Wall St. and Business Wednesdays: The Reginald F. Lewis Museum of African American History and Culture and the Urban Leadership Institute Present: Celebrating The Collective Power of Black America - Discussions with African American Men on Family Life, Business and the Future, Saturday, August 5, 2006
This Saturday, God Willing, I will have the honor of participating as a panelist in a very important forum at the now one-year old Reginald F. Lewis Museum of African American History and Culture in Baltimore, Maryland. The event, co-presented with the Urban Leadership Institute, is headlined, “Celebrating The Collective Power of Black America: Discussions with African American Men on Family Life, Business and the Future.” The full list of panelists scheduled to participate in this event are:
• Tony Alleyne, director Reshaping the Lens Series, Spotlight Entertainment, Executive Partner, The Micology Movement
• Mark Booker- CEO --We Teach & Tutor
• Dr. Lawrence Jackson- Baltimore Native, Professor of English Emory University- Author of Biography on Ralph Ellison)
• Clayton LeBouef- Actorvist
• Dr. Michael Lindsey- Assistant Professor UMD- School of Social Work)
• Cedric Muhammad- BlackElectorate.com/Economist
• Craig Thompson- Attorney
The Moderators are: Richard Rowe, of the African American Male Leadership Institute & David Miller of the Urban Leadership Institute.
I am pleased to be able to participate for several reasons. First, there is my deep respect for the accomplishments of Mr. Reginald F. Lewis, whom this museum is named after, who created the first Black-owned enterprise to surpass the billion-dollar revenue mark. Second, there is my affection for the city of Baltimore and its unique contributions and suffering which have enriched Black America and the world, and are preparing us to reach a new level of substance. And finally, there is my great interest in the headlined topic, which embodies much of the essence of the mission and function of BlackElectorate.com – Family Life, Business and the Future.
I am involved in prayer, study and reflection in preparation for this event – that I might add something of value from my life experience, knowledge and insights, and perhaps, even provide inspiration. I hope to receive the same from others, as I too, learn and am inspired by what the panelists and audience might have to say and share. I also am asking all of the members of the BlackElectorate.com Community to share their counsel with me, in terms of what they think should be addressed. Members of our Dialogue Room should feel free to post their advice and comments in our forum:
http://www.blackelectorate.com/msgbrd2/msgbrd.asp
I hope that many of our BlackElectorate.com viewers – especially in the Philadelphia, Wilmington, Baltimore and D.C. area - can make the event. With museum admission paid for, the event is free. You can call (443)-263-1875 for more information.
Below, is a portion of the letter of invitation that I received in June, for this event, which provides more of the premise, motive, and context for the gathering:
June 7, 2006
Greetings Mr. Muhammad:
Within the last couple of months, several high profile African Americans have made public comments regarding the state of Black males in Baltimore, including Oprah Winfrey during an interview with a local television station and actor Hill Harper from the television show CSI. Ms. Winfrey’s comments as well as Mr. Harper’s interview in the June 2006 edition of Black Enterprise Magazine discussed the challenges that Black males are facing in the city of Baltimore. All too often, we are bombarded with negative depictions of the African American male.
To this end, the Reginald F. Lewis Museum of African American History and Culture and the Urban Leadership Institute will be hosting a contemporary issues forum: Celebrating The Collective Power of Black America: Discussions with African American Men on Family Life, Business and the Future on Saturday, August 5, 2006 from 1:00 p.m. until 3:00 p.m. at the Reginald F. Lewis Museum. The goal of our upcoming discussion is to highlight the achievements of African American males, as well as to inspire other young men to soar for greatness.
As we highlight successful local and national business persons, we would like for you to serve as a panelist for the event. Each panelist will be asked to make some opening remarks regarding the Collective Power in Black America. Comments from the panelists should focus on the strengths and assets in the “Black Community.” The moderator of the panel will ask each panelist follow up questions related to family, business, coping with racism and the future followed by questions from the audience…
Hope to see you all in Baltimore…
Sincerely,
Cedric Muhammad
Publisher
BlackElectorate.com
http://www.blackelectorate.com/
Cedric Muhammad
Wednesday, August 2, 2006