We’ve been spending way more time than we prefer stuck inside lately, and unfortunately it doesn’t seem like that’s going to change any time soon. That doesn’t have to stop us from creating meaningful moments with the loved ones we live with.

Here are 5 Black-owned and operated game companies you and your family can shop with this holiday season. Once you play them, you won’t mind staying in! Let’s have FUN while circulating your dollars within our community. 

Did you know there’s hundreds of games made by black creatives? You can learn more and demo some of them FREE when you register to attend the Black Game Makers Association Expo.

Brilliant or BS?

Brilliant or BS? is the hilarious trivia party game for people who love to call folks out. Get ready to flex your brilliance and your bluffing skills. This family friendly game will test your knowledge and your ability to tell when your fam’s lying to you. The crew will be entertained for hours with 80+ trivia questions in fun categories like Sports, Entertainment and Food & Drink. Be sure to check out the new Brilliant and Black expansion pack that celebrates everything we love about Black culture. 

Financial IQ

Financial IQ has designed a fun and engaging financial flashcard game to help break the generational cycle that hinders us from building generational wealth which is discussing money. When is the last time you had a conversation with your family and friends about finances on income, savings, credit, debt, investing, or expenses? The FiQuestions financial flashcard game comes with 69 questions to help normalize the discussion of finances. Break the cycle! Tradition stops with you! 

Verified The Game

Verified takes social media & flips it into a hilarious & entertaining party card game. The game is simple, be the first player to collect 50K LIKES and 50K FOLLOWERS to win, & become Verified! Time to get your game nights LIT. Answer questions based off Viral Sensations, Hashtags to doing those off the wall & entertaining Challenges we all have come to love on social media.

Trap Wars

Trap Wars® is what your game nights are missing. Unlike most games you play, Trap Wars celebrates black culture. Get your team to guess the word on your card the quickest without using trap words…or your card might get snatched! Trap Wars is a family friendly, travel-size game that is non-stop fun. Pick up The Original Edition or The Black History Edition today! 

Black Wall Street The Board Game

Black Wall Street The Board Game helps your family increase your Financial Literacy and Black History Knowledge at the same time. This game was inspired by the real businesses and events from early 1900’s Tulsa, Oklahoma Black Wall Street— one of the most economically successful communities in American History.

 

 

By Charlene Rhinehart, via Black Enterprise

Joe Ligon was finally released from prison after serving 68 years. Ligon, now 82, is the country’s oldest juvenile lifer in the United States.

“We waste people’s lives by over-incarcerating, and we waste money by over-incarcerating. His case graphically demonstrates the absurdity of wasting each,” Bradley Bridge, a lawyer with the Defender Association of Philadelphia, told The Philadephia Inquirer. “Hopefully his release, and the release of the juvenile lifers in general, will cause a reevaluation of the way we incarcerate people.”

Bradley has represented Ligon since 2006. On Thursday morning, the lawyer picked Ligon up from the State Correctional Institution Phoenix in Montgomery County to take him to his new home.

From Philadelphia School to Prison

Ligon was just a teenager in the 1950s. The world was in a period of civil unrest, battling the impacts of discrimination and segregation. There was also an influx of African Americans who moved from the South to the North. Ligon, a young boy raised on a farm in Alabama, found himself in the Philadelphia school system in the early 1950s at the age of 13.

This was before the landmark Brown v. Board of Education case in 1954, which officially declared racial segregation in public schools unconstitutional. Many of the Black schools in Philadelphia and around the country experienced the impacts of educational inequity.  Ligon, a young boy without a solid education, was left behind in the system. According to The Philadelphia Inquirer, Ligon “couldn’t keep up” and was still illiterate at the age of 15.

With the growing levels of poverty, unemployment, abandoned buildings, and racial division, Ligon found himself at the wrong place at the wrong time. He was involved in a series of robberies and assaults that left two people dead. The 15-year-old was with a group of drunk teens when it all happened. Although he admits his participation, Ligon denies accusations of killing anyone.

Unfortunately, this moment led to an arrest that would leave him behind bars for the rest of his life. Arrested in 1953 at the age of 15, he is now opening his eyes to a new world.

A Different World

I’m looking at all the tall buildings,” Ligon said. “This is all new to me. This never existed.”

Ligon spent most of his days in prison honing his janitorial skills, learning to read and write, and training as a boxer. He never applied for parole although many tried to convince him to do so.

A Supreme Court Decision eventually declared automatic lifetime terms for kids cruel and unusual. The court offered lifetime parole terms. But Ligon refused the offer.

“I like to be free,” he said. “With parole, you got to see the parole people every so often. You can’t leave the city without permission from parole. That’s part of freedom for me.”

But now, Ligon will have a chance to experience life beyond the bars. He left the prison with 12 boxes in his hand ready to explore the new world.

Cori Gordon, 28, never imagined she’d become one of Amazon’s youngest Delivery Service Partners when she migrated to the U.S. from Jamaica in 2013.   Bright-eyed and eager post completing her studies at Northern Caribbean University, Cori began her professional career working in the retail and automotive industries before realizing she had a penchant for entrepreneurship.

“I experienced burn out working 80 plus hours for someone else,” Cori says.  “After a bit of soul searching, I realized it was important for me to direct all those hours of energy into something I owned.”

Cori searched online for business opportunities that presented a built-in customer base and a clear track for success.  “I knew right away the Amazon Delivery Service Partner program could be a great fit for me,” Cori says.  “Everyone knows and loves the company and though I hadn’t led my own company before, the training and development resources they offered inspired me to apply.”

In 2018, Amazon launched the Delivery Service Partner (DSP) program to share its experience in operations and logistics with aspiring entrepreneurs. The program empowers entrepreneurs to build their own last mile delivery companies from the ground up with Amazon’s support, infrastructure, technology, and a suite of exclusive services.  In the two years since its inception, these thriving entrepreneurs have experienced remarkable growth, with more than 1,300 DSPs operating across the U.S., Canada, UK, Spain, and Germany and nearly 85,000 jobs created. 

Cori’s DSP, Cortoyou operates out of Amazon’s newly launched delivery station in Staten Island and delivers to customers in her home borough of Brooklyn.  “The most fulfilling thing about being a DSP owner is being a job provider,” Gordon says.  “It’s such an honor for me and I get so excited when an employee gets a new car, or a new phone, because I know their employment with my company is helping them reach their goals.” 

The breadth of diversity in the program has been inspiring.  Owners include military veterans, former sellers on Amazon.com, educators, city council members, and many others who come from a variety of backgrounds. They are great coaches and mentors who have built customer obsessed teams that have delivered more than 1.8 billion packages worldwide, using more than 40,000 Prime branded last mile vehicles—from electric vehicles to step vans to delivery vans—generating more than $4.5 billion in revenue for their small businesses.

In August, Amazon announced a new diversity grant to help reduce the barriers to entry for Black, Latinx, and Native American entrepreneurs interested in starting a DSP.  With the launch of this grant program, Amazon is investing in building a future for diverse business owners to serve their communities. The $1 million commitment funds startup costs, offering $10,000 for each qualified candidate to build their own DSP businesses in the U.S.  Those interested in applying can visit logistics.amazon.com.

As the eldest child of nine, Cori knew she had a knack for leading, but she never guessed she’d be in a position to employ more than 50 drivers and make history as an Amazon business partner.  “I hope my story inspires young people of color to look into the program and evaluate if they’re ready to align with a company driven by customer obsession and delivering results,” Cori says.  “The journey has been amazing thus far.”   

The? Pan African Film & Arts Festival (PAFF)? is excited to announce its added a special screening of Gregory Everett’s award-winning documentary 41st and Central: The Untold Story of the L.A. Black Panthers to this year’s schedule.

PAFF will take place virtually February 28 to March 14. Tickets and passes are available at www.paff.org/plans. Early bird discount pricing has concluded as of February 13.

As a tribute to the late filmmaker, who tragically lost his battle with COVID-19 on January 24 of this year, PAFF will host a global screening fundraiser supporting his family on February 20 at 5 p.m. PT.

41st and Central: The Untold Story of the L.A. Black Panthers was the first part in a documentary series that follows the Southern California Chapter of the Black Panther Party for Self Defense from its glorious Black Power beginnings through to its tragic demise. The film explores the Black Panther ethos, its conflict with the L.A.P.D. and the U.S. Organization, as well as the events that shaped the complicated and often contradictory legacy of the L.A. chapter.

This special screening is sponsored in part by The Cochran Firm California.

41st and Central: The Untold Story of the L.A. Black Panthers, winner of the 2010 Pan African Film Festival’s Audience Favorite Documentary, features exclusive interviews from Black Panther party leaders Geronimo Ji Jagga, Elaine Brown, and Kathleen Cleaver, retired Los Angeles City Councilmember and former L.A.P.D. Police Chief Bernard Parks. The film was the first part of a documentary series by filmmaker Gregory Everett that follows the Southern California Chapter of the Black Panther Party for Self Defense from its glorious Black Power beginnings through to its tragic demise. The film explores the Black Panther ethos, its conflict with the L.A.P.D. and the U.S. Organization, and the events that shaped the complicated and often contradictory legacy of the L.A. chapter.

Using exclusive interviews with former Black Panther Party members along with archival footage detailing the history of racism in Los Angeles, including the Watt’s Uprising, 41st & Central: The Untold Story of the L.A. Black Panthers, has been called the most in-depth study ever of the murders of L.A. Chapter founder Alprentice “Bunchy” Carter and John Huggins at U.C.L.A. The documentary includes first-hand accounts of the Party’s formation as told by the original surviving members and eyewitness accounts of the murders at U.C.L.A. Also featured in the film are former Black Panther members Ericka Huggins, Roland & Ronald Freeman, Wayne Pharr, Jeffrey Everett, Long John Washington, US Organization member Wesley Kabaila, U.C.L.A. Professor Scot Brown, and Bernie Morris, oldest brother of Bunchy Carter.

Visit www.paff.org for more information and remember PAFF will take place virtually February 28 – March 14. Tickets and passes are available at www.paff.org/plans. Early bird discount pricing concludes February 13.

Ameer Natson, celebrity chef, entrepreneur, and founder of the Become Creative Agency is set to launch a co-working space and culinary kitchen for Black creatives and aspiring chefs in New Jersey, a first- of-its kind in the Garden State. As a son of Newark, NJ, affectionately known as “Brick City”, Ameer has used every brick of life to build a brand committed to making impact and delivering results for his community.

Ameer has executed culinary experiences for a Who’s Who in the sports, film and entertainment industry, feeding the likes of Beyoncé, JAY-Z, Queen Latifah, Oprah, Pharrell, Lebron James, Chris Tucker and Blair Underwood to name a few! After quickly being identified as one of the hottest up-and-coming chefs, Ameer landed the opportunity to develop a show with Backroads Entertainment for The Food Network called HELP YOURSELF! He is America’s down-to-earth chef, and has been featured on BBC, ARISE 360 TV, NBC and BET.

More importantly, Ameer has used his experiences traveling the world to focus on what is needed most in communities that resemble where he has come from. Ameer founded Become Creative Agency, a full-service creative and marketing agency that hires local talent from inner city communities.

Ameer Natson believes that his story is proof that success is NOT about resources or circumstances. He says, “I graduated from the school of hard knocks with a degree in perseverance. It’s about being resourceful and creative. It’s about the conviction to charge ahead in spite of the challenges and critics. My commitment is to communities that look like mine and to the young people who may have been told they were never enough. I want my Ameer Natson communities, my Black communities to know we are rich with innovation and talent and my young people to know that the sky is the limit.”

Last summer during the COVID19 pandemic, Ameer partnered with the World Central Kitchen, Chefs For America and Chef José Andrés to donate and distribute more than 67,000 meals throughout the city of Newark, NJ. This past Thanksgiving, Ameer and team got to work again and prepared and delivered more than 5,000 meals as part of his annual 5000 Thankful Souls Community Thanksgiving program, an initiative he has led for several years.

This Spring, Ameer will open “Become” a creative co-working space for Black and Brown creatives. This space will include a media room, a recording space, and a kitchen where the genius of culinary imagination can expound.

“My dream is to ensure that my community, our communities are reliant and self-sufficient. I can’t wait to open the doors and help people turn their dreams and aspirations into reality.” Ameer says.

Seniors 65 and over will soon have additional opportunities to get vaccinated against COVID-19 as the County continues to make seniors its highest vaccination priority.

In addition to yesterday’s successful Auto Club Speedway mass-vaccination event, which resulted in 3,235 people – mostly seniors – getting vaccinated, the County this week will open several weeks of vaccination appointments for seniors and announce plans to open more community vaccination centers. The County also plans to launch a mobile vaccination program to serve seniors close to home. The County will also address the issues that led to traffic headaches at yesterday’s speedway event in time for the next mass-vaccination event.

“Seniors are most at-risk from COVID-19. That’s why the County has no higher priority than making sure we quickly reach and serve everyone in our county 65 and over,” said Board of Supervisors Chairman Curt Hagman.

While prioritizing seniors the County continues to make progress through the State Vaccination Roadmap. The County learned this week that all police officers and firefighters working in the county who want to be vaccinated have been provided with vaccination opportunities. The County has also implemented a strategy that allows vaccinations for teachers currently conducting in-person instruction or who plan to return to the classroom during the current school year, without disrupting service to seniors.

For several weeks the County has worked closely with County Superintendent of Schools Ted Alejandre, public school districts, and private schools throughout the county to develop strategies for vaccinating teachers. Schools and districts will work with their local vaccine providers to serve their eligible teachers rather than create competition between seniors and teachers for appointments online.

“The County’s wise management of vaccines and productive partnerships with vaccine providers such as hospitals and pharmacies are helping us to begin creating a safe environment for teachers and students, which is essential in our efforts to control the virus and return our communities to normal life,” said Hagman. “Best of all, we are doing this in a way that does not interfere with the availability of appointments to seniors.”

The West Coast Premiere of an ambitious filmed song cycle dedicated to the celebration of Black artistic voices, Breathing Free. One man’s experience with being Black in America, and the fight for racial justice…Still. Blake Hill-Saya talks about her biography of her great, great grandfather, Dr. Aaron McDuffie Moore, co-founder of Durham, North Carolina’s famed Black Wall Street.

The Broad Stage Presents The West Coast Premiere of
Heartbeat Opera’s Breathing Free

An ambitious filmed song cycle dedicated to the celebration of Black artistic voices.

Wednesday, February 10 at 7pm PT
Saturday, February 13 at 7pm PT

Featuring 9 interconnected music videos with music from
Beethoven’s Fidelio, Negro spirituals and works by Harry T. Burleigh, Florence Price, Langston Hughes, Anthony Davis and Thulani Davis.

Each screening will be followed by a live panel discussion with artists and advocates highlighting themes surfaced in Breathing Free relating to incarcerated populations.

Tickets and info at thebroadstage.org/breathingfree.

Heartbeat Opera, the radical indie opera company “leading the charge in online opera” (Parterre) with “groundbreaking” virtual content (Operawire) that is “hacking the corporate contours of Zoom into a postmodern proscenium” (Washington Post)—announces the West Coast Premiere of Breathing Free, an ambitious filmed song cycle dedicated to the celebration of Black artistic voices.

Breathing Free builds on Heartbeat’s 2018 collaboration with 100 incarcerated singers in six prison choirs, part of a contemporary Fidelio told through the lens of Black Lives Matter—a production that left Alex Ross of The New Yorker “blindsided by its impact.” Created in a time of George Floyd’s murder, a pandemic which is ravaging our prison population, and the 250th anniversary of Beethoven’s birth—Heartbeat has curated a song cycle brought to life in vivid music videos, mingling excerpts from Fidelio with songs by Black composers and lyricists, which together manifest a dream of justice and equity.

This 45-minute “visual album” features three singers, three dancers, eight instrumentalists and a robust creative production team. Rehearsed remotely on Zoom, the cast has recorded their individual audio tracks at home, with the music team then layering the tracks together. Heartbeat’s filmmaker Anaiis Cisco collaborates with cinematographers to film the performers in New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles.

The presentation will be livestreamed along with live opening remarks and post-screening panel discussions with artists and activists highlighting the timely themes surfaced in Breathing Free. Audience Q&A will follow the panels. Participants for each panel are TBD. The Broad Stage provided additional support for the creation of this work.

CREATIVE TEAM
Director: Ethan Heard
Filmmaker: Anaiis Cisco
Creative producer: Ras Dia
Co-Music Director and Arranger (Fidelio): Daniel Schlosberg
Co-Music Director: Jacob Ashworth
Movement Director: Emma Jaster

Director of Photography: Kathryn Boyd Batstone (Los Angeles)
1st AC/Gaffer: Celine Layous (Los Angeles)
Director of Photography: Jacob Mallin (New York & Chicago)
1st AC/Gaffer: Matt Iacono (New York & Chicago)
Associate Movement Director: Tamrin Goldberg
Arranger (Malcolm X, Balm in Gilead) & Associate Music Director: Sean Mayes
Stage Manager: Jessica Emmanus
Assistant Director: Mar Cox
Sound Editor: Gleb Kanasevich
Sound Mixer: Sam Torres
Music Assistant, Orchestra Manager & Copyist: Mona Seyed-Bolorforosh

CAST
Derrell Acon, bass-baritone
Curtis Bannister, tenor
Kelly Griffin, soprano
Randy Castillo, Tamrin Goldberg, Brian HallowDreamz Henry, dancers

Also featuring the voices of more than 100 incarcerated singers and 70 volunteers 
from six prison choirs: Oakdale Community Choir, KUJI Men’s Chorus, UBUNTU Men’s Chorus, 
HOPE Thru Harmony Women’s Choir, East Hill Singers and Voices of Hope

BAND
Jacob Ashworth, violin 
Marika Hughes, cello 
Miki Sasaki, trumpets
Kyra Sims, horn 
Thomas Flippin, guitars 
Britton-René Collins, percussion 
Daniel Schlosberg, piano 
Jason Thomas, piano

Prisoners Chorus features: Laura Weiner (horn), Nicolee Kuester (horn), Clare Monfredo (cello), 
Daniel Hass (cello), Euntaek Kim (piano) and Ben Cornavaca (percussion)

More Information:

Tickets are “Pay What You Wish” starting at $10 and can be purchased at thebroadstage.org.

For further assistance, call Patron Services at 310.434.3200 or email patronservices@thebroadstage.org.

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One man’s experience with being Black in America,
and the fight for racial justice…Still.

In a time of civil unrest, political uncertainty and the inability to produce on stage, Pasadena Playhouse has launched PlayhouseLive with Still., a very personal performance sharing the experiences of a Black man at a pivotal time in our nation’s history, commissioned by the Pasadena Playhouse. Written and performed by spoken word artist Javon Johnson and directed by Donny Jackson, Still. blends powerful imagery witty prose and beautiful lyricism in this timely, powerful theatrical experience. 

“This is an unprecedented time for our nation,” stated Danny Feldman, producing artistic director of the Pasadena Playhouse. He continues, “At times of national reckoning, the arts have played a major catalyst in sparking conversation. After the tragic murder of George Floyd and all the other countless Black men and women who have come before and after, the arts have been challenged to find a way to bring people together in a safe, socially distant way to talk about these issues. In that spirit, we launched PlayhouseLive, a nonprofit streaming platform, to use our art to speak to the nation and give voice to those in our community when it is needed the most. Still. brings support for the Black Lives Matter movement front and center; it is a  condemnation of systemic racism in our nation through Javon’s powerful words.”

When asked about the title, Still., award-winning artist Javon Johnson stated, “What I love about the title of the show is the way in which is calls for the fact that Black folks, that Blackness that the Black liberations efforts are still ongoing. That we’re still dealing with racism, racial inequality and injustice.  That we’re still dealing with the things that we thought, at least some of us, thought we were past. That we are still fighting. That we are still marching in the street. That we are still demanding for fairness, for equality. But even more than that, that we are still joyous. That Black folks still love. That we still laugh. That we still persevere in spite of the fact that some of the ways in which the world exists has tried to announce us dead upon arrival. But that we are still here living and engaging one another. That we are still giving the system graciously the opportunity to prove itself to us.  And even more, I think of still in the very biblical sense of ‘be still and know.’ That’s not a be still and know and not do anything, that’s to stand righteousness in the position that you are and just know that tomorrow will come. That something better will come with the work that so many people are putting in…still.“

More Information:

Still. can be rented through PlayhouseLive for $19.99 and is available. After the initial purchase, Still. can be watched on any of the PlayhouseLive apps including Apple OS, Android OS, Roku, FireTV and more. Closed captioning will be available in both English and Spanish.

Additional information about PlayhouseLive and its programming, including new announcements and pricing specials, is available at www.playhouselive.org.

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For Black History Month
Caltech launches Behind the Book, their new author series

Blake Hill-Saya
talks about her biography of her great, great grandfather,
Dr. Aaron McDuffie Moore, co-founder of Durham, North Carolina’s famed Black Wall Street

Monday, February 1 at 5:00 p.m. PT

Registration required for this online event:
https://events.caltech.edu/btb_blake

CaltechLive! is excited to begin Black History Month with biracial author Blake Hill-Saya as she discusses her recent nonfiction book, Aaron McDuffie Moore: An African American Physician, Educator, and Founder of Durham’s Black Wall Street, live on Monday, February 1 at 5 p.m. PT.

This event is the first in the Behind the Book authors series, which facilitates conversations with authors who explore the intersections of the arts, science, and society through the lens of family histories. Hill-Saya will be interviewed by Monique Thomas, program coordinator at the Caltech Center for Inclusion & Diversity.

Moore, who was Hill-Saya’s great-great-grandfather, was a physician, businessman, humanitarian, and co-founder of Durham, North Carolina’s famed Black Wall Street. He was a primary figure in establishing the city as the capital of the African American middle class in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

Aaron McDuffie Moore: An African American Physician, Educator, and Founder of Durham’s Black Wall Street is published by University of North Carolina Press (May 18, 2020). It was co-written by G. K. Butterfield, U.S. representative for the 1st District of North Carolina, and C. Eileen Watts Welch, president and CEO of Durham Colored Library, Inc.

More Information:

Free and open to the public. Information at events.caltech.edu

Advance Zoom webinar registration is required.
Register at: https://events.caltech.edu/btb_blake

San Bernardino City Unified School District (SBCUSD) knows that some students and families are still adjusting to distance learning. To help support students, SBCUSD has been offering a free, virtual CAPS Expanded Learning experience that includes homework assistance every school day.

Although different from in-person CAPS, the virtual program continues to offer educational support for students of all ages and academic levels. In addition to homework assistance, CAPS staff provide students with fun enrichment activities that can be especially beneficial for students’ emotional and mental health during the COVID lockdowns.

CAPS sessions begin at 2:30 p.m. for middle school students and select high school students and at 3:30 p.m. for elementary school students, with homework assistance offered from 5 to 6 p.m. After logging in, students directed toward Zoom breakout sessions to provide support geared toward their needs.

Every week, students should receive an invitation with a Zoom meeting link via Google Classroom sent to their District-provided email address. Each school provides its own CAPS Zoom link, so students need to check their own email address for the link and not just use a sibling’s meeting link. “Join CAPS” will be in the email subject line.

For more information, visit https://sbcusd.com/district_offices/student_services/caps.

April 28, 1934-January 20, 2021

Dr. Amos Isaac, a retired educator and lifelong community leader, passed away at the age of 86. Final arrangements are entrusted to the care of Tillman Riverside Mortuary. Visitation will be at Tillman Riverside Mortuary on Thursday, February 11, 2021 from 10 am to 11 am. Due to COVID gathering restrictions, no more than 25 individuals may attend. Private graveside services will be held on February 11, 2021, at Riverside National Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be sent to New Hope Missionary Baptist Church’s Scholarship Fund at 1575 West 17th St, San Bernardino, CA 92411. Tillman Riverside Mortuary 2874 Tenth St, Riverside, CA 92507. For more information, please call 951-682-6433.