Volume Volume 124 123 No. No. 9 20–22
October 3, 2015 - October 3, 2015, The Afro-American A1 $1.00
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OCTOBER 3, 2015 - OCTOBER 9, 2015
Now What?
Inside
Washington
• Experts Urge D.C.
Photos of the CBCF Annual Legislative Conference
No Smoking Policy Shift
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A5, A6
Baltimore
Leonard Pitts Jr. Talks About His New Book
• $950 Million
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Photo by JD Howard
On Oct. 16, 1995 many converged on the Mall in Washington D.C. Twenty years later, challenges remain.
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The 20th anniversary commemoration of the Million Man March, with the theme of “Justice... or Else!” will take place on Oct. 10 on the National Mall in the District. Nation of Islam Minister Ishmael Muhammad, who is the national assistant minister to Nation of Islam Minister Louis Farrakhan, said that the Million Man March was a historic event, but there is much work to be done to accomplish its’
“We will have some demands that we will put forth to the U.S. Congress in the form of a program.”
– Ishmael Muhammad aims. “Twenty years ago, Black men came to Washington, D.C. under the theme of ‘Atonement,
Continued on A3
Johns Hopkins Unveils Ambitious Strategy to Ignite Baltimore’s Recovery contracting and procurement opportunities targeted at minority, women and disadvantaged-businesses on Sept. 30. The initiative, dubbed HopkinsLocal, was announced during a teleconference hosted by Ronald J. Daniels, Johns
By Shantella Y. Sherman Special to the AFRO ssherman@afro.com
Hopkins University President and Ronald R. Peterson, Johns Hopkins Hospital and Health Systems President. This $135 million applies to the average yearly addressable spend of all construction projects at the university and health system. Addressable spend is the estimated total project cost minus campus infrastructure, fees, specialized lab and clinical equipment, contingency costs,
administration fees, etc. Planning for HopkinsLocal was initiated by the campus and hospital system two years prior to the widespread unrest and violence that stunned the city this past April following the death of Freddie Gray, who died of extensive injuries while in police custody. The initiative will increase the number of new hires from under-served communities at both the University and
the Hospital System, spend more of the institution’s purchasing dollars with minority and women owned vendors, and expand minority, women-owned business and disadvantaged business participation on construction contracts of all sizes. The initial target for HopkinsLocal is to expand hiring on construction activities to “17% in the
Continued on A3
AFRO Career Fair Draws Eager Crowd By AFRO Staff
Mei Turay emigrated to the United States from Sierra Leone as a young boy with his family more than 30 years ago and settled into the District’s Columbia Heights neighborhood with ease. His cultural identification quickly took on that of many native Africans who moved to D.C. in the 1970s – Black American popular culture when among friends, and a strict adherence to Sierra Leonian values at home. “There were certain stereotypes of Africans that I wanted to separate myself from growing up – especially since most often they were negative things like starving Continued on A3
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Reconciliation and Responsibility’,” Muhammad told the AFRO. “We were there, Muslim, Christian, and Hebrew, and we saw each other as brothers. But today, we are facing challenges in the Black community such as widespread death, increased violence, and police violence in our community.” Muhammad said that marchers on Oct. 10 will come back to Washington to make demands on their federal lawmakers. “We want equal justice under the law,” Muhammad said. “We will have some demands that we will be put forth to the U.S. Congress in the
Baltimore Rebuilds
Africans Seek Deeper Cultural Exchange with Black Americans
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By James Wright Special to the AFRO jwright@afro.com
Johns Hopkins University and the Johns Hopkins Hospital and Health System unveiled a $135 million dollar expansion in employment,
Join Host Sean Yoes Monday-Friday 5-7 p.m. on 88.9 WEAA FM, the Voice of the Community.
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Million Man March Marks 20th Anniversary
By Deborah Bailey Special to the AFRO
Listen to Afro’s “First Edition”
Lawsuit over Harassment at Gilmor
More than 1,000 Baltimore area residents crowded into the Reginald F. Lewis Museum in Baltimore on Sept. 22 to meet with 20 potential employers at the The Afro-American Newspaper’s second annual career fair. “I was thrilled to see such overwhelming interest in BGE from attendees of the Diversity in Careers and Education Expo. We Continued on A3
Photo by Anderson Ward
The Afro-American Newspaper’s second career fair drew over 1,000 people looking to connect with employers.
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