MISSION STATEMENT
This committee reviews and addresses all matters regarding gaming,
sports, and entertainment that affect people of color.
GAMING VS GAMBLING
While some people assume the word gaming was created as a way to
"re-invent" the casino industry, history tells a different
story. The word "gaming" - defined as the action or habit
of playing at games of chance for stakes - actually dates back to
1510, predating use of the word "gambling" by 265 years.
The words "gambler," "gambling" and "gamble"
all were considered slang when they came into use in the 18th century,
implying that the activity involved unduly high stakes. The word
"gamble" was essentially considered a term of reproach,
according to The Oxford English Dictionary, and would only be used
by those who "condemn playing for money altogether."
In 1891, even The Anti-Gambling Association referred to
the activity as "gaming" in a publication: "Before
the third crusade, there was no check upon the gaming vice, and
no limit to the stakes. … During subsequent reigns gaming,
although generally condemned, was vigorously pursued."
Casinos in Nevada have been referred to as part of the
"gaming" industry ever since they were legalized there
in 1931. As the industry expanded outside of Nevada, it continued
to carry that name. As opposed to the business term "gaming,"
the word "gamble" is now commonly used to refer to the
actual activity. A 1987 reference dictionary uses the two terms
interchangeably, defining gaming as "the playing of games of
chance for stakes; gambling."
ENTERTAINMENT NEWS
Hip-hop Blasting From College Classrooms
Number of courses more than doubled in 4 yrs
Howard University has joined a growing list of colleges and universities
offering courses in hip-hop.
Georgetown University, Johnson C. Smith University, the University
of Florida, and UCLA are among the institutions of higher learning
where hip-hop scholarship is blaring from classrooms. According
to the Hiphop Archive @ Stanford University, there are about 170
courses offered on the genre up from 75 in 2002.
Hip Hop and the African American Experience, being offered at Howard
this spring will focus on hip-hop’s impact on African Americans
socially, politically, and economically. Another course will allow
graduate level students to research and write papers on the genre.
“Our major goal is to eventually offer the first hip-hop
minor in the country,” says Joshua Kondwani Wright, a Ph.D.
candidate at Howard, who helped create a hip-hop curriculum committee
at the school. Students could acquire the minor and use it in fields
ranging from child psychology to business, Wright says. Another
course, Hip Hop and Black Youth, has been offered since fall of
2005 and is so popular the university may create a companion class.
For more information visit: http://www.blackenterprise.com/exclusivesekopen.asp?id=2240
Back to the Blues
Back to the Blues fundraiser will benefit the Raised Up Right Fund
and will raise money to provide grants in 2006 to nonprofit organizations
working to improve the outlook and opportunities for children in
Arkansas, Louisiana, and Mississippi. One hundred percent of the
proceeds from the event will be used to support these innovative
and under-resourced programs.
For more information visit page 17 at http://www.fndmidsouth.org/Documents/Bridge06Spring.pdf
Hip-Hop Won’t Stop: The Beat, The Rhymes, The Life
Multi-year initiative to gather broad collection on hip-hop culture
and culminate in comprehensive exhibition
Some 30 years after it emerged from the neighborhoods of the South
Bronx, N.Y., hip-hop has evolved into a pervasive and global cultural
phenomenon. During a special ceremony in New York on February 28,
pioneers from the hip-hop community donated objects to “Hip-Hop
Won’t Stop: The Beat, The Rhymes, The Life,” a major
collecting initiative by the Smithsonian’s National Museum
of American History.
For more information visit: http://americanhistory.si.edu/news/factsheet.cfm?key=30&newskey=324
Pause for the Cause
The mission of YELE is to use the potent combination of music and
development to create small-scale, manageable and replicable projects
to contribute to Haiti’s long-term progress. Each initiative
is imbued with the unique power that only music possesses, reflecting
the passion of Wyclef, Yéle’s founder. Whether utilizing
local hip-hop musicians to deliver food in an isolated and forgotten
neighborhood or crafting tunes for the radio to build popular support
for a particular project, each program creatively integrates music
as a central element in project delivery and radiates the essence
of this synergy at its core.
For more information visit: http://www.yele.org/
Congress honored Black Press
A congressional resolution introduced by the leadership of the
Congressional Black Caucus was presented to officials of the National
Newspaper Publishers Association Foundation, sponsors of Black Press
Week, and the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA),
the trade group for the more than 200 Black newspapers.
The resolution will cite the historic role of the Black Press as
the strong, influential voice of the Black community beginning with
the anti-slavery movement and the founding of the first black newspaper,
Freedom's Journal on March 17, l827.
GAMING NEWS
After Pinnacle, It’s Downhill From Here
When Congress passed a bill to curb most online betting, gamblers
protested that the measure was an infringement on their individual
freedoms and that the legislative process had been a travesty.
However, they clung to the hope that the Unlawful Internet Gambling
Enforcement Act might not have a significant effect because regulating
the Internet is practically impossible. Such hopes have now been
dashed. Shortly after the bill was passed, the best-known online
poker site, PartyPoker.com, announced it was exiting the U.S. market.
The worst blow came last week when Pinnacle Sports informed its
U.S. customers that it would no longer accept their wagers on sports,
horses or anything else.
For more information visit http://www.washingtonpost.com/
SPORTS NEWS
Hoping Boys and Girls Can Continue To Play Together
An NCAA committee thinks it's a bad idea for women's basketball
teams to practice against men. Its proposal is receiving the same
kind of response from high school girls' basketball coaches that
it got from NCAA women's basketball coaches:
"Huh?"
High school girls' basketball teams in this area, including many
of the best, on occasion practice against boys' teams, usually the
school's freshman or junior varsity squad. The girls' coaches believe
that such encounters better prepare their players to face other
formidable girls' programs.
For more information visit: http://www.washingtonpost.com
BCA releases third hiring report card for football coaches
In an effort to increase the number of African-American head football
coaches in NCAA Division IA and IAA, the Black Coaches Association
released its third Hiring Report Card. The HRC evaluates five categories
including contact with BCA during the hiring process, efforts to
interview candidates of color, diversity of hiring process, time
frame of actual search and adherence to Institutional Affirmative
Action Hiring Practices. Currently there are give African-American
head football coaches in Division I-A. There are also five coaches
of color in Division I-AA. Out of the 26 (16 I-AA and 10 I-A) schools
included in the study, 12 received a grade of A, three B, two C,
three D and six F.
To view the report card visit www.bcasports.org/.
35 ex-NFL players qualify for dementia-Alzheimer's assistance
NEW YORK (May 30, 2007) -- Gene Upshaw was taken aback when he
first saw the list of retired NFL players applying for financial
help under a new program to help those with dementia and Alzheimer's
disease.
"I played with or against quite a few of these guys,"
the executive director of the NFL players' union said. "I knew
one or two were having problems, but I never knew the extent."
Upshaw, a Hall of Fame guard for the Oakland Raiders from 1968-82,
is one of four people being honored May 31 by the Alzheimer's Association
of New York for helping start the "88" plan. It provides
up to $88,000 from the NFL and the union to help with the care of
players afflicted with dementia or related brain problems.
Since the plan took effect Feb. 1, 35 retired players have been
approved for aid, with 19 more applications pending. That's up from
21 players two months ago, when the league and union were still
trying to go beyond what Upshaw called "word of mouth"
in identifying players.
Now the identification is being done through the Bert Bell retirement
fund, which handles pensions for more than 9,000 retired players,
with the money coming from a trust fund administered by the league
and union. So far, according to the NFL, 103 potential candidates
for aid have been identified. There are 54 applications, and no
one has been turned down. The applications of 19 players who have
not yet been certified are to be reviewed
For more information visit http://www.nfl.com/news/story/10203618
LEGISLATION
Designating each of February 7, 2007, and February 6, 2008, as
`National Women and Girls in Sports Day'. (Introduced in Senate)
- Whereas women's athletics are one of the most effective avenues
available for women of the United States to develop self-discipline,
initiative, confidence, and leadership skills;
- Whereas sports and fitness activities contribute to emotional
and physical well-being;
- Whereas women need strong bodies as well as strong minds;
- Whereas the history of women in sports is rich and long, but
there has been little national recognition of the significance
of women's athletic achievements;
For the rest of the resolution please visit http://thomas.loc.gov/
Keyword Search: Sports, Click on #3
RESOURCES AND LINKS
American Gaming Association
The American Gaming Association (AGA) opened its office
in Washington, D.C., in June 1995 with the fundamental goal of creating
a better understanding of the gaming entertainment industry by bringing
facts about the industry to the general public, elected officials,
other decision makers and the media through education and advocacy.
For More Information visit: http://www.americangaming.org
Mississippi Gaming Commission
The mission of the Mississippi Gaming Commission (MGC)
is to enforce the Gaming Control Act and Charitable Gaming Laws
of the State of Mississippi. The MGC will establish and enforce
regulations under the authority of those laws in such a manner that
will ensure the integrity of the State of Mississippi and maintain
the public confidence in both the charitable gaming and casino gaming
industries by working in conjunction with the industry. The Mississippi
Gaming Commission will work in concert with international, national,
state, county, local regulatory and law enforcement agencies to
establish a safe and crime free environment. In addition, the MGC
will ensure economic development that is in both the best interest
and safety of the citizens of the State of Mississippi.
For more information visit: http://www.mgc.state.ms.us/
Nevada Gaming Commission and State Gaming Control Board
The State Gaming Control Board ("Board") is a
three-member body appointed by the Governor, which serves in a full-time
capacity. The Board is responsible for regulating Nevada's gaming
industry 24 hours a day on a daily basis. Its purpose is to protect
the stability of the gaming industry through investigations, licensing,
and enforcement of laws and regulations; to ensure the collection
of gaming taxes and fees, which are an essential source of state
revenue; and to maintain public confidence in gaming. The Board
implements and enforces the State laws and regulations governing
gaming through seven divisions. The Board has offices in Carson
City, Elko, Las Vegas, Laughlin, and Reno.
Gaming Statutes and Regulations: Nevada Gaming Commission
http://gaming.nv.gov/stats_regs.htm
For more information visit: http://gaming.nv.gov/index.htm
In the Beginning School of Performing Arts
Located right in the heart of Bowie Maryland.
ITB is a music school program geared towards children and their
parents or guardian.
Children are grouped according to age and meet every week for one
hour. There are 36
lessons per year and all the programs emphasize on incorporating
music into a child's
learning environment.
Our mission is to replace violent weapons with musical instruments
into our youth’s
hands. For more information visit www.itbschool.com
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GAMING, SPORTS,
AND ENTERTAINMENT POLICY COMMITTEE