African American

CINCINNATI - The Rev. Chris Beard is a theological conservative, make no mistake about it. He believes the Bible is the word of God. He believes the Holy Spirit speaks to him directly. He believes, as an article of faith, that abortion and same-sex marriage are wrong. Still, when a group of religious leaders in Ohio held two days of meetings in Cincinnati recently to talk about economic and racial justice, issues usually associated with the political left, there was Beard, a fourth-generation Pentecostal preacher with a disarming smile, a shaved head and a set of convictions that knock holes in the stereotypes about white evangelical Protestants.

The United States has reached a historic tipping point, with children born to Latino, Asian, African American and mixed-race parents now constituting a majority of all births, the Census Bureau reported Thursday. The long-expected demographic shift is considered a milestone for the nation, though one that California passed three decades ago when births to racial and ethnic minorities surpassed those to white parents. The new report shows that minorities accounted for about 2 million, or 50.4%, of U.S. births in the 12 months ending July 1 of last year.

As President Obama began selling his new jobs package, he was pressed Wednesday from both the left and the right, with Republicans warning about ballooning deficits and black lawmakers seeking bolder action on an unemployment rate that approaches 16% for African Americans. Partisan tensions surfaced at a private White House meeting with congressional leaders of both parties. In an unusually aggressive move, Obama opened the meeting by accusing Republicans of "rooting against" an economic recovery, according to an account provided by Republican aides.

President Obama's conversion from nay to yay on same-sex marriage raises an interesting political question: What happens to his support among black voters who, in most states where the issue has been on the ballot, have been overwhelmingly against it? In spite of eloquent pleas from NAACP chapters and progressive black clergy, the black electorate remains unmoved. In fact, until his announcement Wednesday, Obama's views seem to have been shaped by that same community, especially the black church.

'Brooklyn's' fine opening "Alice in Wonderland," made the competition seem small in its opening weekend, but the cop drama "Brooklyn's Finest" managed to do solid business, largely by appealing to African American moviegoers in big cities. Overture Films opened the Antoine Fuqua- directed film, which stars Richard Gere, Don Cheadle, Ethan Hawke and Wesley Snipes to a respectable $13.5 million in the U.S. and Canada this weekend. According to exit polls, 86% of attendees were nonwhite and an estimated 60% were African American.

African-American children may be at higher risk for food allergies, a study finds, but race may not be the only factor. Children from various ethnic backgrounds were tested for food allergies to determine if race or genetic ancestry were risk factors. Among 1,104 children (average age 2.7), 60.9% were black, 22.5% were Hispanic, 5.9% were white and 10.8% were other races. Researchers discovered that black children were more apt to have food allergies, and that being of African ancestry was linked with a greater chance of having a peanut allergy.

Roy DeCarava, an art photographer whose pictures of everyday life in Harlem helped clarify the African American experience for a wider audience, has died. He was 89.He died Tuesday in New York City, his daughter Wendy DeCarava said. The cause was not given. DeCarava (pronounced Dee-cuh-RAH-vah) photographed Harlem during the 1940s, '50s and '60s with an insider's view of the subway stations, restaurants, apartments and especially the people who lived in the predominantly African American neighborhood.

Burl Toler, the first African American game official in NFL history, has died. He was 81. Toler died Sunday at a hospital in Castro Valley, Calif., according to the University of San Francisco. He was a star lineman and linebacker on the Dons' 1951 football team that was denied a bowl bid despite a 9-0 record because it refused to leave its two black players -- Toler and Ollie Matson -- behind. "We were disappointed at the time, sure," Toler told the San Francisco Chronicle in 2001.

Avery Clayton, who carried on the work of his mother, Mayme Clayton, by establishing a library and museum in Culver City for her major collection of African American artifacts, died Thanksgiving Day. He was 62. Clayton, a retired art teacher, died suddenly of unknown causes while hosting a holiday gathering at his Culver City home, said Evelyn Davis, a family spokeswoman. The collection assembled by his mother -- a college librarian who haunted garage sales and then often packed her finds into the garage behind her humble West Adams home -- is a treasure trove of rare books, manuscripts, photographs, feature films and other ephemera.

Re "Teen Denies Provoking Police Jabs," July 31: I am a white man who has lived with a black person for nearly 20 years. I have seen the background features of this Inglewood incident--the teen being told to drop his potato chips, five officers involved, handcuffing for an expired license check--countless times with my roommate, his family and friends. The enormous show of force by the officers, who it seems weren't otherwise paying attention to anything going on, has never happened to me or my family.

Willie Robert Middlebrook, a photographer who sought to enlarge public perceptions of the African American community through painterly depictions of its people and places, died Saturday at Brotman Medical Center in Culver City. He was 54. The cause was complications of a stroke suffered last month, said his daughter, Jessica Middlebrook. Middlebrook's death came just a week after the unveiling at the new Expo/Crenshaw Metro station of one of his largest public installations, a series of 24 mosaic panels based on his photographs.

NEW YORK - Director-choreographer Susan Stroman is standing with arms folded, watching a group of dancers run through a number. They have the great athleticism and some serious lung power, all of which is way too big for the rehearsal room. But it won't feel that way once they're onstage. "Make it a small step," Stroman says. "Make it nice and easy. Don't make a big deal out of it. " Facing a mirror, she demonstrates the Charleston. She doesn't make a big deal out of it, even though most 57-year-olds can't move that way. In fact, as she stops the dancers to tweak a position or deliver direction, she doesn't make a big deal out of anything.

A powerful, personal portrait of history's unfolding and its effect on the future, the documentary "Booker's Place: A Mississippi Story" is in equal measure a look at two families, the ongoing legacy of America's recent past and an essay on one man's moment of transformative courage. Director Raymond De Felitta (his last fiction feature was"City Island") does a noteworthy job of allowing those separate topics to feel distinct and give each equal consideration. In 1965, De Felitta's father Frank traveled to Greenwood, Miss., to make a documentary for NBC News.

LeRoy Walker, the first African American to lead the U.S. Olympic Committee and the first black man to coach an American Olympic team, died Monday in Durham, N.C. He was 93. Walker's death was confirmed by Scarborough & Hargett Funeral home, but no cause was given. The grandson of slaves, Walker led the U.S. Olympic Committee from 1992 to 1996, shepherding the Summer Games staged in his native Atlanta and leading the group when the 2002 Winter Olympics were awarded to Salt Lake City.

TULSA, Okla. - In the wake of what locals are calling the Good Friday Shootings, dozens of worried residents from Tulsa's mostly black north side attended an NAACP meeting in the heart of their troubled neighborhood for some truth-telling. Yes, they were relieved that two men had been arrested in the shootings that left three African Americans dead and two wounded. They were pleased that the glare of the national spotlight was forcing local officials to work with black leaders.

Elizabeth Catlett, a sculptor and printmaker who was widely considered one of the most important African American artists of the 20th century despite having lived most of her life in Mexico, has died. She was 96. Catlett, whose sculptures became symbols of the civil rights movement, died Monday at her home in Cuernavaca, Mexico, said her eldest son, Francisco. Her imposing blend of art and social consciousness mirrored that of German painter Max Beckmann, Mexican muralist Diego Rivera and other artists of the mid-20th century who used art to critique power structures.

Since Nov. 7, there has been a great deal of discussion about the size and the impact of the African American vote in the 2000 presidential elections. Most of the commentary has been positive, but not all. There are voices, mostly on the right, that persist in characterizing African American voters as blindly loyal to the Democrats, following them like lemmings to the sea. This portrayal could not be more untrue.

Irene Baumann smiled Tuesday as she applauded lively performances by African American entertainers and strolled Fullerton College's quad, which was filled with music, vendors and the aroma of barbecued ribs and chicken. The 54-year-old student was one of about 100 people attending the school's first "African American Showcase Festival," sponsored by the campus Black Student Union.

Only his number is retired - 33, in the Lakers' purple and gold that Kareem Abdul-Jabbar wore to glory on the basketball court. The rest of him is still working away, most recently on his latest book. At UCLA, in blue and gold, Abdul-Jabbar was a standout, an All American and player of the year - and a history major, which has served him well in his literary career. Some of his books have made it to the bestseller list, and this one, "What Color Is My World? The Lost History of African-American Inventors," is a children's volume with adult appeal.

Relatives of a Riverside high school freshman who was shot and killed near his grandmother's house pleaded Monday for the public's help to solve the random attack. Lareanz Simmons, 14, was killed on the evening of Feb. 23 by a young Latino gunman who stepped out of a car, walked up to him and opened fire, according to police. The shooting breaks years of relative calm in an area of Riverside that has a history of violent clashes between rival black and Latino gangs. Racial tensions have escalated since the shooting, which occurred in Riverside's eastside neighborhood, where police have responded to an apparent increase in shootings and confiscated an increasing number of firearms being stockpiled by parolees and crime suspects, authorities said.