National Reparations Organization Requests Designation for the Descendants of Persons Enslaved in the United States

The National Assembly of American Slavery Descendants (NAASD) has formally requested that the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) designate the classification “African American” exclusively for the "Descendants of Persons Enslaved in the United States". Since 2021, NAASD has met directly with Biden Administration officials on this issue since President Biden has made equitable data collection a priority with the signing of the Executive Order On Advancing Racial Equity and Support for Underserved Communities Through the Federal Government. The OMB’s revised Statistical Policy Directive (SPD) 15 recommendation must conform to this Executive Order.

For the first time since 1997, the Office of Management and Budget is now accepting public comments on their initial proposal from the Federal Interagency Technical Working Group on Race and Ethnic Standards which was released in January 2023. The final proposal set to be unveiled by the end of this year, will revise the OMB’s Statistical Policy Directive which sets the “standards for maintaining, collecting and presenting Federal Data on Race and Ethnicity”. The OMB’s current definition of Black or African-American is “a person having origins in any of the Black racial groups of Africa”. This current definition does not denote any specific ethnic group and does not reflect that a distinct ethnic group emerged from U.S. Slavery.

Because of the present flawed definition of Black/African-American, in addition to the growing diversity of the Black community, current data collection on our community is not accurately providing insight to the well being of African Americans.

California's AB3121 has set precedence with specificity for Descendants of Persons Enslaved in the United States. California Governor Gavin Newsom also signed into law SB189; Section 14 which disaggregates Black Americans and provides a category for data collection specifically for “African Americans who are descendants of persons enslaved in the United States.”

It is time for the OMB to follow suit. It is the recommendation of NAASD that the OMB’s revised SPD 15 definition of “African American” means: “a person having origins in the United States with ancestors historically classified as African, Negro, Black or Colored who were either born free or enslaved in the United States and emancipated nationally by the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution”.

We urge the public to give public comment to the OMB and share this point of view through April 27, 2023 in support of our position here. If you need guidance, we have also prepared a toolkit to be shared with family, friends, and organizations within the African American Community. Now is the time for the largest Black population in the United States to unite for the disaggregation of data that will support accurate data collection and billions of dollars coming directly into our community.

The National Assembly of American Slavery Descendants was founded in 2019 to advance reparative policy and legislation for Black American Descendants of U. S. Chattel Slavery .

Texas Southern University cheerleaders become first HBCU to win national title

Houston's Texas Southern University is the first historically Black school to win a national title in collegiate cheerleading, having accomplished the feat on Friday in Daytona Beach, Florida, according to the university. The Tigers placed first in their division in the Cheer Spirit Rally competition at the NCA & NDA College National Championship, held last Wednesday through Sunday by the National Cheerleaders Association.

"To see the long hours they've dedicated come to fruition in the form of a national championship is amazing as I want to commend the coaching staff and team members for their efforts," Texas Southern athletics director Kevin Granger said in a news release from the university. "This team has made history at Texas Southern and everyone a part of TSU nation is proud of their accomplishments."

Texas Southern was among more than 10 historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) to compete and the only one to take home a title. Out of a maximum score of 100, the Tigers posted raw and performance scores of 96.1 and an event score of 95.5875, beating second-place Niagara University by nearly 11 points in the Cheer Spirit Rally category for Division I schools.

"I knew this was the year and the team to get the job done," Texas Southern coach Shontrese Comeaux said. "I'm so proud of them and where we're going to take the cheer program next."

[SOURCE: HOUSTON PUBLIC MEDIA]

California State Senator Bradford authors “Ebony Alert” legislation to help locate missing Black youth and Black women

SACRAMENTO – Senator Steven Bradford (D-Gardena) has introduced SB 673 to create an “Ebony Alert” notification system to address the often ignored or lack of attention given to Black children and young Black women that are missing in California.

According to the Black and Missing Foundation, 38% of children reported missing in the U.S. are Black. The U.S. population is 14% Black. Black children are disproportionately classified as “runaways” in comparison to their white counterparts who are classified as “missing” and, therefore, many Black children do not receive the Amber Alert.

Black women and girls are at increased risk of being harmed and trafficked. A recent report on human trafficking incidents across the country also found that 40% of sex trafficking victims were identified as Black women.

SB 673 would authorize a law enforcement agency to request that an Ebony Alert be activated if that agency determines that it would be an effective tool in the investigation of a missing Black youth or young Black women between the ages of 12 – 25 years. SB 673 would encourage news organizations including television, cable, online, radio and social media outlets to cooperate with disseminating the information contained in an Ebony Alert.

“The Ebony Alert would ensure that resources and attention are given so we can bring home missing Black women and Black children in the same way we would search for any missing child and missing person,” said Bradford.

“When someone who is missing is incorrectly listed as a runaway, they basically vanish a second time. They vanish from the police detectives’ workload. They vanish from the headlines. In many ways, no one even knows they are missing. How can we find someone and bring them home safely when no one is really looking for them,” said Bradford.

The Ebony Alert legislation is sponsored by the NAACP California Hawaii State Conference.

“Black women and girls are at increased risk of harm and make up a disproportionate percentage of all missing people. The NAACP California Hawaii State Conference considers missing Black women and girls an epidemic and necessary for its own safety alert.” said Rick Callender, NAACP California Hawaii State Conference President. “SB 673 will create the Ebony Alert, providing law enforcement with additional tools and resources to help locate missing Black youth and adults through cooperation with the community and the CHP.”

Newark's Shakur Stevenson stops Shuichiro Yoshino to become mandatory challenger for the WBC lightweight title

After winning titles at featherweight and junior lightweight, Shakur Stevenson moved up once again, this time to face Shuichiro Yoshino in a 12-round WBC lightweight title eliminator in Newark, New Jersey on Saturday. Stevenson finished Yoshino in the sixth round of a one-sided bout to become the mandatory challenger to the WBC lightweight title. [SOURCE: ESPN]

Watch VP Kamala Harris speech after two Black Tennessee lawmakers were expelled from the Tennessee House of Representatives

Photo Andrew Nelles / The Tennessean

During remarks at Fisk University in Nashville, Vice President Kamala Harris shared her support for the state representatives expelled from the Tennessee House of Representatives after they protested with a bullhorn on the general assembly floor.