eBlast September 8, 2010

1.  Save the Dates:  Our Fall Summit 2010 will be held in Los Angeles, CA during November 11 – 13 where we will launch our Weatherization Contracting and Training Program, Black Student Union Initiative (UCSB) and debut our Black Church Chamber Model (93rd St. Baptist Church, Miami, FL) and our next NBCC Board Meeting.  Our 19th Annual Convention will be held in Miami, FL during July 21 – 23, 2011.  Stay tuned for details of both. 2.  Easy Access to Ghana:  United Air Lines has just started nonstop service to Accra, Ghana from Dulles Airport, Washington, DC.  You can now fly faster to Ghana than to the west coast of the US.  This will awaken us to many business opportunities in the Motherland.  We ask our Ghanaian Board Member, Prosper Adabla, to start suggesting ideas for a trade mission within the next six months.  Let’s get ready! 3.  Business Opportunities in Space:  What are the opportunities for African Americans in the federal government’s New Space Initiatives?  The Honorable Chaka Fattah (PA-2) will chair the Appropriations Subcommittee for these initiatives and invites you to come and hear about them.  He is hosting a formal Space Entrepreneurship Forum on September 15, 2010 during 3:00PM – 5:00PM in Room 2318 Rayburn House Office Building.  Afterwards there will be a reception between 5:00PM – 7:00PM (Room 122, Cannon House Office Building).  We need much more Black participation in this event and you may register at www.juxtopia.org/jurban.  It is free and loaded with key information.  An excellent event during Congressional Black Caucus Week – please consider. 4.  Pan African Partnership:  We are happy to form a partnership with Heritage Link Brands.  Heritage Link Brands is the largest U.S. company dedicated to importing and distributing wine produced by indigenous Africans and people of African descent throughout the world.  Their wines have won accolades from publications, including Wine Spectator and Decanter Magazine, and have been featured by BBC, PBS and Time.  Customers such as American Airlines to Disney share their producers’ fascinating stories with the world.  Keep in mind that this is nothing new.  Wines from South Africa have been produced since the 17th Century.  One of the biggest historical fans was none other than Napoleon Bonaparte.  This is global trading at its finest. www.heritagelinkbrands.com 5.  No to Another Stimulus:  The first massive Stimulus Bill provided no more than 1% of total contracts to African American firms.  Hispanics and white women did little better.  The next Stimulus Appropriation besides adding to our debt and federal deficit will support new Bullet Trains.  There are no Bullet Train manufacturers based in the United States. In effect, this will be a tax funded stimulus for European and Asian companies. This, too, will be a boondoggle.  Thus we say NO!  Congress must end this madness.