Manny Pacquiao, right, and Timothy Bradley during their WBO world welterweight title fight Saturday, June 9, 2012, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo) Boxing fans around the world were shocked as African-American pro boxer Timothy Bradley defeated Pilipino superstar Manny Pacquiao June 9 for the WBO Welterweight title by way of a split decision from the judges. Analysts and fight fans were surprised that the 28-year-o ...

by Stephen D. Riley Special to the NNPA from the Afro-American Newspaper LeBron James and Kevin Durant. Dwyane Wade and Russell Westbrook. The 2012 NBA Finals are set to be a superstar-packed sensation, even without mentioning James Harden, Chris Bosh, Kendrick Perkins and Serge Ibaka. The Miami Heat and Oklahoma City Thunder are on a collision course to what could be the most exciting championship series i ...

Key Verse: “And ye shall hallow the fiftieth year, and proclaim liberty throughout all the land unto all the inhabitants thereof: it shall be a jubilee unto you; and ye shall return every man unto his possession, and ye shall return every man unto his family.” -Leviticus 25:10 FIRST WORDS… As we have made our way to the Torah, this week we find ourselves studying the book of Leviticus where we find this les ...

By Carlee McCullough Special to the NNPA from the Tri-State Defender For many years, African-American churches have been the catalysts of change in society. Churches have pushed the envelope as it relates to spiritual and social issues. Given their collective money, political power and expertise, churches continue to be in a unique position to impact the community from an economic perspective. The challenge ...

Spirit has many ways of expressing itself. One of those channels of expression occurs through music; the melodic, harmonic, rhythmic voice of our soul, reflecting years of feelings and experiences. From early times it has been known as a healing force. We used it to record family histories and communicate between communities. Work songs were used to lessen the harsh conditions of a prison chain gang. Chants ...

by Bobbi Booker Special to the NNPA from The Philadelphia Tribune Philadelphia was the site of this weekend’s fifth annual “Blogging While Brown” conference at the Chemical Heritage Foundation in Old City. Since its launch in 2008, “Blogging While Brown” has grown to become the premier blogging conference dedicated to education, collaboration, and innovation among bloggers of color. Gathering together some ...

By George E. Curry NNPA Columnist When it comes to national elections, no state makes a bigger fool of itself than Florida. The Sunshine state was at the center of an 1876 controversy over the presidential election between Republican Rutherford B. Hayes and Democrat Samuel L. Tilden. By throwing out many votes cast by Blacks, Florida was able to give Hayes a one-vote margin in the Electoral College although ...

By Bill Fletcher, Jr. NNPA Columnist If President Obama wants to win in November he will have to run against the Republican Congress.  He will actually not need to spend his time on Romney.  When you have people like former President Jimmy Carter suggesting that Romney is not that bad, you have a message problem and one that may not be resolvable in the short-term.  On the other hand, as a few people have s ...

Justin Combs, son of hip-hop mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs, took to Twitter this week to defend his full scholarship to UCLA, which the school confirmed this week. Many in cyberspace are questioning whether the multimillionaire’s son should have accepted the $54,000 football scholarship, given the school’s economic troubles. But the 18-year-old said he earned the scholarship. “Regardless what the circumstances a ...

FIRST WORDS… This week’s lesson comes on the heels of us being taught to be just and practice justice as God’s people.  We are to practice the principles that have been laid before us in order to bring glory to God.  This week our lesson challenges us to be selfless and have compassion on one another as God would have us to. TREATING OTHERS RIGHT (v. 9-16) The first outline of this lesson teaches us how to ...