January 23 – February 5, 2014

 

champion services travel - group travel




Felon to Family Man

earl willmas Roxbury RedemptionDespite the rumors, ex-offenders do become productive citizens who make positive impacts on the lives of their families, communities, and especially, themselves.  “Roxbury Redemption” (Xlibris, $19.99), a candid memoir by Dr. Earle Williams, a Christian clinical psychologist, furnishes such an example and an extensive course of action for those who have experienced traumatic events.

Growing up in Roxbury, the segregated Black section of Boston, with his parents and two siblings, several beatings from both parents were not enough to deter William’s defiance. His father tried to force him to take piano lessons. “I resisted and was very oppositional,” Williams wrote.  His father then steered him into plumbing.  Williams says he hated every moment of it.

Most importantly, Williams’ life demonstrates that ex-offenders can remain ex-offenders.
In 1962, when Williams was 17, he joined the Air Force though his mother sternly objected. “You’re too stupid to finish high school. You should drop out and get a job,” said his father, as he signed the papers to allow his son to join the armed services.

Williams “hated authority” and that led to his drinking, drug use, and eventual discharge from the Air Force in 1966 during the time the country was engulfed in racial turmoil. H. Rap Brown, Malcolm X, and Hughie P. Newton were debating America’s policies towards Blacks.  Angela Davis was on the run from the law and Williams’ mother was hit and killed by a car driven by a White man.  Williams was devastated.  “The anger came roaring into my heart,” he recalls.

He turned to crime.  “For me, crime was revenge for my mother’s death,” he says. Only after years of thefts, arrests, and numerous probations, did his luck run out in 1969 and the courts sentenced him to three years in prison.  His angry, militant attitude went to jail, too, and he found himself engaged in many confrontations.

Once he was released from prison, he says, “being out of prison felt like a resurrection.”  At 27, he was ready for work and school.  He became a truck driver, took odd jobs, and even tried plumbing.  He soon enrolled into college.

With degrees, child, and wife, Williams moved to Virginia Beach, Virginia and began to incorporate Christian teachings into his work as a psychologist.  “It occurred to me that most of all the life lessons of the Bible were contained in the book of Proverbs,” explains Williams.

While Williams’ book starts off slow, my favorite parts are from the second half where Williams urges readers to “get out and stay out of the new plantation called prison.”  He also discusses the numerous reasons why there are more than two million human beings incarcerated in American prisons.

Most importantly, Williams’ life demonstrates that ex-offenders can remain ex-offenders.  For Williams, however, he sees the trials and tribulations in his life as God’s path for him, “to become a Christian clinical forensic psychologist,” he says. 

 



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Free Play Tickets – Freda Payne as Ella Fitzgerald

Port Of Harlem: 10 Years on the Web
January 31, 2014


freda payne as ella fitzgeraldIn celebration of Port Of Harlem magazine’s 10th year of producing Port Of Harlem Snippets, Metro Stage and Port Of Harlem is offering you and your guest a chance to see "Ella Fitzgerald:  First Lady of Song" for free!   Maurice Hines conceived and is directing the play staring Freda Payne (“Band of Gold,” 1970; “Bring the Boys Home,” 1971).  Fitzgerald is remembered most for “scatting” and mastering the then hip art form of “bepop.”

Ella Fitzgerald:  First Lady of Song
Staring Freda Payne
Directed by Maurice Hines
Metro Stage
1201 North Royal Street
Alexandria, VA
Thu & Fri 8p, Sat 3p & 8p, Sun 3p & 7p
Thu, Jan 23 – Sun, Mar 16, $55-$60

The winner must be a Snippets subscriber and use the e-mail address listed in his/her subscription when entering the drawing. Snippets subscriptions are free.

To enter this drawing, click here. (You will be sending an email to contest@portofharlem.net and you will receive an automatic response upon sucessful submission) We will select one winner from all entries  received by Tuesday, January 28, 2014 using a random number selector.




Free Cookbook
Taste of Tanzania


Port Of Harlem: 10 Years on the Web
January 31, 2014
 

taste of tanzaniaIn celebration of Port Of Harlem magazine’s 10th year of producing Port Of Harlem Snippets, you have the opportunity to be one of the first to receive the just released cookbook "Taste of Tanzania: Modern Swahili Recipes for the West"  (Miroki Publishing, $34.95).  As an inclusive, diverse, pan-African magazine reader, you will enjoy this cookbook with bits of pan-African Swahili culture and vibrant photography, even if you do not love to cook.

Tanzanian-born Miriam Kinunda wrote the book with ingredients that you can find in your local grocery or specialty store. (Kinunda offers alternatives for those ingredients that may be more commonly available in Africa.)

Winners must be Snippets subscribers and use the e-mail addresses listed in their subscriptions when entering the drawings. Snippets subscriptions are free.

To enter this drawing, click here.  (You will be sending an email to contest2@portofharlem.net and you will receive an automatic response upon successful submission) We will select two winners from all entries received by Tuesday, February 11, 2014 using a random number selector.

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War on Poverty,
Disaster or Progress?

Project 21 spokesman Derryck Green says the War on Poverty, “effectively subsidized the dissolution of the Black family by rendering the Black man's role as a husband and a father irrelevant, invisible and — more specifically — disposable.” He made those remarks January 8, 50 years after President Johnson declared the War on Poverty. 

Federal programs directly resulting from the War on Poverty include Medicare, Medicaid, Head Start, food stamps and, enhanced Social Security benefits. Many conservatives groups, including Project 21, see the Affordable Care Act (ObamaCare) as a new anti-poverty program.

However, Marc Morial, CEO of the National Urban League counters, the “significant decrease in the poverty rate for African Americans - due largely to gains in education, affirmative action, and War on Poverty programs - is undoubtedly progress.” 

Note: Enroll America, put together this calculator to help folks estimate how much you'll save on getting covered under the Affordable Care Act.




Dr. Angelou Keynotes Olivia Travel Equality and
Leadership Summit

Dr. Maya Angelou will be the keynote speaker at the Olivia Travel Equality and Leadership Summit.
Dr. Angelou, who most recently created a poem on the life of Nelson Mandela on behalf of the American people and circulated by the U.S. State Department, will deliver the address on Holland America's ms Westerdam. 

The gathering will take place on a seven-day (Feb. 1-8, 2013) chartered eastern Caribbean cruise and will highlight other nationally recognized individuals including civil rights pioneer Edie Windsor and Florida Congresswoman and Chair of the Democratic National Committee Debbie Wasserman Schultz.  Olivia Travel is a travel agency that caters mostly to the lesbian community.

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Activities

 obama 44
Washington, DC
Tribes
Studio Theater
1501 14th Street NW
through Sun, Feb 23, $

Teen Big Game Night
Harmony Hall Regional Center
10701 Livingston Road
Fort Washington
Fri, Jan 24, 7p, free

An Evening of Romance
The Juffureh Project
Historic Grit Mill
8402 Riggs Rd
Adelphi, MD
Entertainment By:
Tina and Tony Thompson & Friends
Music, Poetry & More
Sat, Feb 8, $20

Baltimore
2nd Annual Charm City
Langston Hughes
Literary Forum & Book Fair
New Shiloh Baptist Church
Family Life Center
2100 N. Monroe Street
Sat, Feb 1,1p-5p, free

Boston
Tell It with Pride
The 54th Massachusetts Regiment
and Augustus Saint-Gaudens' Shaw Memorial
Massachusetts Historical Society
Sun, Feb 23 – Mon, May 26, free

Miami
Black Immigration Network
National Convening
Fri, Feb 7 – Sun, Feb 9, $

New York (Greater)
Harriet Tubman:
When I Crossed That Line to Freedom

The Harlem Chamber Players
Irondale Center 
85 South Oxford Street 
Brooklyn, NY
Fri, Feb 21 – Sat, Mar 1, $

TV, Radio, Internet
2014 State of the Union
President Obama
January 28, 2014
9 p.m. ET, free

TV
First Ladies Influence and Image
Michelle Obama
Mon, Feb 10, 9p ET, free



Soweto Gospel Choir 30-City North American Tour

 soweto choir in the US
The SOWETO Gospel Choir will perform in over 30 cities, in concerts that reflect the color and vibrancy of their rainbow nation while honoring the life and legacy of Nelson Mandela. Also, on January 28, the two-time Grammy Award-winning Choir releases their fifth album, Divine Decade (Decca), a celebration of the ensemble’s past ten years of artistic collaborations.

Divine Decade 2014 Tour Dates

2/4

Gainesville FL

The Phillips Center, University of Florida

2/5

Miami FL

Knight Concert Hall, Adrienne Arsht Center

2/7

Jacksonville Beach FL

St. Pauls by-the-Sea Episcopal Church

2/8

Atlanta GA

Rialto Center for the Arts, Georgia State University

2/9

Greenville SC

Peace Center for the Performing Arts

2/11

Morgantown WV

Creative Arts Center

2/12

Washington DC

Lisner Auditorium, George Washington University

2/14

Great Barrington MA

Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center

2/15

Bronx NY

Lehman Center for the Performing Arts

2/16

Philadelphia PA

Annenberg Center, University of Pennsylvania

2/19

Chicago IL

Symphony Center

2/21

Toronto ON

The Sony Center

2/22

Rochester NY

Callahan Theatre, Nazareth College

2/23

Binghamton NY

Anderson Center for the Performing Arts, SUNY Binghamton

2/26

Akron OH

E.J. Thomas Hall, University of Akron

2/27

Pittsburgh PA

Byham Theater

2/28

North Tonawanda NY

Riviera Theatre

3/6

Fayetteville AR

Baum Walker Hall, Walton Arts Center

3/8

Rochester MN

Mayo Civic Center Presentation Hall

3/9

Grand Rapids MN

Myles Reif Performing Arts Center

3/12

Dubuque IA

Heritage Performing Arts Center, University of Dubuque

3/14

St. Joseph MN

Escher Auditorium at College of St. Benedict

3/16

Louisville KY

The Brown Theatre, Kentucky Center for the Performing Arts

3/23

Austin TX

Bass Hall, University of Texas

3/25

Lincoln NE

Lied Center for the Performing Arts

3/27

Omaha NE

Kiewit Concert Hall, Holland Performing Arts Center

3/28

North Newton

KS Memorial Hall, Bethel College

3/29

Lawrence KS

Lied Center of Kansas

3/30

Manhattan KS

McCain Auditorium, Kansas State University

4/1

Oklahoma City OK

Owen Theater, Oklahoma City Community College

4/4

Albuquerque NM

Popejoy Hall, University of New Mexico

4/8

Arcata CA

John Van Duzer Theatre, Humboldt State University

4/12

Seattle WA

Meany Hall, University of Washington

4/13

Vancouver BC

Queen Elizabeth Theatre

4/16

La Jolla CA

Price Center, University of California, San Diego

4/18

Tucson AZ

Centennial Hall, University of Arizona

4/19

Scottsdale AZ

Virginia G. Piper Theater

 
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Can You Pass the Healthy Food Access Quiz?


 health food quiz

Everyone deserves access to the kinds of foods that ensure a balanced diet and healthy lifestyle. But did you know that millions of Americans struggle to find healthy, affordable food in their neighborhood? Research shows you are where you eat and that the neighborhood you live in has a profound impact on your food choices.

Test your knowledge about healthy food access with the quiz — you might be surprised to learn just how difficult it is to buy healthy food in many communities.

 
 
 
de Blasios on subway 
 
Most Popular Page and Searched Word
on the Website for January, to Date 
 
 
 
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