Category Archives: African Americans

Taking Applications for “Open Scene,” IMC’s Youth Media Project

Posted on 10/16/2016 by Public i

The Urbana-Champaign Independent Media Center (UCIMC) and the City of Urbana are happy to launch Open Scene, a project to reimagine downtown Urbana through arts-based dialogues led by youth. Open Scene will be anchored at the UCIMC, a media and … Continue reading →

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CU Schools Need to Work Harder to Involve African American Parents

Posted on 09/02/2016 by Deloris Henry

During the month of August, thousands of children will head back to schools in Champaign Unit 4 and Urbana 116 school districts. Many African American families and students are probably anxious about the new school year because of issues they … Continue reading →

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We Don’t Need a New Jail, We Need Abolition

Posted on 09/02/2016 by Kadeem Fuller

Speaking to the Champaign County Board on Tuesday, August 9th, local Black organizer/activist, Kadeem Fuller made a much needed case for the abolition of jails, prisons, and white supremacy. The following is a transcript of his speech.  Tonight I sit … Continue reading →

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May Day Rally on Quad

Posted on 05/27/2016 by Public i

“This is what solidarity looks like.” May Day rally on the U of I Quad.

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The Myron Scruggs Case and the Champaign Police Department

Posted on 05/27/2016 by Belden Fields

by Belden Fields An  Ugly Image From the Past In the late 1960s, I joined the newly created chapter of the Champaign County ACLU and became the chair of its investigations committee. I received a call from a woman member … Continue reading →

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Racism and Mass Incarceration in the US Heartland: Historical Roots of the New Jim Crow

Posted on 05/27/2016 by James Kilgore

If asked what state had the highest rate of incarceration rate of black men, most people would likely cite somewhere in the old Confederacy, perhaps Mississippi or Louisiana. They would be about 1000 miles too far South. According to labor … Continue reading →

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Black Lives Matter C-U Summer Activities

Posted on 05/27/2016 by Public i

Social justice collective, Black Lives Matter, the Champaign-Urbana chapter, has been gaining further traction within their outreach. From demonstrations and panel meetings, to youth involvement and local radio shows, Black Lives Matter’s efforts continue to make striving progress throughout the … Continue reading →

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Incarceration figures

Posted on 05/27/2016 by Public i

Some figures compiled in the Coalition for Prisoners’ Rights Newsletter (April 2016). Reprinted with Permission. I. Number Incarcerated in U.S., 2014 1.5 million people at an annual per person cost of $80 billion–approximately $51,250 each. (A “free world” minimum wage of $15/hr … Continue reading →

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Nigerian Man Connects with African American and Caribbean Cousins Through AncestryDNA

Posted on 04/25/2016 by LaKisha David

“My maternal grandmother told me … that way back in time, we had family members who went to the stream to fetch water and never returned. This stuck in my psyche for all those years,” said Ade. As a young … Continue reading →

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Youth Poetry

Posted on 04/25/2016 by Public i

MY CURLY HAIR by Amina Alamin My curly hair can do anything it can be in big braids and in little braids and curled in to ringlets and many more things. Some people don’t like my hair and some people … Continue reading →

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#BlackLivesMatter Founder Opal Tometi Visits C-U

Posted on 03/11/2016 by Brian Dolinar
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“Old” Urban Renewal in Champaign-Urbana, 1960-1969

Posted on 03/11/2016 by Natalie Prochaska

Forcing people to move from their homes is one of the most intrusive exercises of state power. It is difficult to overstate the combined financial and psychological impacts that the loss of a home has on an individual. It is … Continue reading →

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Rantoul Jr. High Hosts 1st NAAPID Event

Posted on 03/11/2016 by Neil Parthun

National African American Parent Involvement Day (NAAPID) is a national event that started in 1995 as the brainchild of long time Michigan principal Joseph Dulin. He was inspired to take action after attending the Million Man March and a speaker … Continue reading →

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Supporting the Voices Inside: The Freedom Archives

Posted on 01/28/2016 by Nathaniel Moore

“When the prison doors are opened the real dragon will fly out.” -Ho Chi Minh The movements to end mass incarceration were re-invigorated in early September as a settlement in the class action lawsuit Ashker v. Governor of California was … Continue reading →

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Children With Incarcerated Parents Played Key Role in Phone Justice Victory!

Posted on 11/19/2015 by Brian Dolinar

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) voted recently to cap the rates of phone calls from prisons and jails after years of profiteering by telecommunications companies that have made millions off of those incarcerated and their families. In her comments before … Continue reading →

Posted in African Americans, Community Forum, Human Rights, IMC, National, News, Policing, Politics, Prisoners, UC-IMC, Voices of Color | Comments Off on Children With Incarcerated Parents Played Key Role in Phone Justice Victory!

Mother Nature EP by Klevah and T.R.U.T.H: The Elements Personified

Posted on 11/19/2015 by Ruth Nicole Brown

There is no greater time to be a hip hop head in Champaign-Urbana. While the towns have always boasted superb talent―there is deep hip hop history here―that two emcees joined forces to create something new is newsworthy. Shasta Knox a.k.a … Continue reading →

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Hometown Dedication

Posted on 11/19/2015 by Coco Harmon

The below poem was read by Coco Harmon at the 15-year anniversary celebration for the Urbana-Champaign Independent Media Center. You can watch it online here thanks to UPTV. — Have you been there? You know, that moment when your legs … Continue reading →

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Culture, Liberation, and #BlackLivesMatter

Posted on 09/03/2015 by Amira Davis

During the early 70s, Amilcar Cabral wrote extensively on the theme of liberation and the collective persona of subjugated people expressed as culture. His libratory praxis offered a context to dialectically engage notions of freedom and strategies for its attainment. … Continue reading →

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This Black Life Matters

Posted on 09/03/2015 by Teresa Barnes

Michael Brown was killed a year ago. They used to say, “It’s been a long, hot summer” but it’s been another long, hot, horror-filled year in the US; every single day another Michael Brown. This is someone I know. In … Continue reading →

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First Class Justice vs. “the Cattle Call”

Posted on 09/03/2015 by Public i

By a Courtwatcher Courtwatch is a group of citizens who volunteer to attend criminal proceedings by request of the defendant or a family member of a jailed defendant. We are there as witnesses to criminal justice in Champaign County, to … Continue reading →

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