Food Deserts

We define Food Deserts as large and isolated geographic areas where mainstream grocery stores are absent or distant. Our research has demonstrated the statistical link between Food Deserts and worse diet-related health outcomes, after controlling for other key factors. We also developed a Food Balance Score to show the relationsihp between access to mainstream and fringe food providers (such as fast food) and correlated that to public health. Our work has been covered by CNN and other world-wide media, and public officials, policy makers, grassroots community groups, and major corporations continue to respond to it. See our main website and go to projects for more details.  Visit site

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Insurers find loophole in health bill, say they don’t have to cover sick kids

By Sahil Kapur

Insurance companies wasted no time after the bill was passed to unearth a loophole that allowed them to deny coverage to children with pre-existing illnesses for the next four years.

According to the New York Times, "Insurers agree that if they provide insurance for a child, they must cover pre-existing conditions.  Read more...

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Army changes basic training to deal with gamer generation

by Ben Silverman

Real war and virtual war just got closer.

Basic training is about to get more advanced. And recruits can thank games for that.

In an interview with Lt. Gen. Mark Hertling, NPR reports that the U.S. Army is altering its basic training program for the first time in 20 years, in part to better train recruits weaned on video games.

"This isn't a decline in our recruits; this is a decline in our American society in terms of their physical capacity," Hertling told NPR. "It's just a softer generation."  Read more...

Hispanic Women Breast-Feed Longer Than White and Black Women, Study Finds

The study echoed earlier research that generally found lower breast-feeding rates in younger women, low-income women and those with less education. It also repeated findings that breast-feeding rates are lowest in black women.

State figures revealed some variation from place to place. The gap between black women and other groups was far more dramatic in the South. In three states - Alabama, Louisiana and Mississippi - the percentage of women who tried breast-feeding was 35 percent or lower, less than half the national average.  Read more...

The African American Lectionary Launches Material to Address Youth Violence

Youth Sunday, which the Lectionary lists on June 13, 2010 (but can be celebrated at any time), kicks off a week of youth-oriented activities. Youth Sunday serves as an occasion in the African American church where youth are recognized for their achievements, encouraged, and provided instruction to become leaders in the church.  This year one focus for Youth Sunday by the Lectionary is Addressing Youth Violence.   

“Our goal is to provide resources to the African American community which emphasizes how the Bible can be used to address the current relevant realities of the black community,” Reverend Martha Simmons, Creator and Director of The African American Lectionary said. “The African American Lectionary is seizing the opportunity to denounce violence and the fear that shapes the realities of too many African youths. Youth violence is one of the greatest challenges now facing the Church.”  Read more...

Visit   http://www.theafricanamericanlectionary.org/calendar.asp to download any of the FREE preaching commentaries, worship and cultural resources; the website contains more than 3,500 pages of material

Media Contact:

Sarah Tanksley

stanksley@perituspr.com

(615) 622-5543

 

Youth suicides epidemic on tribal reservations

By MATTHEW DALY

Rates among Native Americans are 10 times the national average

Tribal suicide rates are 70 percent higher than for the general population, and the youth suicide rate is even higher. On some reservations youth suicide rates are 10 times the national average.

"Things go wrong that they can't change," Coloradas said, trying to explain the high rate of suicide in his community. "They don't get shown the love they need. They say, 'You don't love me when I was here. Now you love me when I'm not here.' "  Read more...

Child sexual abuse: A risk factor for pregnancy

A new study carried out by Prof. Rachel Lev-Wiesel and Dr. Tzachi Ben Zion has found that women who were victims of sexual abuse in childhood reported higher levels of depression and symptoms of post-trauma during pregnancy.

Sexual abuse in childhood increases the chances of high-risk pregnancy, shows a new study conducted by Prof. Rachel Lev-Wiesel, Head of the Graduate School of Creative Arts Therapies at the University of Haifa, Lee Yampolsky and Dr. Tzachi Ben Zion, Deputy Director of Soroka Hospital. "Even when a woman willingly and happily commences a pregnancy, it seems that the body relates the sexual act that created the pregnancy with the abuse trauma, evoking negative feelings which can then be expressed in physical and gynecological problems," Prof. Lev-Wiesel explains.  Read more...

Young Black And Fabulous, Beyonce is Pregnant w/ Jay-Z baby?

According to a solid source the website media take out has confirmed that Beyonce is indeed pregnant and expecting her first child with Jay-Z. Jay -Z is reportedly excited to have Beyonce carrying his first baby with her. Beyonce is 28 years old, while Jay-Z is 40 years old.  Read more...

The complications facing children with sickle cell disease

Children with sickle cell disease are more likely to have hearing problems, intellectual disabilities and migraines, according to a new study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The disease, in which red blood cells take on a crescent or sickle shape, blocking blood flow, is one of the most common genetic disorders and is more likely to affect people of African or Middle Eastern descent.  Read more...

Inaugural Edition of Race & Justice News

Welcome to the inaugural edition of Race & Justice News from The Sentencing Project. Each edition will bring you news coverage of research, advocacy, and policy developments regarding race and the criminal and juvenile justice systems throughout the country. Let your friends and colleagues know that they can subscribe to Race & Justice News by signing up on our Web site. 

We also welcome your submissions!  Contact Race & Justice News to submit news about race and justice developments from your area.

The Corruption of America’s Children

One of the areas in the spotlight was hip-hop. Russell Simmons and Damon Dash were interviewed briefly to explain the guns, drug and sex references in their artist’s music. It was pretty funny. They couldn’t explain it. Everything on the show was spliced and mixed to accent every point that Bill O’Reilly tried to make.. which you would expect.

Russell Simmons looked slightly embarrassed, knowing that he didn’t have the politically correct answer to the question of rap music’s ability to teach and uplift youth mired in poverty. And Dame Dash was squirming in his seat, twisting his lips up and getting mad heated over the line of questioning. He almost screamed on old Bill when he said that 90% of rap music is filled with negative influences, but held himself under control. Russell and Damon both asked Bill O’Reilly, sitting there in his suit, who probably has never been to the hood in his life, and asked him.. “Are YOU really concerned about kids in poverty?” Basically, questioning his motives.  Read more...

Monona, Wis., school cracks down on racist youth gang

By Gena Kittner

Officials in a suburban Madison school district are cracking down on students displaying symbols of a youth gang espousing racist ideas.

The tension, mostly between small groups of black and white students at Monona Grove High School, has led to the suspension of two white and two black students and has caused parents of minority students to worry about their children's safety.

"I never thought I'd see a situation like this," said Charlie Ellis, equity and diversity coordinator for the Monona Grove School District. "This is absolutely incredible to me." 

Atlanta Ads on Black Abortions May Go National

By Diane Loupe

A billboard campaign in Atlanta sends an incendiary message connection abortion to genocide. If the outreach tactic to black communities is considered a success in Georgia, pro-choice groups believe it will be replicated across the country.

Dr. Vanessa Cullins, vice-president for medical affairs at Planned Parenthood Federation of America, says the people behind the campaign are out to destroy Planned Parenthoods within the African American community. If they succeed in Georgia, says Cullins, they'll use the same tactic nationwide.

Ryan Bomberger of the Radiance Foundation, which designed and coordinates the billboards, says pro-life activists in 10 other states and the District of Columbia want to sponsor the billboards.  Read more...

The vast majority of black children are raised in stable, loving homes

Tracey Reynolds

It's not lone parenting but institutional racism that is failing African Caribbean boys

Tony Sewell claims that "more than racism, I firmly believe that the main problem holding black boys back academically is their overfeminised upbringing" (The boys are too feminised, 16 March). But this falls into the easy route of blaming lone mothers and the absence of fathers for wider problems of institutional racism and structural inequality that black boys (and black girls) encounter in the educational and criminal justice systems.  Read more...

Baby Fat May Not Be So Cute After All

By RONI CARYN RABIN

New research suggests that interventions aimed at school-aged children may be, if not too little, too late.

More and more evidence points to pivotal events very early in life — during the toddler years, infancy and even before birth, in the womb — that can set young children on an obesity trajectory that is hard to alter by the time they’re in kindergarten. The evidence is not ironclad, but it suggests that prevention efforts should start very early.  Read more…

Pig Virus DNA Found in Rotavirus Vaccine

By Daniel J. DeNoon

GlaxoSmithKline's Rotarix rotavirus vaccine contains DNA from an apparently harmless pig virus, the company and the FDA today announced.

The FDA estimates that 1 million U.S. kids have received the Rotarix vaccine.

The contamination was discovered by researchers developing a new technique for detecting viral material. GlaxoSmithKline confirmed that the pig virus, porcine circovirus type 1 or PCV-1, has been in the vaccine since it was developed.  Read more…

NPR Examines CDC Report On Genital Herpes, Black Community

NPR's "All Things Considered" on Friday examined a recent Centers for Disease Control and Prevention analysis showing that roughly 16% of U.S. residents ages 14 through 49 are infected with genital herpes, making it one of the nation's most common sexually transmitted infections. The analysis also showed that 48% of black women between 14 and 49 are infected with the virus, and that blacks have a 39% infection rate, compared with 12% among whites. In addition, 21% of U.S. women are infected with genital herpes, compared with 11% of men.  Read more...

Gender-Bender Chemicals are Turning Boys Into Girls

by: David Gutierrez

The government of Denmark has released a 326-page report affirming that endocrine disrupting chemicals are probably continuing to the birth of fewer males and the "feminization" of existing ones.

The report centers on chemicals like PVC, flame retardants, phthalates, dioxins, PCBs and bisphenol-A, all of which mimic the action of estrogen in the body. The researchers concluded that due to the prevalence of these chemicals, children could easily be exposed to high enough levels to place them at "critical risk" of harm.

The chemicals have been blamed for falling sperm counts among men worldwide, and their full effects remain unknown. A study by researchers at Erasmus University in Rotterdam, Netherlands, found that male children who had been exposed to PCBs and dioxins while in the womb were more likely to dress up in female clothes and play with dolls than boys who had not been. Other research has documented a connection between prenatal phthalate exposure and "feminization" of male genitals, including smaller penises.

Evidence is increasingly emerging that estrogen mimics might also be responsible for a puzzling phenomenon: fewer boys are being born than ever before. Typically, 106 male children are born for every 100 females in most populations. In recent years, however, this distribution has been shifting in favor of females, with endocrine disruptors a likely culprit.  Read more...

Fast food, frighteningly slow decay: Mother keeps McDonald's Happy Meal for a whole year... and it STILL hasn't gone off

Proof, says the American nutritionist who took these photographs, that it contains so many preservatives that it is bad for the children it is aimed at.

Joann Bruso said: 'Food is supposed to decompose, go bad and smell foul eventually. The fact that it has not decomposed shows you how unhealthy it is for children.' Read more...

U.S. kids even fatter than believed, study shows

Extreme obesity among American children is much worse than previously believed, putting them at greater risk of serious health problems as they age, U.S. researchers said on Thursday.

A study of more than 700,000 children and teens in southern California found that more than 6 percent, or 45,000, were extremely obese and more boys than girls were far too heavy, the researchers reported in the Journal of Pediatrics.  Read more...

Rights groups: Social networking sites being used to spread racism, xenophobia

Three European human rights organizations are warning that social networking sites are being used to spread racist and xenophobic views — especially among young people.

In a statement the groups express alarm over an "ever-increasing" use of the Internet by racist groups for recruitment, radicalization, command and control, intimidation and harassment.

It says governments should establish or expand awareness-raising educational programs.  Read more...

Sunday marks the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination.

18- to 24-year-olds most at risk for ID theft, survey finds

By Allison Klein

Identity-theft cases are rising sharply across the country, as young people -- sometimes cavalier with their personal information -- are hit the hardest, according to a survey released last month.

Identity fraud can include stealing a credit card number or opening a bank account in someone else's name. Thieves generally cross state lines in the commission of their crimes and are often linked to rings overseas in places such as Russia and Spain. Read more...

Federal Panel Finds NY Dept. of Education Discriminated Against Arabic School Principal

The federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has ruled the New York City Department of Education discriminated against the founding principal of an Arabic-language school in Brooklyn by forcing her to resign in 2007. In a non-binding ruling, the commission said the city had discriminated against the principal, Debbie Almontaser, “on account of her race, religion and national origin.” We speak with Almontaser and her attorney, Alan Levine.  Read more...


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Black fathers urged to be more involved with children

Black fathers need to become more involved with their children to help tackle social problems among young people, a government minister will say.

Mr Lammy will touch on figures that suggest 59% of black Caribbean and 44% of black African children grow up in single-parent families.

"The mark of a man is not how many children he spawns but how he matches up as a father," he will say.

Mr Lammy will also call for fathers from all backgrounds to remain in touch with their children whatever the relationship with their mothers.

He will say: "Between a quarter and a third of children with separated parents have little or no contact with their fathers.

"It is not just the structure of families that matters. It is whether fathers continue to contribute to their children's lives." Read more...

Simple, low-cost steps enhance adolescents' health

Toni Baker

A positive attitude and family environment increases the effectiveness of the interventions, Dr. Barnes reported in one of three studies presented at the American Psychosomatic Society Annual Meeting in Portland, Ore. The study comparing breathing awareness meditation to health education and life-skills training found that all methods improved blood pressure.

Dr. Barnes, who has studied the impact of mediation on cardiovascular health for more than a decade at MCG, has documented the improved stress reactivity in black adolescents with high normal blood pressures as well as lower blood pressures in black, inner-city adolescents who meditate twice daily.  Read more...

The Nation: The New Jim Crow

by Michelle Alexander

Most people don't like it when I say this. It makes them angry. In the "era of colorblindness" there's a nearly fanatical desire to cling to the myth that we as a nation have "moved beyond" race. Here are a few facts that run counter to that triumphant racial narrative:

• There are more African-Americans under correctional control toda—-- in prison or jail, on probation or parol—-- than were enslaved in 1850, a decade before the Civil War began.

• As of 2004, more African-American men were disenfranchised (due to felon disenfranchisement laws) than in 1870, the year the Fifteenth Amendment was ratified, prohibiting laws that explicitly deny the right to vote on the basis of race.

• A black child born today is less likely to be raised by both parents than a black child born during slavery. The recent disintegration of the African-American family is due in large part to the mass imprisonment of black fathers.

• If you take into account prisoners, a large majority of African-American men in some urban areas have been labeled felons for life. (In the Chicago area, the figure is nearly 80 percent.) These men are part of a growing underca—e -- not class, ca—e -- permanently relegated, by law, to a second-class status. They can be denied the right to vote, automatically excluded from juries, and legally discriminated against in employment, housing, access to education, and public benefits, much as their grandparents and great-grandparents were during the Jim Crow era.  Read more...