52% of Black Men Not Working in Chicago; Justice Slower for Young Black Woman than for Dog; In United States, Latinos Are Closing Racial Academic Gap;Chicago Public Schools on Pace to Arrest 4500 Students this School Year; In California, Brother II Brother Mentors Young Males

Making Progress; Moving Forward! Latinos Closed Racial Academic Gap Brother II Brother Mentors Youth Chicago Public Schools On Pace to Arrest 4500 Students Black Male Education Conference First Annual Mother/Son Dance Links: The Black Star Project's website: blackstarproject.org Black Star Jounral: blackstarjournal.org Become a Member: Click Here Event Calendar: Click Here Like us on Facebook:   MEDIA ADVISORY 52% of Black Men in Chicago Are Not Working - Quality of Life Very Low for Black Men in Chicago  Black community demands $100 Million Chicago Plan for Black Men and Boys Similar to New York City's $127 Million Plan to Improve Outcomes for Black Men and Boys   WHAT:            Chicago cannot achieve its full potential as a great, world-class city when 52% of its Black men are not in the labor force.  Only 48.3% of available Black men in Chicago between the ages of 16 and 64 are employed, (according to a recent report, Race and Male Employment in the Wake of the Great Recession by Marc Levine of the Center for Economic Development at University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee).  A similar study by Andrew Sum with the Center for Labor Market Studies at Northeastern University in Boston shows that 90% of young Black men 16 to 19 years old did not work in Chicago last summer.    New York City is investing $127 million over three years in Black and Latino men and boys to improve the city.  The Black Star Project is calling for a similar Chicago Plan for Black Men and Boys that would invest $100 million to improve societal outcomes for Black men and boys in Chicago.    Massive unemployment among Black men and youth drives violence and murders, contributes to broken family structures, indirectly discourages educational achievement, and causes chaos and disfunctionality in Chicago communities. The Chicago Plan for Black Men and Boys would include mentoring, educational support, job training, job connection, entrepreneurship, fathering support, strengthening families, spiritual development and community building.    WHY: Chicago has become a tale of two cities: One city wealthy with good schools and safe communities for Asian and White citizens and the other city poor with horrible schools and dangerous neighborhoods for Black citizens.  The Chicago Plan for Black Men and Boys will help to make Chicago a high-quality city for all citizens.    ##  Read More... Click Here to Read Full Report Please call the Mayor's Office of Chicago at 773.744.3300 and ask him to support the Chicago Plan for Black Men and Boys.   Justice slower for young black woman than for dog    By Mary Mitchell, Columnist April 30. 2012    It has been 40 days since two men in white collared shirts knocked on Martinez Sutton's door and told him his 22-year-old sister, Rekia Boyd, had been shot.    Boyd and her friends were hanging out at Douglas Park near 15th and Albany when off-duty Police Officer Dante Servin, who lives in the area, allegedly drove up in a BMW and told the group to "shut up all that m-----f------ noise," Sutton said witnesses told him.   Also during that stretch of warm days, Willy, a Pomeranian Papillon mix, was fatally attacked at Montrose Beach Dog Park by a pit pull.   The pit bull owner refused to identify himself and left the scene, but witnesses snapped his photograph. After the photograph was circulated at other pet parks, the officer was identified as a Chicago Police officer. The officer was immediately suspended for not making notification within 24 hours after his dog mauled Willy, and for failing to foot the $5,700 veterinary bill.   Read More... Blacks and Hispanics Have Different Educational Needs In the United States, Latino Students Closed Racial Gap with White Students While Black Students Continue to Lag Behind Photo contributed by The Black Star Project By Richard Whitmire  MaY 5, 2012   Plenty of large urban school districts nationwide were making solid progress with Hispanic students closing achievement gaps with white students. But African-American students continued to lag.   Hispanic students in recent years have been making faster progress than black students.   At successful Hispanic schools, you are more likely to see a school culture based on connections to family with teachers employing an unstructured curriculum emphasizing visual instruction.   Read More... In Riverside, California, BIIB (Brother-to-Brother) Partners with Delta Sigma Theta At The University of California Riverside to Mentor Young Men   May 12, 2012 Brother II Brother will host another Mentoring Day at the University of California Riverside. This is a RSVP event ONLY.   Click Here to RSVP for this mentor day.  Click Here to view photo's of 2011 UCR Mentoring Day   2,546 arrests of juveniles on Chicago Public School's property in 6 months from September 2011 through February 2012.  Chicago is on pace for 4,500 arrests of students this year. Black students 26 times more likely to be arrested than White students.   Age      2011-2012 School Year   7                        0                             8                        0                             9                        3                             10                      8                             11                     17                            12                     71                            13                    159                 14                    329 15                    575                             16                    705 17                    498                             18                    181                               Race       2011-2012 School Year  Black              1915 Hispanic           540 White                 75 Asian                 14 Amer. Indian        0 Unknown             2   Gender       2011-2012 School Year Female               707 Male                 1839    Total arrest of juveniles on CPS property between September 2011 and February 2012 - 2,546 arrests   Click Here to read full story The Black Star Project presents the Second Annual Midwest Black Male Educational Achievement Conference Saturday, May 19, 2012 at the Ramada Inn 4900 Lake Shore Drive Chicago, Illinois  Featuring  Dr. Umar Abdullah Johnson, Philadelphia, PA Dr. Ivory A. Toldson, Washington, D.C.. Dr. Garrard O. McClendon, Chicago, IL Parents, educators and community activist from St. Louis, Missouri; Davenport, Iowa;  Detroit, Flint, Kalamazoo, Battle Creek, Benton Harbor, Lansing and Ann Arbor - Michigan; Milwaukee, Madison, Racine and Beloit - Wisconsin; Rockford, Peoria, Springfield, Rock Island, Kankakee, Waukegan, Joliet, Elgin, Decatur, East St. Louis, Danville, Quincy and Champaign - Illinois; Indianapolis, Gary, Fort Wayne, Hammond, East Chicago, Michigan City and South Bend - Indiana should attend this conference. ------------------------------------------------------ Join us for one of the best conferences in the United States on educating Black male students with workable ideas and concrete solutions.  The cost for this one day conference is $200.00.  This is one of the last chances for schools to use their parental involvement funds for this school year.  Please call 773.285.9600 for more information or to RSVP. Click Here for More Information Click Here to Register for Conference Click Here to Learn About Hotel Accommodations Join The Black Star Project for our First Annual Mother/Son Dance (The Day Before Mothers Day) Saturday, May 12, 2012 at The Black Star Ballroom 3509 South King Drive Chicago Illinois 3:00 pm to 5:30 pm for young men 13 to 18 years old and their mothers Please call 773.285.9600 to RSVP for the Mother/Son Dance or to learn how to bring a Mother/Son Dance to your city.