Receptive and Relevant: The African-American Consumer 2013 Report,” was released at […]
Posted inCommentary
1963 was the Pivotal Year for Civil Rights
In the modern civil rights era, no year stands out in my memory more than 1963. I was a sophomore at Druid High School in Tuscaloosa, Ala. and living in McKenzie Court, the all-Black housing project on the west side of town. After a life of second-class citizenship, I finally saw the walls of segregation […]