The Urban League of Louisiana (New Orleans, LA) is expanding its entrepreneurial development efforts in Ascension and St. James parishes through a new cohort of its Scale Up! Louisiana program, designed to help established small businesses grow and become more profitable.

Wednesday is the last day to sign up for the summer 2026 cohort, which will run from July 7 through Sept. 1 and provide participating business owners with intensive training, mentorship, and business planning support to help them scale their operations.

Scale Up! Louisiana is a place-based entrepreneurial education program that targets growth-stage businesses. The program combines classroom instruction, virtual learning and individualized counseling to help entrepreneurs refine their business models and develop strategies for sustainable growth.

The Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis (St. Louis, MO) received more than 40,000 pounds of food and household essentials Wednesday through a partnership with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

An America250-branded 18-wheeler arrived July 1 at the Urban League’s headquarters, 1408 N. Kingshighway Blvd. The donation, valued at about $65,000, will support families attending the Urban Expo Back-to-School Drive-Thru on Saturday, Aug. 8.

The shipment was part of the church’s America Gives Initiative, a nationwide service campaign connected to America250, the nonpartisan commission marking the 250th anniversary of the United States.

Michael P. McMillan, president and CEO of the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis, said the donation will help thousands of families access food and essential household items as they prepare for the new school year.

Houston knows how to pack a ballroom when the mission is bigger than the menu. On Friday, June 26, 2026, the Houston Area Urban League (Houston, TX) proved that once again as more than 306 community, civic, corporate, education, healthcare, philanthropic and neighborhood leaders filled the Hilton Americas-Houston for the sold-out 5th Annual Advancing Opportunity Luncheon.

Proudly supported by Houston Style Magazine as an event media sponsor, this year’s gathering carried a timely and powerful theme: “Mobility in Motion: Investing in People, Pathways & Progress for a Stronger Houston.” And in true Houston fashion, the room was not just dressed for success — it was organized around it.

As the United States prepares to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, many Black Americans are approaching the milestone with a mixture of pride, skepticism, and concern about the nation’s future.

While commemorations planned across the country will honor the nation’s founding, civil rights leaders, historians, and advocates have argued that any observance of America’s 250th birthday must also confront the country’s history of slavery, disenfranchisement, and racial inequality.

“As the nation marks 250 years, democracy, civil rights, and the rule of law are faced with existential tests,” National Urban League President and CEO Marc H. Morial said in announcing America 250: A Guide for Defending Democracy, a civic engagement initiative developed by the National Urban League and the Demand Diversity Roundtable.

Marc H. Morial 
President and CEO
National Urban League

“...the Fourteenth Amendment has never been interpreted to extend citizenship universally to everyone born within the United States.”

“The Fourteenth Amendment has always excluded from birthright citizenship persons who were born in the United States but not “subject to the jurisdiction thereof.”

“Among the categories of individuals born in the United States and not subject to the jurisdiction thereof, the privilege of United States citizenship does not automatically extend to persons born in the United States: (1) when that person’s mother was unlawfully present in the United States and the father was not a United States citizen or lawful permanent resident at the time of said person’s birth, or (2) when that person’s mother’s presence in the United States at the time of said person’s birth was lawful but temporary…” – Executive Order 14160

A coalition of leading civil rights organizations issued the following statement in response to the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision fully affirming the constitutional guarantee of birthright citizenship under the Fourteenth Amendment:

"Today the Court affirmed what we have argued from the beginning: every child born in the United States is an American citizen. That principle, unchanged for more than a century, continues to stand.

Occasionally a leader emerges whose journey is about more than personal achievement, it becomes a symbol of progress, possibility, and purpose for an entire community. Such is the case with Cynthia Mitchell Heard, President and CEO of the Los Angeles Urban League (Los Angeles, CA.  

As the first woman to lead the organization in nearly a century of service, Heard is not simply making history; she is building upon it. Her leadership reflects a powerful truth: when preparation meets purpose, barriers become bridges and legacies are expanded for future generations. 

Tuesday (June 23) was a milestone day for the Indianapolis Urban League (Indianapolis, IN), which is the local chapter of a national organization that serves communities of color with basic needs, housing and food assistance, as well as scholarships for students.

The Indianapolis Urban League is celebrating 60 years of service, and held its annual Equal Opportunity Day Awards luncheon.

WISH-TV’s Gina Glaros and WRTV’s Derricke Dennis teamed up to emcee the event, which featured keynote speaker Stacey Abrams, a voting rights activist and politician from Georgia who talked voter supression, the threat of redistricting, and how Indiana state lawmakers recently voted against redrawing Indiana’s congressional maps.

Families across Essex County have an opportunity to keep their children engaged in learning this summer through a free STEAM camp hosted by the Urban League of Essex (Newark, NJ) County’s Tech House.

The six-week program, running from July 6 through August 14, is open to Essex County students ages 11, 12, and 13 and will be held Monday through Friday from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Designed to introduce students to valuable technology and career-focused skills, the camp will feature hands-on instruction in 3D printing, filmmaking, coding, and mathematics. 

Organizers say the program is intended to inspire creativity, strengthen problem-solving skills, and prepare young learners for future educational and career opportunities in science and technology.

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