| |
THE COMPEITIVE EDGE
PUBLISHER
Richard Wallace
EDITOR
Pamela Mims
FEATURES EDITORS
Leona Harris Wallace
James Orr
FEATURE WRITER
Pam Williams
SALES MARKETING
Roscoe Lee Owens
PRODUCTION
Word of Mouth
LAYOUT & DESIGN
Chamber Staff
Advertise in The Competitive
Edge,
the Official Newsletter of the Southern California Black Chamber of
Commerce.
Member Ad Rates:
Full Page $350
Half Page $150
Quarter Page $100
Business Card $75
Call for Non-Member Rates:
909-969-5274
Southern California
Black Chamber of Commerce
President
Richard Wallace
Vice President
James Orr
Secretary
Pamela Mims
Treasurer
Leona Harris-Wallace
Marketing Director
Roscoe Lee Owens
Membership Director
Ellis Williams
Information Officer
James Orr
The Competitive Edge is published
12 times per year by the
Southern California
Black Chamber of Commerce.
1000 W. 4th Street, Suite 339,
Ontario, CA 91762.
909-969-5274
info@blackchamberofcommerce.org
www.blackchamberofcommerce.org
Smiley To Moderate
Teen Town Hall Meeting, "Awake and Alert!"
Los Angeles, CA (BlackNews.com) - More than 200 youth representing 22 states will join Tavis Smiley, Dr. Cornel West and Iyanla Vanzant for five days of leadership training, education and motivation at the Tavis Smiley Foundation's 2007 Leadership Institute.
The annual conference themed, Awake and Alert!, will be held Aug. 2-6 on the campus of Texas Southern University, 3100 Cleburne Ave., Houston, TX. The youth delegates, ages 13-18, were selected based on their academic achievement, demonstrated and potential leadership, an essay and letter of recommendation.
A key of component of the Institute is the foundation's 14-member National Youth Advisory Council. These teen alumni help design and run the Institute. Through workshops, panel discussions and interactive activities, the delegates will learn to assess their strengths and weaknesses, review models of leadership, set goals, discuss and debate issues and create action plans to address issues important to youth.
"This year's
conference will feature in-depth discussions with Tavis Smiley and Dr.
Cornel
West; arguably two of today's leading intellectual voices on behalf of
Black America. It is the sincere goal of the foundation and the National
Youth Advisory Council that the participants leave the Institute empowered
with a true sense of what leadership is and how they can lead within their
communities," said Fred Shelton, council member and student at Morehouse
College.
The conference includes a Teen Town Hall Meeting: Awake and Alert!, Hands on Community Service Project benefiting the SHAPE Community Center in Houston, What I Know for Sure book signing and lecture with Tavis Smiley; Love, Leadership & Service workshop with Dr. Cornel West, The International Crisis in Darfur: What Can Young People Do Right Now panel discussion; College or the Corner? Roundtable; and a Mock Election with students selecting their presidential candidate for 2008. Vanzant will deliver the closing keynote address.
The
conference also will feature workshops by entrepreneur Dante Lee, author
Shayla Price who will share tips on receiving scholarships for college,
and Dr. Stephen Jones, author of Seven Secrets of How to Study. The Coca-Cola
Company and the UPS Foundation have provided major funding for the Leadership
Institute. Community partners include Sempra Energy, AmeriCorps*NCCC and
News Corporation.
SCHEDULE
OF KEY EVENTS
AUGUST 4—8:30 AM -- What I Know for Sure Lecture and Book Signing
w/ Tavis Smiley – Rod Paige Education Building
10:45 AM -- The International Crisis in Darfur: What Can Young People
Can Do Right Now
Panelists: Dr. Cornel West, Wanda Akin, Raymond Brown, LaTisha Campbell,
Angelo Dau, Jew Don Boney Noon -- Mock Election 2008 – Student Center
AUGUST 5—3 PM -- Community Service Project at Houston's SHAPE Community
Center – 3815 Live Oak St. 6 PM -- Closing Banquet & Awards
Ceremony with Iyanla Vanzant – Student Center
BY BEN EVANS
, The Associated Press
WASHINGTON
-- The Congressional Black Caucus on Wednesday tapped Rep. Carolyn Cheeks
Kilpatrick as its chairwoman for the next two years, when black lawmakers
will wield more power in Congress than ever.
Kilpatrick, D-Mich.,
a former school teacher and the mother of Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick,
was chosen unanimously. She succeeds Rep. Mel Watt, D-N.C.
"Watch for us," Kilpatrick told reporters. "We will take
this caucus to another level."
Because Democrats will be in control when Congress convenes a new session
Jan. 4, the 43-member caucus will take up a historic slate of leadership
positions, including the third-ranking member in the House, Majority Whip
James Clyburn of South Carolina.
It also will count as members four likely committee heads, up to 20 subcommittee leaders, and the only black senator, Barack Obama of Illinois, a possible presidential candidate.
Are You in Compliance? The Department of Labor requires a NEW poster to reflect mandatory changes to the federal minimum wage which went into effect on July 24th 2007.
All employers, regardless of size, are required to post the most recent Minimum Wage poster along with the 5 other required Federal Posters, even if your state's minimum wage differs.
The Complete Compliance
Federal poster now combines all SIX mandatory
posters from all SIX Federal Agencies in one convenient poster, ensuring
you are in compliance.
Order this poster
now to ensure that your business remains in compliance.
Getting in compliance is convenient and inexpensive. Call 800-226-2327
and we'll give you a mandatory posting consultation for both your Federal
and State mandatory posting needs.
* Don't forget your
STATE Posters *Your state labor office has its own mandatory posting requirements,
which change frequently. Are you in full compliance?
Visit http://pbcompliance.com/mwc07?id=-1127697311&L=07fedmin47AC&S=CA
to order the updated Federal 6-in-1 poster with your updated state posters
and you're sure to be in compliance.
Santa
Barbara, CA (BlackNews.com)
- Apex Flight Management is a full-service aircraft charter brokerage
for clients who are looking to enjoy the luxury, security, and convenience
of private jet travel. We not only handle flight logistics, but we can
arrange private ground transportation and 5 star catering. Apex also brokers
aircraft sales.
The combined knowledge of FAA certified maintenance technicians, airline transport pilots, and our business savvy ensures that our clients will find the best aircraft for their mission profile. Apex provides management services to alleviate the stress of aircraft ownership after taking delivery of the aircraft.
Our Mission We seek
to exceed the needs of individuals who ARE the commodity! 
Talent
in the executive or entertainment realm is valuable, and their time is
a precious asset. Apex understands that making the 8:00am press junket
or board meeting is equally as important as making the kids' basketball
game at 4:00pm. We strive to build trustful and long lasting relationships
for the clients we represent.
About the President Jelani Kelley founded the company in 2006 at age 23. He has been a professional pilot since 2003, and is involved in all aspects of aviation--from aircraft maintenance, to youth education. Jelani believes deeply in strengthening at-risk youth's chances for success. While Jelani represents clients from all walks of life, he is especially excited to work with other African American professional as he pursues corporate growth for Apex Flight Management. Web: www.apexflight.net
THE TOP 10,000 INTERNET SITES IN THE WORLD
Washington,
DC (BlackNews.com)
- With an average of one million hits per day, controversial website Hotghettomess.com
has become the true darling of the internet and one of the top African-American
owned web sites in the world. Ranking as high as one of the top 10,000 sites
in the world by Ranking.com, Hotghettomess.com bills itself as a call-to-arms
to challenge the African-American community to examine how it is living
and looking. With over 360 million hits since it was launched in 2004, it
is quickly becoming one of the top 100% African-American owned sites in
the world.
The site, created by recent Georgetown University Law Center graduate and Washingtonian, Jam Donaldson, features images of the African-American community at its worst. She considers the site constructive criticism, "this site wags a shameful finger at those who bring us all down with their foolishness."
Jam Donaldson, after receiving dozens of emails featuring photos of X-rated high school proms, street fights, and children dressed as pimps, decided there had to be a way to turn these images into a force for change because unfortunately, they represent us all when they go out into the streets like this, act like this, go to work like this, promote lyrics like this.
She challenges the likes of Michael Eric Dyson who would call such an endeavor an exercise in Afristocracy. "This is not an elitist or classist endeavor, money has nothing to do with it," Donaldson says. "A lot of folks in these pictures are doing just fine. Check out the Celebrity Mess section to see that money doesn't equal class. Alternatively, look at old photos of African-Americans in the 1920s and 30's when we didn't have a pot to piss in, but damn we looked good, we had class and style and pride in our image and our communities." Additionally she questions, "even if you are poor, are we to accept that, because you're poor, you should have no responsibility for your behavior? That's insulting."
No one is immune from the judgment of Hotghettomess.com. The site calls out everyone from Boo-Boo to Beyonce. Along with photos and videos of the general public at their worst, the site features celebrities, song lyrics, white folks, and a category appropriately named Just Sad which displays shocking and heartbreaking images of a community in crisis.
The site also highlights positive images and does monthly features on positive accomplishments from various members of the Black community on a page entitled "Not Ghetto Mess." This page has featured such noteworthy individuals as Barack Obama, Wangari Maathai, Keith Beauchamp and Alicia Keys. There is also an HGM Recommends page which highlights books, films and other visual arts that represent the best in the black community.
There is a new trend in the African-American community focusing on personal and financial responsibility and HotGhettoMess.com is leading the parade. "From school to music to clothing to behavior, where have our standards gone? Are we now to accept any and everything? And if our own can't come out and point out what's wrong, how can we ever get better?" says Donaldson. She acknowledges that the website "may not be the answer but it at least starts the conversation that we all need to have with ourselves and each other."
She gets plenty of support from all over the world--from London to Germany to Iraq and from New York to Alabama to California. She also receives plenty of feedback from those who feel the site is exploitive and denigrating to Blacks. To her opponents she responds, "to all of you who are angry at me for airing our dirty laundry-- good, I'm glad you're angry, now maybe collectively, we'll be forced to finally go wash it."
TPOC
Unveils Heritage Tourism Specialist Certification Program
Left:
Clarence Smith - President
Emeritus, Co-Founder Essence
Magazine, Essence Communications
Partners and founder of Avocet Travel
Fort Lauderdale, FL (BlackNews.com) - TPOC members are excited about the unveiling of the Heritage Tourism Specialist Certification Program at the 5th annual TPOC Conference and Trade Show April 19 – 22, 2007 in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida at the Renaissance Ft. Lauderdale – Plantation Hotel.
Approximately three hundred minority travel professionals, representatives from various convention and visitors bureaus, multi-cultural tourism specialists, suppliers and media are expected to be in attendance. Conference attendees will be able to earn points toward a Heritage Tourism Specialist Certificate, participate in workshops, panel discussions, trade show and enjoy key note and featured speakers including Clarence Smith, co-founder of Essence Magazine and now owner of Avocet Travel.
Other speakers include Nicki Englander Grossman, president of the Ft. Lauderdale Convention and Visitors Bureau, also city hosts for the TPOC Conference, and Edy Bornstein, Vice President – Business Development and National Accounts for Carnival Cruise Lines. TPOC president, Charlotte Haymore, will also speak on the conference theme "Wake up from the dream and work the vision."
With the increasing interest in Multi-Cultural and Heritage Tourism in the market place today, the TPOC Conference will focus on two major areas of interest: One, helping agents to become certified Heritage Tourism Specialist and two, creating an awareness throughout the community of the many professional minority travel agents, tour operators and other travel professionals who are available to handle travel business of all kind.
Everyone in attendance will have an opportunity to attend the outstanding APEX Awards Banquet, sponsored by Black Meetings & Tourism Magazine, where awards will be presented to many influential and deserving recipients in travel, who have made a great impact within the travel community. Some past recipients of the award include Pamela Richards, U.S. Virgin Islands Commissioner of Tourism and Don Barden, owner of Fitzgerald's Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, the only African American casino owner in Las Vegas.
Anyone interested in reaching out to the minority travel community is welcome to attend the conference. For more information, please visit the web site at www.tpoc.org, or feel free to call the TPOC office at (303) 574-9688. Travel Agents interested in receiving a FREE listing in the Minority Travel Agents Directory are also asked to visit the site and submit an on line survey.
Atlanta,
GA (BlackNews.com)
- 40,000 people came to The Learning Annex in Atlanta to be inspired and
motivated about success. Donald Trump, real estate legend and author of
the book The Art of the Deal, gave the keynote address at the Real Estate
and Wealth Expo.
Trump came to town to urge the attendees to “love what you do”, and to “never, ever quit” pursuing your dreams. Just minutes into his presentation, Trump noticed Orrin Hudson, an African American community leader and motivational speaker, sitting enthusiastically in the front row and invited Hudson to join him onstage.
Trump then asked
Hudson if he knew “The Donald” story of success. Since Hudson
has made a career out of speaking to motivate and inspire, he was able
to recite effortlessly the major events in Trump’s rise to real
estate tycoon. Hudson’s excitement and passion delighted Trump and
had the audience enthralled.
Trump is known for his abrupt and even caustic management style. Yet after the presentation, Trump not only asked for Hudson’s card, but he also told Hudson that he would call him be a part of Hudson’s non-profit organization.
In addition to traveling the country as a professional speaker, Orrin Hudson is also founder and executive director of Be Someone - a non-profit organization that shows inner city youngsters how to succeed in life by using the rules and strategies of chess as a teaching tool.
According to Hudson, “The greatest skill you can have is the ability to make good decisions. By teaching these kids how every move in chess relates to a life decision, I help them turn their lives around!"
To have Orrin Hudson inspire your church, association, company, or sales meeting; or to make a donation or sponsor a child visit www.besomeone.org or contact Janice Davis at 678-526-0292.
or email us info@blackchamberofcommerce.org