TALLAHASSEE – The Tallahassee Urban League (Tallahassee, FL) hosted a forum focused on gun violence on Thursday, March 31st.

The forum, the third of its kind, had representatives from the City Commission, students from both Florida A&M University and Florida State University, the Tallahassee Branch of the NAACP, and various others.

The main purpose of this forum was to improve the relationships that law enforcement had with the community and the student population, said Urban League President Curtis Taylor.

CHICAGO – Comcast recently announced that it has awarded the Chicago Urban League (Chicago, IL) a $27,000 “Lift Zone Opportunity Fund” grant. The funds will go to support digital skills training at the new Lift Zone, which Comcast opened in January of 2021.

According to the cable giant. Lift Zones are safe spaces where children and adults can learn new skills, go online to do schoolwork, look for jobs, and various other services that require the internet. The Chicago Urban League Lift Zone will go hand in hand with the company’s Internet Essentials program that has enabled low-income families to connect to the internet since 2011.

COLUMBUS – The Columbus Urban League (Columbus, OH) is trying to fight teenage incarceration.

In a new program funded by the city, the Urban League is launching a program that would provide community service, family counseling, and mentorship that will attempt to keep teenagers on the straight and narrow.

President and CEO of the Urban League, Stephanie Hightower said, “A lot of these young people have never had a chance from the beginning, so how do we now give them that first chance opportunity.”

Hightower describes the program as a youth enrichment course over two months. The program will have parental involvement and other services catering to them.

ST. LOUIS – With the news of a third child shot and killed in St. Louis City, community leaders are urging area residents to practice gun safety.

Vice President of Public Safety and Community Response with the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis (St. Louis, MO), James Clark, said, “The influx of guns into the African American community has been well documented. So, we have to be able to begin to deal with the mentality around gun ownership. We have to begin to address the mentality of lawlessness around gun usage. So, it’s an uphill climb.”

Pull up your virtual chair. The State of Black America is back and hitting your screens on April 12th! Tune in as we unpack voting rights + much more. | #ConfirmJudgeJackson. The racist attacks to derail the confirmation of Judge Jackson will NOT succeed. Text WEFIGHTFORHER to 52886 now. | The stats are in! Black communities have been hit the hardest during COVID-19. Read more on the health disparities we face during the pandemic. | Building a sustainable future. Join Marc H. Morial on Monday at 7PM ET for a virtual town hall to protect our communities from gentrification. | Equality is the minimum. Tune in to our latest episode as we break down the barriers that prevent women from becoming homeowners. | Advancing Black Entrepreneurs. Join the conversation on April 8th for a FREE 90-minute guided session with tips on leveling up your business. RSVP.

Pull up your virtual chair. The State of Black America is back and hitting your screens on April 12th! Tune in as we unpack voting rights + much more. | #ConfirmJudgeJackson. The racist attacks to derail the confirmation of Judge Jackson will NOT succeed. Text WEFIGHTFORHER to 52886 now. | The stats are in! Black communities have been hit the hardest during COVID-19. Read more on the health disparities we face during the pandemic. | Building a sustainable future. Join Marc H. Morial on Monday at 7PM ET for a virtual town hall to protect our communities from gentrification. | Equality is the minimum. Tune in to our latest episode as we break down the barriers that prevent women from becoming homeowners.Advancing Black Entrepreneurs. Join the conversation on April 8th for a FREE 90-minute guided session with tips on leveling up your business. RSVP.

Marc H. Morial 
President and CEO
National Urban League

“You faced insults here that were shocking to me. Well, actually, not shocking. But you are here because of that kind of love, and nobody is taking this away from you … It is not going to stop. They are going to accuse you of this and that. In honor of the person who shares your birthday, you might be called a communist. But don’t worry, my sister. Don’t worry. God has gotten you. How do I know that? Because you are here, and I know what it has taken for you to sit in that seat.” – Sen. Cory Booker

As Lee Atwater famously described the evolution of race-baiting in politics, “You start out in 1954 by saying, ‘N**ger, n**ger, n**ger’. By 1968 you can’t say ‘n**ger’—that backfires …  So, you say stuff like forced busing, states’ rights and all that stuff ...” 

This week, Joi Chaney, our Executive Director and Senior Vice President of Policy and Advocacy, sits down with Jocelyn Frye, President of the National Partnership for Women & Families, an organization that works to improve the lives of women and families by achieving equality for all women. Together, they discuss the National Partnership's recent report, Housing Justice is Gender Justice, a comprehensive outline which breaks down the current barriers in place that prevent women from becoming homeowners which include racial wage and wealth gaps, homelessness, economic instability and the formation of single family homes. This report outlines key takeaways and recommendations that would alleviate these issues and create opportunities for minority women to attain home ownership.

https://open.spotify.com/episode/6V9lGA4TJszKHr3C3rNL6U

This week, Joi Chaney, our Executive Director and Senior Vice President of Policy and Advocacy, sits down with Kim Tignor, Co-leader of She Will Rise, as they discuss the historic significance of the first Black woman to be nominated to the United States Supreme Court – Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson. Together, they discuss Judge Jackson’s Senate hearing and confirmation process, SCOTUS mobilization efforts lead by She Will Rise and ways our listeners can help amplify Judge Jackson’s confirmation.  Discussed in this episode: Ketanji Brown Jackson, Judge Jackson, Supreme Court Justice, United States Supreme Court, SCOTUS, She Will Rise, SistaScotus, Black women, history, nomination, President Biden, Community, State of Black America, For the Movement, National Urban League, Urban League Movement

https://open.spotify.com/episode/3fIHu6ykmo83J00JG4E4bB