On April 4th Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s entire family to honor 50th anniversary of his death

ATLANTA- Bells will toll 39 times around the world on April 4, 2018 at 6:01 p.m. CT in remembrance of the life taken 50 years earlier by a gun shot that shook America and the world to the core. At the same time, the surviving children of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Mrs. Coretta Scott King will be joined by members of the King family to toll a bell and lay a wreath on the crypts of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Mrs. Coretta Scott King on the campus of The Martin Luther King, Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change in Atlanta, Georgia.

Dr. Bernice A. King, CEO of The King Center stated, "Today, we remember my father's death, but most importantly, we must remember the purpose and power of his life. Although this day is challenging for our family and for many around the world, I encourage you to hope today and to hope always. As my father expressed in his Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech, I still have 'an audacious faith in the future of mankind.' Our family encourages you to not be angered by my father's death; be bolstered by his teachings and awakened by his work. 50 years later, let us remember him by embracing the truth that Together We Win with Love for Humanity."

At 10:30 a.m. on April 4th, The Center will present its highest award in the Yolanda D. King Theatre of The Performing Arts. This year the Martin Luther King, Jr. Peace Prize recipients are: Mr. Benjamin Ferencz for his courageous work as a prosecutor for the Nuremburg, Germany Nazi Leadership trials; and Mr. Bryan Stevenson for his fearless advocacy work in the legal field such as the winning of the historic ruling making mandatory life-without-parole sentences for all children 17 or younger unconstitutional and as well, the founding of The Legacy Museum: From Enslavement to Mass Incarceration and The National Memorial for Peace and Justice. The award ceremony will be followed by a reception for the honorees. A Q&A moderated by Monica Pearson will provide an opportunity for them to dialogue with guests.

Dr. Bernice A. King states, "Our hope and prayer is that all people who want to honor and who love my father will join us in remembering him in any one, or in all of these special moments. Not only will we be honoring him, but we will be committing our energy and efforts to building the Beloved Community. I am certain that he would be profoundly grateful that we are gathered to grow together and help move humanity forward!" The Center will continue commemorative events from April 4th through 9th. For more details of the events and how you can register to participate, please log onto http://www.mlk50forward.org or http://www.thekingcenter.org.

MLK’s granddaughter: ‘I have a dream that enough is enough’

Martin Luther King’s granddaughter Yolanda Renee King participates in the March for Our Lives rally against gun violence in Washington, D.C. and let's it be known that she has a dream too.

NBA star DeMarcus Cousins offers to pay for funeral of Stephon Clark

Former Sacramento Kings players DeMarcus Cousins has reached out to the family of Stephon Clark to cover the cost of the funeral.

Clark, 22, was shot and killed by Sacramento police on Sunday while holding a cellphone in his grandmother's backyard. The death of Clark, who was unarmed and African American, sparked protests Thursday.

Cousins, an All-Star center who spent the first six years of his NBA career in Sacramento, was traded to the New Orleans Pelicans last season. Barnes, a former area prep star at Del Campo High School, was waived by the Kings after Cousins was traded. He announced his retirement from the NBA this season.

Cousins has a history of outreach in the Sacramento community.

He paid for the funeral of Grant High School football player Jaulon "JJ" Clavo, who was shot before a playoff game in 2015. He held free basketball camps at Sacramento High School and bought a new scoreboard for the school's basketball gym.

Cousins was a regular at high school games and enjoyed being accessible to students, especially at inner-city schools that high-profile athletes might not want to visit.

Cousins participated in forums with police in his hometown of Mobile, Ala., and in Sacramento, and has spoken candidly about the issues and concerns from both sides.

The NBA recognized Cousins' work away from the court last October, awarding him the inaugural Offseason NBA Cares Community Assist Award for his work in Alabama, New Orleans, Sacramento and South Africa.

When Cousins was traded to New Orleans last February, he said he would always consider Sacramento home and that his ties to the community would remain.

Film shows black women as hidden figures in pro wrestling

A new film explores the role of black women recruited as professional wrestlers in the 1950s and 1960s.

Lady Wrestler: The Amazing, Untold Story of African-American Women in the Ring is a 90-minute documentary that chronicles the stories of Babs Wingo, Ethel Johnson, Marva Scott, Ramona Isbell and dozens of other African-American women who braved racism and sexism in the 1950s, '60s and '70s to succeed in the male-dominated world of professional wrestling. These courageous women raised families while blazing a trail for female athletes long before many of the breakthroughs of the civil rights and feminist movements.

The documentary debuts Thursday at Ohio State University’s Wexner Center for the Arts.

Filmmaker Chris Bournea said people like these female grapplers wrestled not only before women were deemed capable of athletic accomplishments but before blacks had civil rights in many places.
They also didn’t talk a lot about what they did, perhaps concerned about others’ reactions. And when they were finished, they wanted to move on with their lives.

Bournea, who is black, grew up in Columbus without ever hearing the stories. After he learned of them as a journalist about a decade ago, he knew he had to do something.

“Awareness needed to be brought to these women’s accomplishments,” Bournea said.

Bournea said he has planned screenings in other cities with large professional wrestling fan bases and will then release the film on Amazon.

Lean more about the movie here https://www.ladywrestlermovie.com/ and watch the trailer below:

Protesters throughout Sacramento after Stephon Clark shooting

Protests erupted in Sacramento four days after Stephon Clark, an unarmed black man was shot by police in his grandmother's backyard. Demonstrators delayed the start of an NBA game as well as blocked entrance to an interstate highway.

Protesters block NBA arena over fatal Sacramento police shooting.

Demonstrators blocked the entrance to an arena where an NBA game was scheduled Thursday, chanting "Black Lives Matter" and the name of the 22-year-old who was killed.

Most ticketholders weren't able to get inside, and the Sacramento Police said via Twitter that "no one else will be admitted to the #SacKings game."

Outside the arena, protesters linked arms and chanted at fans, "Join us or go home!"

The NBA and the Kings made the decision to close the doors, Sgt. Vance Chandler of the Sacramento Police Department told CNN. The game started with a delay and the team said it would refund the tickets.

Protesters began to disperse at night, and police made no arrests.

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Protesters of police shooting shut down I-5 and block entry to Sacramento Kings game.

A dramatic day of protest Thursday over the shooting of Stephon Clark a young unarmed black man began at Sacramento City Hall, shut down Interstate 5 during rush hour.

The protest snarled traffic around central city freeways, with cars backed up nearly a mile south on I-5 toward Sutterville Road and on the westbound W/X freeway.

Around 5:30 p.m., southbound lanes reopened. It took another 30-plus minutes for protesters to leave northbound lanes. [SOURCE]

Demonstrators gather at Sacramento City Hall to protest fatal shooting of unarmed man.

Demonstrators in Sacramento, California, gathered Thursday evening to protest the death of 22-year-old Stephon Clark, who was killed in his grandmother's backyard over the weekend after two police officers fired 20 shots at him.

A crowd of people went to Sacramento's City Hall, chanting phrases like "Stand up, fight back" and "No justice, no peace."

Black Lives Matter Sacramento is hosting the demonstration, according to the Facebook event titled "Turn Up - for [Stephon] Clark!"

"We are tired of Sacramento law enforcement killing us!" the event description reads. "We are tired of talking and meeting and sitting trying to convince our elected officials that there needs to be change!"[SOURCE]